The Culture Enthusiast: Books

Writer's corner

Books 9:00 AM

We are all writers here, right? Even if we don't consider ourselves starving artists we still write blog posts or college papers.

With that in mind, I'm introducing a new monthly feature called "Writer's corner". On the last Wednesday of the month I'll post tips on how to write better, interviews with authors, my personal experiences with writing and so on.

For the first Writer's corner, I'd like to begin with a great piece of advice given by author Ira Glass. I read this a couple of months ago and think it is one of the best things an aspiring writer could do (the highlights are mine):

“What nobody tells people who are beginners — and I really wish someone had told this to me . . . is that all of us who do creative work, we get into it because we have good taste. But there is this gap. For the first couple years you make stuff, and it’s just not that good. It’s trying to be good, it has potential, but it’s not.

But your taste, the thing that got you into the game, is still killer. And your taste is why your work disappoints you. A lot of people never get past this phase. They quit. Most people I know who do interesting, creative work went through years of this. We know our work doesn’t have this special thing that we want it to have. We all go through this. And if you are just starting out or you are still in this phase, you gotta know it’s normal and the most important thing you can do is do a lot of work. Put yourself on a deadline so that every week you will finish one story.

It is only by going through a volume of work that you will close that gap, and your work will be as good as your ambitions. And I took longer to figure out how to do this than anyone I’ve ever met. It’s gonna take awhile. It’s normal to take awhile. You’ve just gotta fight your way through.”

You guys know I love making deadlines and I think it's great to introduce a practical solution for a creativity problem. It's just so much easier than simply waiting for inspiration. You can watch the whole interview here.

What did you think about Glass' advice? Have you ever tried writing on a deadline?

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Sympathy for the devil - Iago and his popularity

Analysis 10:00 AM

Othello is one of my favorite Shakespeare plays. An interesting topic for reflection is how can the audience side with Iago - the play's wicked villain - and dislike Othello.

I mean, think about it. Iago is not trustworthy. He makes Othello and Roderigo believe he is on their sides, when in reality he is manipulating both.

He doesn’t really act, he spends most of the time convincing people to act in a way that favors his objectives. He lies constantly. He is dubious in his answers and does not take full responsibility for his actions.

Even his motivations are not consistent. At one time it is because he wants Cassio’s position and because Othello has slept with his wife. Later on, it is because Cassio has also slept with his wife.

Othello, on the other hand, has a high position in Venetian society due to his success in the army. When facing accusations, he seems very calm and in control. He manages to deliver a powerful and eloquent speech to convince the Duke and Brabantio about his fair play towards Desdemona.

So, how is it possible for us to like Iago and dislike Othello?

Firstly, on the universal sphere, encompassing viewers of any time or any place, the reason is that men are attracted to the devil. I subscribe to Martin Lings’ interpretation that Iago represents the devil and Othello represents the human soul. He says that “After Iago (…) there is no other single character of whom it can be said that allegorically he stands for the devil.”

Lings comments on how Iago hates other people’s virtues and how his purpose is to separate him from Desdemona, who according to Lings, represents the Spirit. Not only does Othello refer to him as the devil when trying to kill him, but Iago’s only power is his lies. This is another characteristic of the devil - he has no real power over men, only the one of using lies to convince men to sin.

As Martin Lings has put it “the devil is always at men’s elbow, bent on leading him astray.” We can see this is the way Iago interacts with all other characters of the play: he cunningly convinces Roderigo over and over to participate in his schemes, he lies to Othello and fabricate false evidence of Desdemona’s betrayal, he convinces Cassio to drink, Emilia to steal Desdemona’s handkerchief.

So, Iago could be considered attractive in the same way that the devil could be considered attractive. Mankind, since the Original Sin, has felt drawn to the power of evil and to its own power of committing evil deeds. People even try to rationalize the wrong things they are doing the same way Iago does. We convince ourselves that our evil doings are correct.

On the documentary "Making Shakespeare", Germaine Greer states that “we could all be Iago”. Ok, but on a daily basis we are much closer to being Roderigo, the “fallen man as such, impotently and inescapably caught as he is in the devil’s clutches.”

Secondly, if we look at modern audiences, the reason is that in our particular modern culture evil is considered attractive and it is portrayed in a good way. Many would see Iago as an ambitious character, a bold and courageous non conformist, who used creative methods to achieve what he set out to do.

While analyzing nihilism in modern pop culture, Thomas Hibbs states that we consider evil “alluring and awesome” . Hollywood and the media cultivate “villains by raising them to the status of celebrities” and the media is fascinated with evil, creating “cult heroes out of murderers”.

Modern audiences have grown accustomed to interesting evil villains and are suspicious of heroes and of any noble values. So, modern viewers can very easily like Iago and think Othello is a fool that fell prey to a smarter, superior man.

In a universal sense, people are drawn to evil and characters that embody it. In modern culture, viewers are conditioned to seeing evil as attractive and glamorous and to regard good characters as morons.

Sources:
The Sacred Art of Shakespeare by Martin Lings. Vermont: Inner Traditions International, 1998. pp. 59
Shows about nothing. Nihilism in Popular Culture from The Exorcist to Seinfeld. by Thomas Hibbs Dallas: Spence Publishing Company, 1999. pp. 110, 119-120

Have you read or watched Othello? What do you think Iago appeal is?

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Why is literature important?

Analysis 10:00 AM

When I was in college, this question popped up a lot of times and most professors didn't seem to have a good answer for it. And I was a literature major, mind you.

Deep down, I always knew literature was quite important, not only for me or for professors but for everybody. Eventually I had to come up with an answer to give my friends who studied engineering. As a matter of fact, people from "practical" fields such as engineers, doctors, lawyers could always make us, insecure English majors, feel useless.

It amazed me to find engineers who actually appreciate literature and understand its importance while at the same time I heard literature professors saying the subject they teach had no real importance whatsoever.

With time, I've learn to find a couple of answers to why we should all study literature or at least read books. (By the way, I'm an advocate of reading good books and not necessarily a lot of books.) But these answers always came from other writers or thinkers.

The other day as I was reading Jane Austen's Persuasion I could find a more personal answer. The characters in this book are much less lovable than in other books such as Pride and Prejudice and Emma. Bottom line: it's difficult - if not impossible - to like them.

There's this one character, Mary, who is just so full of herself. She is so proud and thinks she is so much better than everyone else. And it's not charming pride, like Mr. Darcy's. It is ugly, mediocre and harmful pride.

Now, it's difficult for me to say this but, I saw a little bit of my own thoughts and behaviour in Mary. However, this is Ok. Because I could see that since what Mary does is uncalled for, lame and selfish - if my actions are similar to hers, they are also uncalled for, lame and selfish. With literature, or at least with good literature, we can see what we do as it really is. It's a wake up call.

This self examination can be done through a lot of different ways, not only literature. But sometimes, even if we are confronted with our own mistakes, we still feel that we are right. It's very difficult to admit that we are wrong, or selfish, or proud.

Inside our own heads we can always come up with some sort of excuse or justification for acting the way we do. But once you see someone doing the same things you do, suddenly it's not so pretty anymore. There is no excuse for the way Mary acts.

It's a little shocking, but it can produce changes. And I mean, life altering changes.

To tell you the truth, I was quite happy to figure out a more personal explanation to the importance of literature. Maybe if our college professors fail to provide us with a good answer, it's up to us - literature students and lovers, or as my Semantics professor said "language people" - to answer why literature matters.

What about you? What does literature mean to you?

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Art and Literature: Nicola Starr

Art 10:00 AM

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Neighbors: a fictional approach

Books 10:25 AM

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Imagining fictional characters

Books 10:40 AM

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Questionnaire extraordinaire

Books 9:09 AM

We all like questionnaires, right? RIGHT? Well, I like both reading and answering them. They remind me of my childhood and it makes me feel like I'm being interviewed.

The lovely Devynn from Quicker than a Kiss posted this literature questionnaire, which I really enjoyed reading. It's a good way of learning about a person's tastes and getting to know each other. I took the liberty of shortening it a bit, I hope she doesn't mind. I'm a shy person, I can't stand being interviewed for too long.

1. Favorite childhood book?

I actually love children books and have plenty of them. Some of the most known that feature in my collection are The tale of Peter Rabbit, Le Petit Prince and Ink Heart.

2. What are you reading right now?

The Chronicles of Narnia - I didn't mention this, but I still read children's books.

3. Bad book habit?

Reading even if I'm sleepy and totally not paying attention.

4. Do you have an e-reader?

No and probably will never have - I'm not much into gadgets.

5. Do you prefer to read one book at a time, or several at once?

Not several, but always two. Usually a non-fiction and a fiction book, because this way I don't confuse names, dates or locations.

6. Have your reading habits changed since starting a blog?

A bit. I try to be more organized now to easily spot passages I want to blog about.

7. Favorite book you’ve read this year?

Emma, by Jane Austen, hands down.

8. How often do you read out of your comfort zone?

Hum... pretty much never. I read difficult books and books I don't fully understand but never things that make me uncomfortable or scare me.

9. Can you read on the bus?

Yes, but I haven't ever since someone told me you can go blind by doing this.

10. Favorite place to read?

Anywhere quiet, but probably my bed after sleeping in on Sundays.

11. What is your policy on book lending?

I pretty much lend any book people ask me and even lend them voluntarily if I think someone should read them.

12. Do you ever dog-ear books?

Not really, I like using (and making my own) book markers.

13. Do you ever write in the margins of your books?

Always. I write comments, opinions about characters, an occasional "haha".

"I hate her"written on the side of my copy of Emma

14. Favorite genre?

Classics.

15. Genre you rarely read (but wish you did?)

Biographies.

16. Have you ever read a self-help book?

Well, I don't know if this qualifies as self help, but I once read a Dr. Phil book on how to lose weight.

17. Favorite cookbook?

Any from Martha Stewart - or my mother's.

18. Favorite reading snack?

I don't eat while reading, but I do like to drink some hot cocoa.

19. Name a case in which hype ruined your reading experience.

Since I mostly read classics, there's not a lot of hype going on. But I do hate those modern interpretations of Shakespeare, for example, that have nothing to do with the text and are only valid on the critic's mind.

20. How often do you agree with critics about a book?

50/50 I guess. I know I just bad mouthed literary critics, but I do enjoy reading criticism even when I don't agree with it.

21. How do you feel about giving bad/negative reviews?

I have never done so in my blog, despite doing it in conversations in real life. I prefer to offer good recommendations as opposed to criticize.

22. If you could read in a foreign language, which language would you choose?

French. I would really like to read Flaubert's correspondence in the original.

23. Most intimidating book you’ve ever read?

Gravity's Rainbow by Thomas Pynchon. I actually never got around to finishing the book.

24. Most intimidating book you’re too nervous to begin?

Ulisses by James Joyce.

25. Favorite Poet?

I like a lot of poets. Louis Macneice, C. Day Lewis, Robert Frost, Fernando Pessoa are some of my favorites.

26. Favorite fictional character?

Off the top of my head, Hamlet.

27. Favorite fictional villain?

Ivan from Brothers Karamazov. Maybe he's not such a villain-villain, but his mihilistic speech frigthens me.

28. Books you’re most likely to bring on vacation?

Any short paper back - I like to pack light.

29. The longest you’ve gone without reading.

For the past 5 years (when I started college), a couple of days, I guess.

30. Name a book that you could/would not finish.

A lot of books because I recently decided not to finish a book just to finish it. If it doesn't seem right, I stop and never look back.

31. Favorite film adaptation of a novel?

That's a tough one. There are many movies I like that were based on novels (Dr. Zhivago, The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, A Clockwork Orange, Lord of the Rings) but since I never read the actual novels, I can't really compare. I really like 1984 with John Hurt, though.

45. Most disappointing film adaptation?

Pride and Prejudice with Keira Knightley. Not a popular answer, but I didn't really like the portrayal of Elizabeth and Jane.

31. The most money I’ve ever spent in the bookstore at one time?

I never really spent a lot, that's just not my style. I use the library and shop at used book stores. Plus, I'm lucky enough to always receive books as gifts.

32. Do you like to keep your books organized?

I sure do. As a matter a fact everytime I dust my books (once every 2 or 3 months) I rearrange their order - for fun and to exercise my memory a little.

33. Do you prefer to keep books or give them away once you’ve read them?

It depends. If I'll want to read again or consult it in the future, I keep them. The ones I didn't like or are not relevant to me anymore are donated to church.

34. Name a book that made you angry.

When a book starts making me angry I actually stop reading it. But To the Lighthouse made me a little angry. I mean, how about just going to the Lighthouse already?

35. Favorite guilt-free, pleasure reading?

Something I read only for the pleasure of it is Nero Wolfe detective books, but I haven't read any for a while.

I hope you enjoyed the questionnaire. Do answer it too so we can know a little bit more about each other. I'd love to check your answers!

Images via For the love of books (except image 2)

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Emma by Jane Austen

Books 11:27 AM

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How to use the internet wisely

Books 2:14 PM

Source

A couple of weeks ago I shared my tips on how to read more often and tip number 3 was avoid distractions.

The biggest distraction source in my life is the internet. If you face the same problem - spending hours and hours just browsing you tube, pinterest and funny websites - here are some organizational tips that I use to stay focused and get back on track:

1) Set up a time

It always starts with an innocent "I'll just check my emails". Next thing you know it's midnight, you ate Doritos for dinner and accomplished nothing. To avoid this dreadful scenario, plan in advance how long you will stay online. It doesn't matter if it is 10 minutes, 20 minutes or half and hour. You decide, just make sure you stick to it.

2) Know what you're doing on the internet

I actually have to make a lot of research on the internet but that research doesn't involve reading Suri's Burn Book. So I write down a little routine of necessary things I must do online (emails, blog comments/stats, check other blogs, research about what specific posts) and just do it.

3) Make a list of things you should be doing instead of being on the internet

Each morning I make a to-do list, but I also include a couple of fun things I could do offline. Like this:

4) Look for better offline options

I know the internet is the most practical and fastest thing ever invented but people survived fine without it. Take a little break from the internet by making research on actual books, connecting with friends over a cup of coffee, producing and creating offline (you can always share it afterwards!)

5) Make it suntory time

It's ok to rely on the internet for fun (I guess), but watch out for the quality of what you're watching/reading/seeing. One silly you tube video is harmless but what about a hundred?

Something that helps me look at things with perspective is that the internet - as amazing as it is - is a means for you to get knowledge and inspiration and to connect with people. However, it is still a means. It cannot be an end on itself. I always try to keep in mind what is my purpose when using the internet.

I'm afraid if I got my point across you'll turn off the internet - which is great, actually. But do come back and share your tips on how to use the internet consciouslly (I always need to be on the look out myself!)

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