Tania's Words
here is an empty shell- a resonant shadow- waitingArchive for Ben Linus
The Olympics, Taco Dip, and the Death Cold.
I am watching the Olympics and eating taco dip. What an exciting day. Really. Lately, it seems like nothing is going on. Maybe it is cause we are all stuck under the misery that is the death cold. Some of you may remember waaaay back around Jan 15th when I was complaining about a death cold. Yes, I am still sick. I think it is finally on its last legs, for which I am eternally thankful. Unfortunately for Parker, this death cold still has him firm in its grip. Two kinds of antibiotics later, he is still not better. This is really getting rather old.
Due to the cold, I haven’t really read very much. I did finish Ethan Frome, by Edith Wharton, which I really liked. Although I found her writing to be a rather odd mix of cliche and wonderful. If such a thing works. I do wonder if that isn’t because her style of writing has not aged very well- or if it just became rather over emulated by other writers? At some points, her prose is sparse and moving, beautifully descriptive and very real. At other times, it seems trite and over burdened, even painfully “romance novel”- esque.
Otherwise, I enjoyed the story. It really had me thinking- on the one hand, there is a part of the reader (or maybe just me), that sympathized with Ethan’s plight- his loveless marriage, his absolute lack of choices, his visceral desire to be with the woman he loves. I also appreciated his sense of duty, and the fact that he was selfless enough to realize that he could not leave his wife with no resources or cheat his friends for the sake of his happiness alone. I think because we live in a culture which celebrates individuality, and where there is this idea of taking care of yourself and your happiness at all costs, I really responded to this in Ethan. The fact was that in order for him to be happy, he would have had to cheat his friends and neighbors, and leave his sick wife with the mess to clean up, and no money or property or family to care for her.
I also appreciated the way that the story ended, although I can’t really explain why. It certainly didn’t have a happy ending. In no way could it have- had he and Mattie successfully committed suicide, it wouldn’t have been happy. It might, however, have held that strange sort of romanticism that stories like Romeo and Juliet have. Instead, Wharton had them live with the consequences of their choices for the rest of their lives. Because life isn’t easy and we don’t always get what we want. And that is just the truth. I’ve learned this for myself in so many different ways. And even though this is true, we still have this wonderful gift every day- of life. And with it, endless possibilities and opportunities. But that is just my take. I don’t really know how Ethan felt, as his romantic story ends with the sledding accident, and the reader is just left pondering the consequences of his and Mattie’s impulsive actions.
Anyway, after Ethan Frome, I picked up Cry, the Beloved Country, by Alan Patton. I’ve been reading it slowly for about a week and a half, and am enjoying it. It is a very different sort of book from those I have been reading. It is really beautifully written. There is something about the literature that has come out of Africa- those books that I have read have a sort of different quality, a different style of prose and narrative, that I really enjoy. I am hoping to finish it soon. Then, unfortunately, I must take a break from the fun book reading, to read The Lost Symbol, by Dan Brown, for The Book Club. Blah. I don’t want to read it, but I did promise I’d read all the books this year. So I must.
Might I just add that I had a wonderful little Lost/Book Frenzy mashup the other day? I am watching Season 3, which is notoriously NOT my favourite season. I am enjoying it more this time around than last, but then again, I have more answers now, so I need not be so annoyed that I have no idea what is going on. Anyway, I was watching the episode where Ben cons Sawyer into thinking they’ve given him a pacemaker. Anyway, I laughed my ass off when Sawyer quotes something from Of Mice and Men to Ben and then says, “You’d like it, puppies get killed.” (Or something to that effect). I also, however, really appreciated how much more I got out of that scene, now that I’ve finally read the book. Especially when Ben is quoting the book back to Sawyer- the passage where Crooks says ” A guy needs somebody- to be near him…A guy goes nuts if he ain’t got nobody. Don’t make no difference who the guy is, longs he’s with you. I tell ya…I tell ya a guy gets too lonely an’ he gets sick.”
I think that this passage, in this moment between Ben and Sawyer is so important, especially as we see Sawyer now, realizing that maybe he is just one of those people who is meant to be alone. As he is beginning to blame himself for Juliette’s death, thinking that perhaps if he had not been selfish, if he had been able to bear his loneliness, she might not be dead…I think that this theme will become more important as the show wraps up. But I could be wrong. We will see when it ends in May (sniffle….)
Well I am off to finish my taco dip and watch some more Olympics. I should go to bed early, as Parker will probably be up early- poor thing has a terrible cough, but thank goodness his fever is gone, the bloody noses have passed, and he is eating again. It helps that the whole downstairs is opened up now, so he can run around and be distracted from his misery. Especially since his Grandma gave him a wonderful valentines day present- a special broom all of his own. His “boom”, has been sawed off so it is shorter, with a good rubber tipped cane tip on the end (so that he can’t hurt us when he is wielding it), and it has his name on it as well. He loves his “boom” so much, he tried to share it with the cats. They didn’t like that very much 🙂
Tania's Words 