Posts

Showing posts from December, 2012

Moving up the tree and other stories

Story 1: I was lounging at the bottom of my tree when I heard about the promotion. Now I watch my nephew's cherubic fists fight imaginary spectres and his sleepy, grey eyes, I feel proud.Maybe hanging on the branches is kinda better than sitting at the bottom of the trunk. Story 2: I feel angry and helpless with myself and the world. My arm is in an sling and I cannot get up without help. I am dependent on others and I feel frustrated. Story 3: Everything is an uproar. The well-oiled machine has been thrown off by the cog that has stopped working. The machine creaks and compains and bursts out in sporadic fits of anger. Story 4: The world is a headless chicken. I don't agree with those in charge and they ask me if I know English. Huh. Story 5: The world is old and cold and pretty. Leaves fall off the tall lime trees that line the road. There is nothing more tranquil, more beautiful. I'm at peace.

Tender is the night

Image
I fell in love with F. Scott Fitzgerald after The Great Gatsby . The book is an expression of torrid emotions that takes you to sublime heights and drags you down to the depths of despair, like all good books should. (I do not own the picture. I have sponged off the blog 'Books to the ceiling') It is said that Tender is the Night , one of Scott's last books reflects his life. And indeed it does. Tender is the Night is the story of Dick, his wife Nicole and an American actress, Rosemary. The plot is set on the French Riviera, but it moves through Switzerland and US as the story progresses. Fitzgerald's prose is fluid, evocative and graceful. It is succinct but highly expressive. He is nostalgic but cynical and there ar cracks in his rosy spectacles. As for the book, the characters are highly complex. The novel is divided into three books. The first completely baffled me. I could not understand the motives behind the actions of the characters. They surprised