A woman's life, by Guy De Maupassant

A woman's life , by Guy De Maupassant -

It is the story of Jeanne, an exuberant and imaginative girl of noble birth ,who has all the dreams and aspiration of youth - finding love and living the dream life.

She is the only child of her parents and never seen any of her wishes thwarted, cosseted and protected that she is from all the harsh realities of life.

She falls in love quickly and gets married thereafter thinking all the joy will follow as is expected. Slowly the fog lifts, she becomes aware of the person her husband is

In her heart she felt resentful towards Julien for not understanding as much, for lacking this finer sense of modesty, this instinctive delicacy of feeling; and she felt as though there was a veil between them, a barrier, and realized for the first time that two people are never completely one in their heart of hearts, in their deepest thoughts, that they walk side by side, entwined sometimes but never completely united, and that in our moral being we each of us remain forever alone throughout our lives.

Her husband gradually takes over the estate and all its doings and her parents placid acceptance of his misdoings turn her into a passive and apathetic being. She stops caring about the open dalliances of her husband and turns to her child and religion for emotional support.The church, in its rigidity demands a too steep price from her and the child ,in his immature ways ultimately betrays her too.

She turns totally inward and looks upon life as something which has treated her un-fair..

The journey of her life from an optimistic wide-eyed girl to a fatalistic and wounded grandmother is so vivid that you have a feeling of having lived a lifetime in the span of the book...and a sad life that is..with no hope of redemption or any hint of happy ending..what is the point of that story it seems..

So, I thought I would try to find out something more about the writer and the writing style :

Guy De Maupassant seems to be the greatest French short story writer of 19th century, influenced by Gustav Flaubert .

This novel is written in the naturalist style i.e portraying things as they are which might be harsh and stark sometimes i.e poverty, indifference, sexuality, prostitution etc .

Naturalism goes beyond realism in the attribution of human behavior to their social environment and heredity .. something akin to the evolution theory that a human being's character is shaped by its surrounding and circumstances and determinism i.e. belief in a will, but not a free will, rather an enslaved will on account of various factors.

Coincidentally, I saw a marathi movie yesterday - 'Shevri' whose protagonist Vidya is a similar charater..being swayed by the wind of life..by what happens to her...and not something that she makes happen...It is a very sad but also a frustrating story because you expect the character to take charge of their life somehow, sometime..but they never do............

Note to self:

Check out the classic American Naturalist work - Maggie: A Girl Of The Streets , Stephen Crane

Serena , not so Serene..

Its a saying somewhere that 'A woman is behind every battle and every war' ... Take Ramayana , Mahabharata ... they've all proven that

'Heaven hath no rage like a love to hatred turned, nor hell a fury like a woman scorned' ..

 

and then meet Serena Pemberton , the heroine of the book with same name , by Ron Rash..

She is ambitious - dreaming of logging in the un-chartered jungles of Brazil,

fearless - she tamed an eagle and it kills snakes @ her bidding ,

equal to any man - back in 1920s she is wearing trousers, riding horse astride and greeting each man with a strong handshake, also

power-thirsty - anyone who comes in her way is 'taken care of' and not with much discretion since she is the overlord,

overbearing - though her husband is a huge man and has done a lot before she came into his life, he is diminished when she is around ,

evil - she sends her 'stub' to track down and kill her husband's illegitimate son because she cannot have her own ,

autocrat - she has her own sense of right and wrong, moral and otherwise and infinite power to exercise

 

She is the heroine of this expansive and intriguing story , a contemporary portrayal of Macbeth and the levels to which hunger for power can take you..

READ it !

Library loot

Todays library loot includes :

 

• The English patient , Michael Ondaatje - I have been meaning to read this since long and I finally ordered it from the lib...Ive read Ondaatje's Divisidaro and though a very unstructured novel, I quite liked the feel of it..and 'The English patient' is his most famous one I think...hope I enjoy it..
• Fear and Trembling , Amelie Nothomb - I dont remember where I picked this reference from..maybe one of the blogs I wander about or some book news site..Its described as "Alternately disturbing and hilarious, unbelievable and shatteringly convincing"  - looks like a good riveting read !
• Purple Hibiscus , Chimamanda Ngozi - I have a distinct feeling Ive read this one already but Im unsure...does that happens to anyone else ?? Sometimes I read reviews, excerpts too many times and start believing that I have read the book too ...In any case, I liked her 'Half of a yellow sun' and thought I will check this one out..If it turns Ive read it, out it goes...
• Evening is the whole day, Preeta Samarasan - I cannot resist a Desi(being an Indian ex-pat) novel..some chick-lits are intelligently written and some not...lets see what this turns out to be..

 

Happy Reading !!

Friday Movie watch - Gran Torino (*****)

Yes...thats 5 stars...out of 5 and I would happily dole out more !! 

Clint Eastwood is a great great director , he has created an endearing movie with endearing characters - Walt, Wally , Mr Kowalski whatever you call him...and Sue and Toad and Yum Yum :)

This man is pure genius I think ! He is 79 years old and he still surprises us with the strength of his performance..just awesome..and Im so surprised he didn't notch the oscars...all awards are a lot of hooey !!!

Im sure all those adjectives are not going to give any idea on what that movie is about (if you dont already know) , but everyone should just go and watch it...bossy...ain't I ;)

What Im going to do here though is list out all the Clint Eastwood movies, mark the ones that I've seen and rush off to get those which I havn't , so here goes (Boy, there are a lot many, but Im gonna try...and update as I do ) :

Actor credits :

• Gran Torino (2008)
  Walt Kowalski
• Pierre Rissient: Man of Cinema (2008)
• Trying to Get Good: The Jazz Odyssey of Jack Sheldon (2008)
  Himself
• Million Dollar Baby (2004)
  Frankie Dunn
• Words In Progress (2004)
  Himself
• A Decade Under the Influence (2003)
• Blood Work (2002)
  Terry McCaleb
• Kurosawa (2001)
  Himself
• Space Cowboys (2000)
  Frank Corvin
• Forever Hollywood (1999)
  Himself
• True Crime (1999)
  Steve Ev Everett
• Absolute Power (1997)
  Luther Whitney
• Wild Bill, Hollywood Maverick: The Life and Times of William A. Wellman (1996)
  Himself
• A Personal Journey with Martin Scorsese Through American Movies (1996)
  Himself
• The Bridges of Madison County (1995)
  Robert Kinkaid
• Don't Pave Main Street: Carmel's Heritage (1994)
• Shooting 'In the Line of Fire' (1994)
  Himself
• In the Line of Fire (1993)
  Frank Horrigan
• A Perfect World (1993)
  Red Garnett
• Unforgiven (1992)
  Bill Munny
• White Hunter, Black Heart (1990)
  John Wilson
• The Rookie (1990)
  Nick Pulovski
• Pink Cadillac (1989)
  Tommy Noak
• The Dead Pool (1988)
  Inspector Harry Callahan
• Heartbreak Ridge (1986)
  Sergeant Thomas Highway
• Pale Rider (1985)
  Preacher
• City Heat (1984)
  Lieutenant Speer
• Tightrope (1984)
  Wes Block
• Sudden Impact (1983)
  Inspector Harry Callahan
• Firefox (1982)
  Mitchell Gant
• Honkytonk Man (1982)
  Red Stovall
• Any Which Way You Can (1980)
  Philo Beddoe
• Bronco Billy (1980)
  Bronco Billy McCoy
• Escape From Alcatraz (1979)
  Frank Morris
• Every Which Way But Loose (1978)
  Philo Beddoe
• The Gauntlet (1977)
  Ben Shockley
• The Enforcer (1976)
  Inspector Harry Callahan
• The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976)
  Josey Wales
• The Eiger Sanction (1975)
  Jonathan Hemlock
• Thunderbolt And Lightfoot (1974)
  Thunderbolt
• High Plains Drifter (1973)
  Stranger
• Magnum Force (1973)
  Inspector Harry Callahan
• Joe Kidd (1972)
  Joe Kidd
• Dirty Harry (1971)
  Inspector Harry Callahan
• Play Misty for Me (1971)
  Dave
• The Beguiled (1971)
  John McBurney
• Kelly's Heroes (1970)
  Kelly
• Two Mules For Sister Sara (1970)
  Hogan
• Paint Your Wagon (1969)
  Pardner
• The Witches (1969)
  Husband
• Coogan's Bluff (1968)
  Deputy Sheriff Walt Coogan
• Hang 'Em High (1968)
  Jed Cooper
• Where Eagles Dare (1968)
  Lieutenant Morris Schaffer
• The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly (1968)
  Blondie
• For a Few Dollars More (1967)
  Man With No Name
• A Fistful of Dollars (1964)
  Man With No Name
• Ambush at Cimarron Pass (1958)
  Keith Williams
• Hell Bent For Glory (1958)
  George Moseley
• Escapade in Japan (1957)
• Never Say Goodbye (1956)
  Will
• Star in the Dust (1956)
• The First Traveling Saleslady (1956)
  Jack Rice
• Francis in the Navy (1955)
• Lady Godiva (1955)
  1st Saxon
• Revenge of the Creature (1955)
  Lab Technician
• Tarantula (1955)
  1st Pilot
  
  
  
  

Director Credits

• The Invictus (2009)
  Director
• Changeling (2008)
  Director
• Gran Torino (2008)
  Director
• Flags of Our Fathers (2006)
  Director
• Letters From Iwo Jima (2006)
  Director
• Million Dollar Baby (2004)
  Director
• Piano Blues (2004)
  Director
• Mystic River (2003)
  Director
• Blood Work (2002)
  Director
• Space Cowboys (2000)
  Director
• True Crime (1999)
  Director
• Absolute Power (1997)
  Director
• Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil (1997)
  Director
• The Bridges of Madison County (1995)
  Director
• A Perfect World (1993)
  Director
• Unforgiven (1992)
  Director
• White Hunter, Black Heart (1990)
  Director
• The Rookie (1990)
  Director
• Bird (1988)
  Director
• Heartbreak Ridge (1986)
  Director
• Pale Rider (1985)
  Director
• Sudden Impact (1983)
  Director
• Firefox (1982)
  Director
• Honkytonk Man (1982)
  Director
• Bronco Billy (1980)
  Director
• The Gauntlet (1977)
  Director
• The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976)
  Director
• The Eiger Sanction (1975)
  Director
• Breezy (1973)
  Director
• High Plains Drifter (1973)
  Director
• Play Misty for Me (1971)
  Director

Revolutionary Road (****)

Its a story of a couple living on 115, Revolutionary road in an American town in mid 1950s ..a picture perfect couple..2 kids...a picture perfect family..everyone says so too..

But we know nothing is picture perfect...April is a failed artist with an unknown yearning in her heart..Frank is someone who made her laugh once...a regular guy who is aware of his responsibilities and is fulfilling them through a mundane job..he once had some vague dreams and smart mouth...but not anymore..its all lost in the boring job and if there is some dissatisfaction with life, a casual lay here or there takes care of it..

April's yearning keeps getting stronger ..she doesnt knows what she is looking for..but this is not what she wanted in her life...afterall they are unique, they are here to fulfill a destiny..

One day she remembers Frank saying that he had never felt more alive than when he was in Paris...maybe thats the answer...moving to Paris...realise Franks dreams...find a purpose in life !

Frank is made amenable of the idea and things start moving...tickets are purchased...house put on sale...smiles appear on faces and happiness creeps up the eyes...you can feel the energy and joy of new beginings...

You know though - ironically , Frank is 'discovered' by the Big boss and offered a more creative role and better money..he gets tempted...April finds out she is pregnant...putting a damper on their plans...Frank takes it easily, a bit relieved that he doesnt has to find out what he wants to do in his life....

It seems like end of a dream...end of life for April...Frank cannot understand what April wants...why is she not content 'playing house' ...he doesnt realises the depth of her despair and the ending is something that we can predict now, but maybe not in those times...

After the movie , I felt thankful to be living in 20th century where I will not be labeled 'insane' if I want a personality apart from what my family defines me..I wont be called abnormal if I want to develop my interests, pursue my dreams...

We should remind ourselves time and again that all the things in life that we take for granted were all fought for by countless men & women before us...all of them...we have come a long way ahead....and there is longer to go..........