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Wild Words from Wild Women

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thejohngaltline

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As a birthday gift, a coworker gave me a day-by-day calendar called "Wild Words from Wild Women." I put it on my desk and dutifully turn to a new page everyday, thus far finding such uninspiring quotes as "A kiss that speaks volumes is seldom a first edition" (I forget who said that, now) and something from Coco Chanel about jumping out a window if you're the object of passion.

But today, I was delighted to find the following:

You have no idea how promising the world begins to look once you have decided to have it all for yourself. And how much healthier your decisions are once they become entirely selfish.

It's from Anita Brookner, an author. Has anyone heard of her? I looked her up on the Wiki; apparently she's written twenty-some books that have been likened to Jane Austen's work, stylistically. I'm curious to see if her writing reflects the beautiful rationality evidenced in this quote.

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It's from Anita Brookner, an author. Has anyone heard of her? I looked her up on the Wiki; apparently she's written twenty-some books that have been likened to Jane Austen's work, stylistically. I'm curious to see if her writing reflects the beautiful rationality evidenced in this quote.

She wrote twenty-some books in twenty years, some of which have been made into TV movies. I checked out one of her novels from a library few years ago and could not finish it.

From what I gather, the recurring theme of her novels is human inability to form or have satisfactory relationships, in love, and in life generally. Many of her main characters take a position of being on the outside looking in at people in their life, feeling the disconnect. Many are unheoric, timid, lonly, dull, depressing, regretful, grey. You find her characters realize they did not truly live life but instead skipped around its corners or they look back and see a lifetime of repeated episodes of defeat. Her novels are very slow, almost no plot, and full of melancholia.

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From what I gather, the recurring theme of her novels is human inability to form or have satisfactory relationships, in love, and in life generally.

Case in point:

The essence of romantic love is that wonderful beginning, after which sadness and impossibility may become the rule.

She also says:

A complete woman is probably not a very admirable creature. She is manipulative, uses other people to get her own way, and works within whatever system she is in.

Ahhh, no. That would make her a "compleat witch" according to LaVeyan Satanism.

She has also written a work titled (which is not listed on the Wiki...), Romanticism and Its Discontents:

Romanticism is not just a mode; it literally eats into every life. Women will never get rid of just waiting for the right man.

I personally would read the latter book before I would read any of her other works (since I'm interested in Romanticism right now).

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I saw a quote like this in a book at jamba juice I'm paraphrasing but it went something like this: "The best day of your life is the day you decide to live for yourself. After that theres no blaming anyone."

I'm buying it next time I go in, so maybe then I will post it.

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