The intention was good but there are some holes in the theory.
It ended up focusing on a lot of instances which an active reader have come across already from different news outlets. Repeating a lot of them and trying to put them in a perspective would have been better rather than just quoting them and concluding this is wrong. A lot of points were a bit myopic in nature given the potential of the small changes in a longer term.
We can't call it revolutionary even if it asking for a revolution. Change is a slow process and speeding it up can cause more complicated scenarios. The one thing which I agree to is that education is the most important part because once the critical thinking is set in motion by knowledge (and it doesn't just have to be scientific, even art/literature will do), it will bring logic and reasoning in the whole debate. There are many examples which show that the education has failed but in a broader perspective they are very small in quantum if they sound loudest.
Patience is the keyword and there is nothing like eternal peace.
Peace
This is a regular love story with some identities thrown in.
We all carry our crosses, and it is not fair to say that one is heavier than other. Which is what was the best part in this book. It doesn't try to be the voice which opposes the violence against black people. It rather takes this up in a subtle manner and shows how it actually affects their lives at a very micro level.
The fear, anger, and helplessness that comes out of being the target changes you a lot and there is nothing that can justify it. The worst part is that we are still talking about these things in 21st century which tells us how much change is still required.
The voice of the whole book is a lot dreamy and I didn't connect with all of it but it is worth a read.
Love is not strong in itself but it can bring the strongest out of you.
Peace
It is a bunch of notes which might be considered to be dirty by some or it can be euphemistically called crude.
But it is neither dirty nor crude. And if you are uncomfortable with some details of sex and desires then it is not for you.
I have not read any of his poetry but this is on my list now.
Peace
Madness comes in all forms and it is not just the action/behaviour but the thoughts, dreams or even feelings can be categorised as madness by a person who doesn't understand what causes it.
Nagel is an epitome of dreamer with the eyes that can see shrewdness which is not visible to others. But this knowledge doesn't alter his behaviour. He is equally generous to anyone. His idea of love which swings between self sacrifice and innocence.
The narrative is easy to follow and is written with a unique monologue style where a lot of times you don't see the statements from other characters. I can't say if it makes it unique but definitely gives a different outlook.
I believe it is called mysteries because it is full of them. But a lot them remain unanswered because it is not a thriller but a psychological portrayal of all the characters directly addressed or not (there are some characters who are mentioned but they never appear).
You can see a more aggressive version of Dostoevsky's Myshkin in Nagel but Nagel comes with a different wavelength where he puts himself in absurd positions and then defends it too.
I'll look forward to read Hunger one day.
Love
I am going real global in my reading because library is full of works from Noble prize winners.
I never read an Egyptian author before and was glad that I found this one. Not because it is from a Noble prize winner but because it tells you the stories of people from different countries and cultures.
But one this is for sure that the sad things are more or less same everywhere. This is a story of a middle class family who falls into chaos after the death of the head of the family.
It is full of emotions of growing up, love, loss, pride and absurdity of life. It has a tight narrative which leaves you on a high and dry note in the end.
We're what we choose willingly or otherwise (poverty, greed, love, pride) and no matter what, the world keeps going.
Peace
Never read anything about IRA and this was the first one but it was less focused on IRA but more on how people make revolutionary choices.
Alice, is a woman you can see around and it might be difficult to guess what they have on mind. And even if they align themselves to a cause they still remain a different personality. A person who takes care of maintaining the decorum, setup for normal living conditions, everyone's convenience, staying pleasant and of course look for warmth in friends and relationships.
Hence the title. These people don't fit the bill of being a terrorist but of a person who has independent thoughts but still having an internal struggle. The people who don't know how far they can go for the ideology they are committed to. One man's terrorist another man's freedom fighter.
Unfortunately, commitment to an ideology without any flexibility can potentially cause a lot of harm. It can make you short sighted or even blindsided for a lot of things which might have sound evil to a rational mind. Since, there is no fixed formula to gauge the affect of current actions on the future, people living in the moment can end up doing things which will look bad in the hindsight.
Love is priceless but you may not know what you will end up paying for it.
Love
Books like these make you wish you have known the language in which it was originally written. But if you actually start with this thought then it is going to be a lot of languages.
Camus had his own themes and designs when he wrote these masterpieces. Of course, it hits like an absurdity to a lot of people but it was not written for them and we are all entitled to our opinions.
This is fairly small with only 120 page but the one thing which I noticed was that the first part was quite dedicated to develop the characters and the second part goes into the signature thought process what Camus is known for.
The title sounds like that Meursault was the stranger but if you get into his shoes, everyone else will look like a stranger. A man who is different and indifferent. The worst part is that he is not even trying to fit in.
This is not a synopsis of a research proposal but it is very easy to drive a wide range of conclusions on this one and given the brevity of the text they all may get aligned with a few good enough points.
It is definitely worth reading, and should be subjected to individual analysis and thoughts.
Peace
