Author: Nora D

Know Your Mistakes, Know Yourself

On By Nora DIn Story Power1 Comment

“Till this moment I never knew myself” … expressed by the protagonist of Jane Austen’s novel Pride and Prejudice when she gains insight into the truth of the past. A quote that demonstrates how being wrong or incorrect does not limit us, instead it truly frees us and helps find who we get to be. 

To give context to the quote, Elizabeth has just read Mr. Darcy’s letter that revealed Mr. Wickham is actually a cruel man who lied to Elizabeth and tried to wrongfully elope with Georgiana, Darcy’s younger sister. After realizing that she was unjustly cruel to Darcy, based on Wickham lies about him, she feels guilty and understands that her hatred toward Darcy was misled. With this realization, Elizabeth feels relieved and begins to uncover her romantic feelings for Darcy. Leading to the traditional comedic happy ending, where Elizabeth and Darcy resolve their conflict and finally get together. 


Although we all don’t get to know what our happy ending is, we get to see that realizing who you want to be is more powerful than ruminating in regret and self anger. Elizabeth comes to truly understand herself through the recognition of her mistakes and that her judgements may blind her from reality. As we all get ready to leave behind memories at this school, both good and bad, we can learn from Elizabeth. Choose to see how you have grown from an embarrassing moment during the past years, and choose to build the path you will create to not repeat mistakes. Pride and Prejudice was the first Austen novel I have ever read, though it was so memorable and amazing that I hope to read more in my future. She amplifies the strength of women in an oppressive society and admires the beauty of romance in a period focused more on the economic transaction of marriage. The story not only reflected society, it also reflected parts of myself I am still learning. Austen’s writing helps us all realize how literature is such an amazing human feat, and sometimes I am amazed by the amount of words spoken in the world. Though, there is a point when literature becomes more than communication, it becomes the guide to a meaningful existence.

An exploration of Death: “Because I could not stop for Death” and “Funeral”

On By Nora DIn RomanticismLeave a comment

In the song “Funeral” by the artist Phoebe Bridgers, she experiences death in a way that parallels Emily Dickinson’s “Because I could not stop for Death”. This is our group (Lilly, Rachel, Olivia, Claire, and Nora) analysis of the song:

And I have this dream where I’m screamin’ underwater

While my friends are wavin’ from the shore

And I don’t need you to tell me what that means

I don’t believe in that stuff anymore

This stanza of the song “Funeral” by Phoebe Bridgers parallels the meaning of the poem“Because I could not stop for Death”, by Emily Dickinson, by expressing how depression can feel isolating and can feel like coming closer to dying. The poem personifies death and how they get into a carriage on their way to the end of their life. Bridgers illustrates how she feels like she is drowning and no one can hear her, while she can see her friends on the shore. Both the speakers express their feeling of being alone and the process of watching life fade before their eyes. Bridgers is under water, so her view is skewed along with the speaker in the poem is in a carriage passing all parts of life through the window. Both speakers experience repetitive, endless sadness and the tainted view of life carrying on without them. The song and the poem convey meanings of helplessness and how uncontrollable life is that leads to an immense depression that feels like dying. 

Jesus Christ, I’m so blue all the time

And that’s just how I feel

Always have and I always will

I always have and always will

This stanza relates to Emily Dickinson’s poem because it includes the phenomenon of eternity, as the song’s author repeats that she will always feel “blue”: “Always have and I always will–I always have and always will,” (Bridgers). Dickinson expresses the idea of eternity throughout her dark poem and deliberately states that she is heading toward the afterlife for an Eternity in the last line of her text. She says, “Since then–’tis Centuries–and yet…Were toward Eternity,” (Dickinson). Both examples represent a dark feeling of endlessness that both narrators express. 

Funeral by Phoebe Bridgers is an example of a Romantic poem because of its negative emotional truth. The narrator expresses sadness, despair, and hopelessness throughout the stanzas of her song. In the first stanza, she says, “…it makes me so sad–when I think about it too much, I can’t breathe,” (Bridgers). The song also emphasizes the narrator’s personal experience and intuition rather than logic or reasoning. In the second stanza of Bridgers’ song, she writes, “And I have this dream where I’m screamin’ underwater–And I don’t need you to tell me what that means–I don’t believe in that stuff anymore,” (Bridgers). Here the narrator is favoring her own experiences and intuition over reasoning from peers, which is a pattern seen in Romantic poetry. 

I have a friend I call 

When I’ve bored myself to tears

And we talk until we think we might just kill ourselves

But then we laugh until it disappears

This stanza of Phoebe Bridgers’ “Funeral” compares to the concept behind Emily Dickinson’s “Because I could not stop for Death.” Both pieces explore the ideas of death and depression. The lines by Bridgers, “And we talk until we think we might just kill ourselves / But then we laugh until it disappears” explains how depression can overcome a person (Bridgers). These lines are reminiscent of “Because I could not stop for Death – / He kindly stopped for me” because they both are about how death can seem enticing while depressed (1-2, Dickinson). Both of the speakers respectively are yearning for peace and rest, which they think will only be found in death. In her poem, Dickinson describes a person being taken towards the afterlife in Death’s carriage which holds “Immortality” and that the carriage’s “Horses’ Heads / Were toward eternity” (4, 23-24, Dickinson). She depicts being dead as being immortal and eternal, which seems contradictory. However, in “Funeral,” Bridgers makes a similar statement by saying that she wants her endless sadness, her being “so blue all the time,” to end by committing suicide. 

The (Satirical) Truth of Caroline Bingley

On By Nora DIn Comedy/SatireLeave a comment

Dear Reader, 

It has come to my attention that over the past two centuries society has been reading an inaccurate portrayal of myself written by a woman with little sense herself. This novel of Pride and Prejudice, is a hysterical and offensive joke. The story is not at all accurate to my life or that of my brothers. So I must correct this “Jane Austen” and alter the falsehood she has created. 

Although I have the fondest appreciation for Jane, I cannot help but point out the disgrace of her family and it is a wonder that my brother married her at all. High class society is not meant for women of the Bennet family, especially one Miss Elizabeth Bennet. Or, for some trick of fate in which she married a man much too good for her, now I guess she is called Mrs. Elizabeth Darcy. In the story Elizabeth thinks that her judgments somehow made her better than me, so for all those reading I hope I articulate this in a way you commonfolk understand… I am much too advanced to be hurt by the words of a one Miss Austen. She simply could not understand a complex person like me. The idea of a woman writing at all should strike you as her first issue, no one should trust a woman as an author in the first place. Women have no place in the publishing of literature, they are only meant to write letters of correspondence not novels or plays. The prime example of this was the ridiculous Barbie movie that came out over the summer, demonstrating the catastrophe that happens when certain women are given a pen. Yes, I watched that offense against society, and  it was a fault of mine unfortunately. I love Barbie dolls, I happen to think that every little girl should aspire to look like Barbie. Though this feminism idea the film encouraged is silly and improper. Today’s women do not know what the standards used to be like. All ladies had to dance gracefully, never speak out of turn, and be pretty enough in order to catch a man’s eye. With all the new makeup they have nowadays, it really should not be very hard to do this. And if anyone needs an example of a perfect woman, they should look to me and they will see that I am the true ideal woman. 

The fact that this “book” has been so credited for the past 200 years is embarrassing, they should not teach such a heinous crime in any educational environment. Miss Austen paints our lovely society as a silly thing people buy into, when really, she was never good enough to experience the benefits of it. I can see why someone of her stature would feel left out, just as Elizabeth judged and criticized it because she too was an outsider. Just as those who criticize the Kardashians, they are beautiful women and who happen to live off of that beauty. Or Taylor Swift, she lives off her singing and also happens to be pretty, more people should look up to her. We both are blonde, so some would say we are quite similar. 

The only thing Miss Austen got correct was “Miss Bingley was deeply mortified by Darcy’s marriage”, being that we would have been a perfect match but he married her instead. You all should know that I am perfectly happy and have recently been watching the newest season of Bachelor, I highly recommend it. We used to do a similar thing with the season’s most eligible bachelors at Netherfield, they would court many different ladies and pick the one that suited them the best. So maybe society has not really changed as much as people think it has, they just cover it up with what people think is independence and power. I hope all young people stop trying to change the rules, society’s expectations were not as loose when I was your age but it was a better time then. So the next time you go to pick up an Austen novel, remember it is only her perspective and that writing about society is not the same as experiencing it. 

Yours ever, 

Miss Caroline Bingley

The Truth in the Tragedy

On By Nora DIn King Lear2 Comments

In Shakespeare’s The Tragedy of King Lear, Lear is so beloved and the his whole world, most importantly the play, revolves around him. When Lear realizes his daughters are not giving him the love and affection he believes he deserves, chaos follows and ensues. Lear basically throws a tantrum and looses his mind. It’s interesting to reflect on how his emotions are so widely accepted because he was wronged, but Goneril and Reagan are recognized as monsters and villains because they were angry with their father.

The play addresses gender roles frequently and is even praised for its questioning of social constructs, but in all honesty, it just reinforces them. Goneril and Reagan die over fighting for a man. Cordelia is murdered for her loyalty to her father. The only people left standing at the end are men. The entire play is about how a man began to loose his power, which lead to a war, which then lead to mass destruction and death. Yes, the play is a tragedy but not for the traditional Aristotle reasons. It is a tragedy because it is extremely depressing and makes us question Shakespeare’s intention for creating the story.

As a society, I think we have not grown as much as we would like to think we have. A play that was written 400 years ago still applies to today. Our world is centered around men and the broken structures it was built on. Women are still villainized if they threaten someone’s power. This story is beautifully written and remains relevant, and yes, we as humans have grown. But hopefully in another 400 years, we will not still find this play reflected in our daily lives. That we have finally found hope in our ability to grow and learn.

Shakespeare or Taylor Swift

On By Nora DIn Poetry3 Comments

Let’s play a game, I’ll give you a quote and you guess if Shakespeare or Taylor Swift wrote. Round 1: “Now I breathe flames each time I talk”. Round 2: “True love never did run smooth”. Round 3: “Does a scorpion sting when fighting back?”. Round 4: “Its obvious that wanting me dead has really brought you two together”. Round 5) “My pride fell with my fortunes”. Look to the bottom for the answers.

So, how many did you get right? The goal was to hopefully make you appreciate the beautiful lyrics that Taylor Swift create can indeed compare to Shakespeare and that she constructs amazing poetyr like he did. All the Taylor Swift lyrics used in the game were from her song “Mad Woman” on the album Folklore that was released in 2020. In the song, Swift demonstrates how society makes angry women seem like villains and how they are constantly belittled for experiencing any emotion that is not happiness. Especially with the title being a double entendre of “mad” as in angry but also meaning crazy. Swift begins the song with :

What did you think I’d say to that?
Does a scorpion sting when fighting back?
They strike to kill, and you know I will

By utilizing rhetorical questions to set the intense tone and the usual portrayal of her being known as too emotional. Swift continues the first verse:

Do you see my face in the neighbor’s lawn?
Does she smile?
Or does she mouth f*ck you forever?

Many who listen to Taylor Swift might know that up until she released this album, she had not used explicit swears and language in her lyrics. So her use of the swear word illustrates how powerful anger can be when society characterizes her as insane for feeling angry. Swift transitions into the chorus:

And when you say I seem angry, I get more angry
And there’s nothing like a mad woman
What a shame she went mad
No one likes a mad woman
You made her like that

This shows the common pain women face when people can’t understand how they feel and even more so assume how they feel instead. Therefore making them feel worse for feeling anything in the first place, being misinterpreted just leads to more pain and anger especially shown through the lyric “I get more angry/”. In the second verse:

They say “move on”, but you know I won’t
And women like hunting witches too
Doing your dirtiest work for you

The metaphor of the witch that relates to the Salem witch trials, demonstrates how our patriarchal society forces women to compete with one another in order to be successful and that hating other women has become the only way to gain approval. But even though women are pitted against each other, Swift points out that it is not their fault because “no one likes a mad woman/”. In order for women to support each other they have to be mad about the system that caused them to be enemies, furthering the idea that it’s very hard to be outwardly angry in a system that hates you and also wants you to smile 24/7. The bridge:

I’m taking my time, I’m taking my time
Cause you took everything from me
Watching you climb, watching you climb
Over people like me
The master of spin has a couple side flings
Good wives always know
She should be mad, should be scathing like me, but
No one likes a mad woman

The repetition in the bridge demonstrates the pain she faced by watching people walk all over her and that message that many women are afraid to speak up because they can not outrun the torment of disapproval. Folklore is one of the most poetic albums I have ever heard, but I picked this song because Taylor Swift sums up the paradox of being a woman in a complete painful and beautiful way. That being angry just means that you are alive and that you are human.

1)TS. 2)Shakespeare. 3)TS. 4)TS. 5) Shakespeare

We Had A Cape Holiday!

On By Nora DIn Existentialism, Film, Trust (film) - Hal Hartley1 Comment

In the 1990 movie Trust, directed by Hal Hartley, the main character Maria goes through an existential crisis that alters her entire perspective on life, the movie ultimately illustrates the power of individuality in a world centered on conformity. The overall theme of absurdity makes the movie a bit of a hard watch at times, with the random death, blunt swearing, and abrupt conversations. Although, there were intense moments that revealed present issues within society, especially with women’s reproductive health, mental health, and familial abuse.

After 17 year old Maria is kicked out of her house after supposedly murdering her father and the football player who got her pregnant dismisses her, she runs away to a barn where she meets Matthew, who is struggling with his relationship with his father and keeping a job. They both understand each other as misfits or odd ones out of society, so they form a friendship that develops into a romantic relationship. One day, Maria meets a woman that talks to her about the hatred she contains for her life, who she later finds out from the headline in the newspaper, stole a baby from a stroller. While looking for the woman’s husband, Maria searches for a man wearing a trench coat they know smokes a pipe and comes off of the train everyday at the same time. Maria waits to see who gets in the car with a sticker she thought would help her identify him, but she realizes that almost every car has the same sticker that reads “We had a trip to cape holiday!” Eventually Maria finds the husband and the baby is returned, and, although a little exaggerated, the scene reveals the way society prioritizes conformity in a way that makes anyone different feel alien or completely wrong for being true to themselves.

Maria struggles with finding her identity and autonomy throughout the movie which is contrasted by this idea, that everyone is chained to conformity and mindlessly follows the influence of what society deems acceptable. Especially within the upper and middle class community portrayed in Trust, and the cliched idea of vacationing in Cape Cod where everyone gets the same sticker to put on their bumper. Illustrating the journey of finding oneself and not faltering because of what society thinks is best. Even if you have to give up a Cape Holiday.

The Stranger…Things

On By Nora DIn Albert Camus, Power and Identity, Stranger3 Comments

The 1942 groundbreaking novel and Nobel prize winner, The Stranger by Albert Camus, demonstrates the story of a man who is a “stranger” to society and goes through life distant and removed. About 74 years later after it was released, a groundbreaking show that has won 13 Emmys called Stranger Things, a young girl emerges into society as a “stranger” but along the way finds a family and works to save the world. So how do these two bold and very different works connect? Well for one, the title is very similar. But the thing that really draws our attention is the main characters.

In season 1 of the show, Eleven is a 12 year old girl who is extremely powerful and has spent the duration of her life in a government lab being isolated and controlled. Then she escapes and meets 3 young boys looking for their missing friend in the woods. As most people know, the story goes on and they all form an unbreakable friendship that so far has spanned 4 seasons. One thing to remember is Eleven came from a lonely traumatic past and eventually found a new family that would support her. Here’s where we compare it to the novel, the main character, Meursault, has friends, coworkers, and had a mother growing up. He lives his life hiding visible emotions from the outside perspective and is mostly indifferent to the people in his life. When Meursault murders a man, he is put on trial and over time becomes more and more alone in his prison cell. Because he does not care enough to reach out to his girlfriend or good friends, he ends up completely alone.

So how does a twelve year old girl find strength and resilience within all the pain, but a fully grown man can not find it in himself to care enough about his loved ones to try to talk to them in his most crucial hour? Even though one is a modern TV show and one is a decades old novel that traditionally receives more credit, what is important to recognize is that although they have opposite beginnings and endings, both characters struggle with being accepted by society. The Stranger illustrates, a man that feels no remorse or happiness or love, how are we supposed to feel empathy and sympathy for him? Last I checked, murder is illegal and usually considered to be morally wrong. But I think it is a very common theme for readers to feel disappointed by the ending because “he did not deserve it” and whether you agree with that or not, I think it is important to reflect on his actions and overall apathy he carried throughout them.

The point being, the Stranger receives much applause for its reflection of society and a character that is an “outcast”, but is that not what many people have reflected on over the years? And some might even say, with more creativity and a more emotionally illustrated character? Just some food for thought.

Vanishing elephant or ignoring reality?

On By Nora DIn Memory/Past/History, Power of Stories/Storytelling, Short Stories1 Comment

How uncomfortable are we with our own history? How much do we try to cover it up? How often does it resurface? All questions asked when reading “The Elephant Vanishes” by Haruki Murakami, a story that might be about more than just a man fascinated with a vanishing elephant.

With words like “if it had been a spider monkey or a bat, they might have been able to get away with it, but the killing of an elephant would have been too hard to cover up”, don’t you reflect on what else a person or system could get away with (310)? This story illustrates how topics people are uncomfortable thinking about easily drift away, are ignored, or band-aided over. When the elephant and its keeper disappear one day in a small town in Japan, it was a big news story and extreme forces were called in to help search for them. After days turned into months, people stopped mentioning it and the unsolved mystery was forgotten. The story ends and everyone, including myself, is left angry because “nothing happened”. The elephant was not found, the town did not change, and regular life resumes.

Although, isn’t that the exact way our society works? Something awful happens or is brought to light, people start to care and talk about it, over time nothing changes, and the issue fades away from public view. Examples of this phenomenon include Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, school shootings, police brutality, the list goes on and on. Why is it that when people and systems are called out for harming people, we get uncomfortable and instead of addressing it we ignore and hope it goes away? Why is it that when another child dies in a school shooting that they get “hopes and prayers”, but not fixing the laws that allow anyone to have free access to an assault rifle? Why is it that when Breonna Taylor was murdered by the police, some protested and called for justice, but once again it didn’t affect “certain” people so they ignored it? So once again I ask, are we that uncomfortable with the truth?

Purposeful or not, this story means more than the surface level tale of a vanishing elephant. We are so annoyed by the ending because there is no resolution, but that’s the point. Life doesn’t put resolutions on a silver platter, forgive and forget is a common motto for a reason. Forgetting is neglecting, pretending, and its vanishing. So next time you feel see an issue you care about start to shrink or disappear, don’t let it vanish completely.