Classic Lit Aesthetic - Tumblr Posts

Jane Austen

Light academia

People here are not sane because I'll talk about a guy who had brown eyes, and is “Best of men. Best of the Myrmidons.” who wore his boyfriend's clothes which didn't ended well and people here will start crying and screaming about the page number where this happened

"All that we see or seem is but a dream within a dream."

–Edgar Allan Poe

There is always something ridiculous about the emotions of people whom one has ceased to love.

-Oscar Wilde

The Song of Achilles - a Review

Every time I go to speak about this book, I feel like I’m at a loss for words. After some time to digest it I feel like I’m finally ready to write an actual review on it! As with every book, there’s the good, the bad, and the interesting. So, without further ado…

The Good:

A lot is absolutely phenomenal about this book. First off, the writing and voice of the character is absolutely gorgeous. The language strikes such amazing balance between timidness and certainty in Patroclus’ character- which is pretty uncommon to find in a lot of writing, at least in my experience. On top of that, Achilles’ characterisation, of this aloof young boy who eventually evolves into someone brash, and cursed to fall to the weight of his title is something I feel is such an amazing take on the original myth. It humanises him, in a way. To put the good of this book into a short list:

Amazing perspective

Amazing characterisation of both the leads and supporting characters (Odysseus and the like)

The language is colourful and paints amazing imagery

It stays relatively true to the myth

The Bad:

“Bad” might be an over-exaggeration of what I’m about to put forward. Overall, the pacing of the first half of the book is pretty good. It feels like we’re gently sloping towards this slow ascent to Achilles’ moment, with an inevitable downfall to the well-known ending. Plenty of books have us know that the characters will die by the end. I personally love it because it adds a unique set of stakes, for both the characters and the story. But SOA didn’t really hit that for me. It felt like once we reached the moment they landed in Troy, the story became simultaneously too slow and too fast. There was no real direction, even though we all know very well where the story is headed. It was very odd- like there was no wind in the sails of the story. Maybe it’s just me, but that was a major drawback in my mind. Super difficult to tell where we were in the timeline with the hazy time skips. And since the voice of narration - Patroclus - didn’t really change in his demeanour as the story went on, it became even more difficult to decipher the ages and timeline of the war.

The Interesting:

Interesting in the usual sense is meant to be positive. This isn’t really meant to be- it’s like a neutral ground of stuff I go “wtf” at. It could be good! Could also be super bad. In this case, SOA leans slightly towards the bad end of the spectrum. For starters, the, uhhh, steamy scenes near the beginning of the novel are a bit… odd? I understand this is a way to show love, but with such eloquently worded introductions I would’ve thought that it could be communicated better. Not by showing two young men, early in their teens, going through that. Just sorta gave me the ick because I was there for the overall tragedy and not vague wattpad+ smut. On top of that, Achilles was placed on a really high pedestal that was quite unlike the OG myth. While it makes sense 90% of the time, since in context he was the best of the Greeks. But it was as if modern values were being transposed onto the original myth, with the concept that Achilles is morally incorruptible. Really, he was much like the other men in his encampment, if only a little bit clearer in the head. Just felt like a bit of a disconnect for me.

Overall, Song of Achilles is an amazing read, despite a few minor drawbacks. Ignoring them, it’s obvious why it’s so revered. Loved it, got me back into reading more than I used to.

made this as part of a tiktok trend thing a few months ago but never ended up posting it on there because I didn’t think anyone would actually get to see it (i do not hamlet post obsessively on tiktok only here)

perhaps someone here might enjoy it more

You probably recognise the book already, And you know it's wonderful.

The rain depicts every human emotion. It cries along with you in sadness, it roars and bursts out when you're angry, and it smiles upon you through little droplets of happiness, tickling you with mischievous drizzle.

Solivagant

My mind keeps running back to it, no matter how much I distract myself, the thought never leaves me alone, like it's embedded in my brain, isolating itself pushing away any rational thoughts that try to erase it. Centralizing thoughts was never my thing but never once did an idea dawn me to this extent. It seemed like a age old rule tempting me to break it. My conscious running on the commands of it may be for the best. The idea of suicide creeped inside of me three weeks ago. A pleasant day without any banter, peace coursing through the house but settling with heavy grief as I knotted my black tie around my neck, Nahyun had left a message about his grandmother's death and as his friend I needed to be by his side. I was though a little worried about his lack of grief towards the news of death, his grandmother was always the brightest light in his well lit life.

The atmosphere in the venue reflected Nahyun's feelings and response. I tried, tried my best to coax him into showing his emotions, letting out the raw frustration he was masking behind the straight and pale face but when he answered saying, 'I think everything is fine now, she doesn't have to deal with any more pain. Sometimes death is the solution', I believed him.

Maybe it isn't that bad of an idea if I can't get it out of my head, I mean what more pain can a person suffer after death? No one knows what lies beyond but one does know what's going on now and it's better to seek solace in trying to find an end to the ongoing misery. If Nahyun's grandmother is in a better place, so will I.

Though rather, hers wasn't a decision, but an expected yet unwilling turn of page to where she needed to leave the book behind. It's for the good.

______

But throwing away everything just to get rid of pain..? Is it worth for all I've lived?

Every question was blurred by the previous decision, I mean what choice do I have left, living amongst those who judge me for my preferences, abandonment throughout life, Scrunching nose with look of disgust when they ask me about myself and the hauntings of failures and heartbreaks.

Now, four weeks later here I am, a bottle of pills clutched in my left palm and the right hand resting on the edge of the bathtub, the silent room filled with loud clattering of my teeth. This is it. I didn't care with the goodbyes, didn't wanna be distracted with hollow words of hope.

Assumptions and accusations will be made but I won't be part of it, just the reason for it. They'll have me locked up one last time in their worries.

This is for the best. This- has to be for the best. But.. I'll be gone, forever. I'm scared but I have to do this, I'm useless.

.

(A/: I was currently working on this, so decided to post. Please show some love)

time to lay in bed again, wondering why a man written by Jane Austen in a billowing white shirt isn't professing his undying love to me in prose

A Review of “Pride and Prejudice” by Jane Austen

Genre: Romance

Rate: 5/5

Summary: When Elizabeth Bennet first met Mr. Darcy, she couldn’t stand him for his pride. Neither did Mr. Darcy found her interesting enough to ask her for a dance. But many occasions brought them together again and again. At last, Mr. Darcy couldn’t help but fall in love with Elizabeth.

My Opinion: I don’t know where to begin. This novel is a classic and a masterpiece. I loved the use of satire in a most charming way possible. The first thing I noticed reading this book was that people were extremely nosy. They seemed to notice other people’s even the trifling matters of day to day life. I couldn’t help noticing how the mothers were all so anxious about their daughter’s marriage at the time. I loved Austen’s writing style very much. It was really funny and I laughed out loud at so many places (I’m even smiling to myself now thinking about some funny parts). Though it was a little draggy at the beginning, but I enjoyed almost every part of it. This book was worth all my time.

Favourite Characters: I can’t decide whom I like best among Jane, Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy. Jane is such a sweetheart. Her values and point of views almost match mine. She is also a very responsible daughter and sister. I feel like, there is a warmth present in her which gives one comfort. Elizabeth is carefree and independent. She has a way of charming everyone and being friendly. She is very confident too. She handles her situation in a very tactful way. I specifically like the sisterly relationship between Jane and Elizabeth. My sister and I share a same kind of relationship. We too, like them, have each others confidence and shares every little thing. Now, what can I tell about Mr. Darcy! I loved him at the end as much as I hated him in the beginning. The best thing about him was that though he is proud, he learns.

Quote: “Do anything rather than marry without affection.”

‘The Homeric Hymn To Demeter’ - Helene P. Foley

21.05.2023 || Sunday

Some pictures of my day, had to restrain myself from stealing those copies of the complete works of Dostoevsky (~_~)

29/05/2023 || Monday

30/05/2023 || Tuesday

"Ah!" cried Giovanni. "Don't you know when you have made a friend?"

I knew I must look foolish and that my question was foolish too: "So soon?"

"Why no," he said, reasonably, and looked at his watch, "we can wait another hour if you like. We can become friends then. Or we can wait until closing time. We can become friends then. Or we can wait until tomorrow, only that means that you must come in here tomorrow and perhaps you have something else to do.”

― James Baldwin, Giovanni's Room

“Don't you think a dream would feel shy if it were seen walking about in the waking world?”

― C S Lewis, Till We Have Faces

2/100 days of productivity

Nothing out of normalcy occurred, revised some Russian verbs, did some Italian translations and listened to my daily French and Spanish podcasts. Did some readings for my Astro lectures and revised my Calculus and Waves lecture notes alongside some exercises.

I’ve also finally joined my university’s language research centre, which means that besides my Italian seminars I’ll be able to be involved in many other language classes and cultural exchange programs!

I’m currently reading some of Simone Weil’s works and they are constantly spiralling me into religious crisis in the middle of random coffee shops… truly an entertaining experience.

day 3/100 of productivity

Today I wore Givenchy’s L’Interdit Rouge, truly a magnificent scent for a gloomy Sunday…

Tasks accomplished today:

Astrophysics exercises

Revise lab report and read lab book

Italian translation

Waves material revision + ODEs

French podcast

Chinese study

{Notes of the day: I’ve been in one of the worst reading slumps as of late, I have an entire list of ancient history and philosophy of physics books to finish before exam season and yet I have barely touched them… I also saw some really helpful Latin grammar/vocabulary textbooks which I’ll have to postpone for next semester since I hope to finish my first integrated Chinese textbook before the ending of the one we are confronting as I write this…}