B-612

Stray Birds

I like to make a lot of highlights and notes while reading. Later I will find a time to write down these notes on paper as if I am reading the book for the second time. Recently, I think blogging can be another way to reread a book, and of course share the book with friends.

Stray birds is a book I like since long time ago. I read both Chinese and English versions. Recently I brought it to my trip and reread it. This book wrote lots of different types of love, love of human, love of nature, love of work, love of life, love of lovers. In Tagore’s verses, you can easily see his love of philosophy. Let’s review it starting its first and last pages, very clever 🙂

Some lines I like:

You smiled and talked to me of nothing, and I felt that for this I had been waiting long 
Her wistful face haunts my dreams like the rain at night
Once we dreamt that we were strangers, we wake up to find that we were dear to each other 
Love! when you come with the burning lamp of pain in your hand, I can see your face and know you as bliss 

The trees come up to my window like the yearning voice of the dumb earth
These little thoughts are rustle of leaves; they have their whisper of joy in my mind 
The light that plays, like a naked child, among the green leaves happily knows not that man can lie
The sands in your way beg for your song and your movement, dancing water. Will you carry the burden of their lameness?
"How far are you from me, O Fruit?" "I am hidden in your heart, O Flower"
The sunshine greets me with a smile. The rain his sad sister, talks to my heart 
This world is the world of wild storms kept tame with the music of beauty

God finds himself by creating 
Life finds its wealth by the claims of the world, and it's worth by the claims of love 
We read the world wrong and say that it deceives us
The echo mocks her origin to prove she is the original 
Truth in her dress finds facts too tight; in fiction she moves with ease 
Woman in your laughter, you have the fountain of life

The book shines by these bright lines, even though there are some lines that are hard to understand and dull. Maybe my English is just not enough 🙂

11. September 2023 by admin
Categories: remembrance | Leave a comment

Crime and Punishment

This book is very dark, very grey throughout, until the last 2 pages—-suddenly the sun peaked through the thick clouds. It reminds me of the movie Schindler’s list and that red dress little girl at the end. I feel I have misunderstood Dostoevsky for long, and he has so much hope in his heart!

Reading this book requires some persistence. Let me start by talking about what I hate about this book. First, Russian names are so long. I read the Chinese translation of this book. Sometimes, the half line is just somebody’s name. Second, the same person has a few completely irrelevant names depending on who is calling him/her (I heard that is the Russian book thing?!). “what the hell, who is this person?” I consistently curse like that. Third, being in STEM, I enjoy efficiency. But literature authors sometimes add stuffs not very to the point, which often drive me crazy. For example, Les Miserable has this super lengthy descriptions of Paris sewer system. This book also has annoying lengthy conversations that are not very to the point of the story.

In this book, everybody lives a miserable life, mostly because of the poverty, which then caused them some mental problems. You wonder why this is the case?

Raskolnikov (the main character) published a paper about a novel utopia, where there are ordinary people and superior people. The superior people are like Napoleon. Killing is a path to make new laws. The crime in this book is Raskolnikov’s experiment about his theory, and he wanted to know if he could also be Napolean. He believes that if he kills this nasty, old, mean woman who did not make any contributions to this world, and then use her money to help the people in need, he is building a better world. You wonder if his theory makes some sense; you will start reflecting history and maybe also the darkness periods you had gone through (e.g., in the past three years of covid life). Dostoevsky did not give explicit conclusions, but had given some comments from other characters’ conversations.

Raskolnikov never had a good day of life after he committed the crime. He is not in jail but he got the most severe punishment. Dostoevsky here wrote what is suffering and people at the edge. If you had gone through mental struggling in the past, this might bring back your memory; if you never had gone through, you might be able to know what it is like in the hell.

Some love stories are written like digital circuits that have only 0s and 1s. “I love you” “get married” happy ending! some love stories are a little more complicated like analog circuits, and maybe the values are somewhat between loveish and unloveish. Dostoevsky wrote a love story like quantum circuits. You are not quite sure what’s going on. There are different states, entanglement, uncertainty … love is not intentional and it is a surprise. Sofya and Raskolnikov for the most of the time, they are talking about the crime, and they are struggling about other things. Then there is this feeling of power and new life, and the sudden understandings between the two without any words. In many dramas I grow up with, often love is the main theme, and it is very loud, “cry” “shout” “lots of verbal conversations”. I wonder whether this is the difference between a man author and a female author wrote about love.

29. January 2023 by admin
Categories: remembrance | Leave a comment