Lesson #3

Alright, let's just get right into this. As I said last week, this week I'm going to show how lit is relevant to relationships. To be perfectly honest, I didn't do a whole lot of prep for this week's post, but I'm gonna try to make up for it in the 90ish minutes I have for this.

1)

K, so this bit is relevant in specific cases, and within context, it makes perfect sense. Allow me to explain....

So, in the book, two friends, Charlotte and Lizzie, are discussing the budding relationship between Lizzie's extremely shy sister Jane and a wealthy neighborhood man by the name of Bingley. Charlotte is advising Lizzie to advise Jane to be more outgoing and encouraging in the relationship, so Bingley will understand how Jane feels as opposed to thinking her indifferent and not pursuing her (which would be a tragedy, as Jane and Lizzie's family is not rich and Bingley is very much so. Marrying into wealth is what we call success in classic lit.)

So, now back to the present day, this quote may hold true for individuals who are really shy (for extroverts, not so much. That might be a little weird and overdoing it). Introverts may want to show more affection than they normally would in order to keep their partner interested and happy. Don't show more than you feel, and don't be fake (that's worse than showing more than you feel), but definitely try to make an effort. If you really like the person, this effort will be worth it.

2) We're gonna shake it up and go with poetry (Shakespeare) for this one:

Can you read that?

This is an excerpt from Shakespeare's Sonnet 116.

So, let's analyze this a little: "Love is not/ Which alters when it alteration finds". Pretty self-explanatory: real  love (I don't want to say 'true love' that seems too fairy-tale-esque) will not change if you find some change in the other person's feelings. It shouldn't matter what the other person thinks or feels, its what YOU feel. 

Next bit: "Or bends with the remover to remove"---a bit trickier, I'm gonna go with "love won't change or die if someone tries to prevent it from happening". Then, the emphatic "O, no! It is an ever-fixed mark, / That looks on tempests and is never shaken;". Here Shakespeare is saying that real love does not change; even in the face of adversity or hardship, it remains solid.

3) This next one is about 

I had to.....

Here you go: (This is from the end of "The Secret Adversary" by Agatha Christie; Tommy and Tuppence just simultaneously came to the conclusion that they should get married.)

Part of the reason I chose this one is because up until this point, I'd been practically screaming for Tommy and Tuppence to just get married already and now they're there! YAY! And also, I think it's amusing. Tuppence is such a funny character :)

To discuss the quote, I agree with Tuppence: marriage is called a lot of things (including bondage, a sleepover with your best friend for your life, a refuge, a mutual agreement for non-romantic reasons, etc)

Her interpretation of it is a bit harder to think about, as "sport" could take on different meanings. I think (in context, given their previous relationship) that she means the kind of sport you play: something you always want to win, but its friendly banter and competition instead of blood-thirsty fighting. :)

That's all folks!

Next week I think I'll do a continuation of how to live an enjoyable life: I just found some more general life is good quotes that I'd like to post.

Until next time then,

Claire