So That's It

So that's how Twilight went.  I didn't say "so that's how the book ended…" since it's not yet the end.  In fact, I see Twilight as a sort of a long introduction to the love story of Edward and Bella.  Something of a backgrounder.  Like how it started it all.  Because that was how the book ended.  Or should I say…

That's how their story began.

I have read some writings about comparisons between Stephanie Meyer and Stephen King.  But in my opinion, they shouldn't be compared.  Although, I should say that sometimes, I am also guilty of doing so.  In fact, as I have said several times, I tend to use SK as my leverage when it comes to most of the books I read.  After all this time, I have learned to explore and love the styles and ways of writers that I haven't bought any book by SK since I started buying five months ago. 

The way I see it, SK will trigger your senses, will tickle your mind about most of his ideas.  SM, however, tries to zero in on this emotional aspect of us.  But I do not see this as a woman thing at all.  I think it just so happened that she has the ability to get us hook to a story using this technique.  It might be too early for me to say this since I only read one book.  But then again, the book took me to a world of heroes, love stories and loving out of the ordinary.  What it feels like to be other than human, how it feels like to be other than us.  As if it really existed.

Well, it really could.  

Romance Meter

image copied from Wikipedia

17, Vegetarian.

This is how they described Edward, or at least how Edward describes 'his family.'

At last, I have the drive to continue with this book.  I told myself not to double-read books this time and just continue with this book.  I have been putting it off since March; so that was after two months and four books.

My exposure to vampires when I was younger [not so young because I heard about it when I was already in my teens because we have a different folklore] is entirely different from what the book is trying to depict.  Now my questions are:  [1] Is there a difference between the vampires then and the vampires now?; [2] My young exposure depicts a vampire in the local scene [in my country] seems to be in a different light.  Was it just a misconception?  Because if not, then it goes back again to question number 1.

From what I have read so far, it looks to me that this story is indeed trying to glorify vampires.  I do not have anything against this, really.  In fact, I think this is exactly the reason why it made it to the charts.  The story builds up in such a way that it will make you slowly understand "them,"' and to add some more juice to the tale, it also builds up in such a way that you will slowly fall in love with Edward.

Well, you might think right now that I am falling for Edward.  Oh no, not quite yet.  It's just that reading through, the development of his character actually points to this.  As well as the development of their love story.

The funny thing is, based on this observation, I now have my next question.  Am I past the age of this falling-in-love-tweetums things?  Or I am just not that affected by how these things were presented?  Or could it be that age has brought my romance-meter to the next higher level?  Awww... I miss being a kid... when all your "meters" were not even calibrated from time to time; when chocolates all taste the same, birthday cakes did not have to be two-or-three-layers high as long as they have the candles and flowers, balloons just come in round shapes and all ice bream brands taste the same and seems-to-melt faster when it's on the cone.  That simple.

Twists of Fate

I want to blame Maggie for her indecisions - but I coudn't.  The clergyman charges it all to inexperience.  And I agree with it.  Maggie has led a life in privation [as a matter of choice] to protect herself from all the pain and indignation.  But this very act seemed to have betrayed her.  This is evident in almost all of the happenings in her life - especially during the latter part of the story.

Lost amidst the web of happenings of her life, she sought counsel with aperson she thought will do best.  Don't we all try to seek advise from a priest, a pastor, a clergy, a rabbi if we feel so lost?

The clergyman wrote her a letter of advice:  to leave St. Ogg's to be able to start a new, fresh and probably better life.  She do not want to do this; I have known all along because she had the chance but chose not to - whether to live alone or someone else.  She got the letter one rainy day that was followed by another, and another.  I am not really sure if she had decided to stay or that she was just waiting for the rains to stop.  Or whether she hasn't decide and wouldn't decide on anything when it comes to leaving St. Ogg's.

The rain hasn't stop but she needed so badly to go to - Dorlcote Mill - home.  I couldn't believe it because of the heavy rain and the darkness of the night.  All of the forces must have joined together to take her back.  One of the reasons, if not the only reason, why she went back was because of Tom.  They found each other at the oddest of circumstances; but this circumstance is what brought them back in peace to each other again, after a long time of having drifted apart.

I do not know how long will the memory of the end of this story stay with me.  I only had two choices for the ending; but I found out there was another one.

Maggie went back to Dorlcote Mill - The Mill on the Floss - at St. Ogg's, and never left again.

Closer

I have reached the point where I want to write more about what I am reading, but I have to be very careful not to include spoilers.  I am nearing the end of the book and it seems this is the part where all of us become excited; become very eager to know what is to happen.

Both Tom and Maggie reached the age of early twenties.  As I have said on my previous post, their lives were about to change after they emerge from what I called their 'quicksand of fate' and 'quagmire of emotions.'  Right now, I feel like I am the one who is in that 'emotional quagmire' for I feel a lot of different emotions with regard to the happenings in the lives of both.  Sooner or later, I have a feeling that they will have to part.  But, is it how it really would be? 

Tom felt the pressure of the heart which forbids tears.

I like the way G. Eliot articulated this particular feeling.  This is a feeling I know a lot of us, if not all, have experienced but could not quite comprehend, could not quite describe.  Now by this quote, I now know what the feeling is.

The character of our lives is not created entirely from within.

So, this means that our character is partly in-born and partly cultivated?

Character is destiny.

G. Eliot quoted this from Novalis.  I wonder what this really means.
In the meantime, Maggie, I think is in a dilemna.  A situation that is very difficult to be in.  Although excitement is partly what I feel for her life right now, I cannot help but feel anxious, too, of how she can resolve her situation.  Could there be a way out with total absolution?

Quicksand of Fate

Mr. Tulliver lost his temper... again.

Four years and a lot of misery and indignation, the day has finally come to the Tullivers to truimph for all these.  Mr. Tulliver acknowledges that a large part of this truimph was due to Tom's hard work... you can also say abilities and luck.

There was some sort of a celebration and Tom had the opportunity to talk; as in give a speech.  This made Mr. Tulliver even more proud -- he said he paid a high price for Tom's education.

I wonder if Tom thinks of it this way, too.  As a child under the guidance and education of Mr. Stelling, he hated dispised some of his teachings, especially Latin.  He couldn't find its relevance to his life and he used to question the reasons of Mr. Tulliver in sending him to Mr. Stelling than the school he used to go to.  He considers some of these things unimportant.  I agree (though) with Mr. Tulliver that a big part of Tom now is due to his education -- that is why he was able to come up with such an admirable speech.  And I believe that a large part of it is also due to the fact that Tom was able to absorb all the teachings.

Mr. Tulliver must have been overjoyed about this victory of their family.  I think he felt like having risen from this quicksand of fate and a quagmire of emotions that he forgot about the consequences because he might have been to eager for revenge.

Four years.

It must have felt like a dormant volcano wiating to exhale its fumes of hatred.

I felt sorry for the Tullivers; very sorry.  Just when they have gotten out of this quicksand of fate, the celebration was that of an empty victory.  Mr. Tulliver and his temper was the primary, if not the only reason, for this happening.  It was such a disappointment to me, too, that his temper is also the reason for this empty victory.

Obstacles

It's been over a month now, and I am still with Tom and Maggie.  Perhaps one of the reasons is that sometimes it gets hard for me when George Eliot uses the language with apostraphes and the slang use of words.  Sometimes I have to go back like twice or thrice with one sentence just to make sure that I got the right word and get the whole thought of what the character is saying.  Eliot does this on those things that the characters say.  The slang words are heavy really.  Like most of the time...

Anyway, Tom had reach a point when he has the opportunity to make more money for their savings to get them out of the hole that his family is in.  And the help came from one of the most expected persons in his life.  I was indeed surprised that this person would actually want and be willing to help Tom.  Considering what happened between them, I couldn't help but have some doubts whether this person might have a hidden agenda when it comes to helping Tom, and the family.

Maggie, on the other hand, has renewed one of her friendships from long ago.  But this kind of friendship is something that is not allowed with the family.  She has had some issues within herself whether she should continue seeing her friend.  She couldn't help but look back to that time that this friend of hers showed kindness to her brother.  Be that as it may, she couldn't stop her friend from not seeing her, although she already told so.

I now wonder how these two people would emerge out of this unexpected situation that came into our lives... and it has been for quite sometime now.  Quite sometime that Maggie learned how to accept her consequence; which I hope should only be temporary.  For one of Maggie's solutions to this situation is to be in privation; which actually deprives her of cultivating her talents.

Out There After

I feared that this might be the book that I might not finish.  Not because it is boring or anything, but mainly due to too many distractions that are mainly online.  It's funny but my Google Reader subscription seems to attract one site almost everyday.  Too many interesting stuffs.  That's why my bedside reading is almost always put to the last hours [or minutes] of my day.

But the way I feel right now, I might be able to finish this by the end of the week.  The turn of events on Book 2 is something I didn't expect, quite astonishing.  Maggie and Tom were sent to boarding school and private teacher respectively.  But Maggie got a letter from her father asking her to be home in such a short notice, asked her to be home the very next day.

But she hasn't known what was the reason for that urgency.  Things happened so fast that things were already different when she got home.  After a few days being at home seeing the changes, she knew she had to fetch Tom from where he was.  And Book 2 ended with such an emotional twist.  As kids, and like old ones, they didn't know what is out there after this happening.  I bet they are clueless about how different their life would be.  But as Eliot puts it, this might be too much for a young mind to handle.

Anyway, this is their turning point.

We all have our turning points in our lives.  I see these as those events that make our life turn almost 360 degrees and not temporary, but with the air of permanence.  Permanence until another turning point, that is.  Personally, I have had a lot of turning points in my life.  Very difficult ones.  But no matter how hard they were, I always made it a point to come out a better person.  To learn from the lessons of these turning points.

BETWEEN THE LINES:

People who seem to enjoy their ill-temper have a way of keeping it in fine condition by inflicting privations on themselves.

You've only to look well at things and draw them over and over again.  What you do wrong once, you can alter the next time.

I like to know what everybody else knows.  I can study what I like by and by.

Eliot's Thoughts

There are some interesting passages, quotes all over the novel.  This is another thing which makes it very interesting.  Like Dostoevsky, her thoughts are really deep and sometimes, I coudln't believe that these things already happen during her time.  Sometimes, I even stop reading because of too much awe that certain things do not really change over time.  What fascinates me about writers is that they have their way of winding through words to create the best possible sentence fit for the situation.  Here are some quotes that I took out of the book:

She thought it was the order of nature that people who were poorly off should be snubbed.  Mrs. Moss did not take her stand on the equality of the human race:  se was a patient, prolific, loving-hearted woman.

I believe this is true even at our time or even across the centuries.

Public spirit was not held in high esteem in St. Ogg's and men who busied themselves with political questions were regarded with some suspicions, as dangerous characters.  They are usually persons who had little or no business of their own, or if they had, were likely to become insolvent.

I find this quite hideous because of the truth behind it.  Right now, talks of the upcoming elections in my country has started and there are a lot of things to write about.  Our country is home to actors-turned-politicians, which is actually demonstrated by the previous president who was once the king of action films.  The question of insolvency is rather true as well.  Aspiring candidates of our country invests too much [which actually makes me wonder sometimes where they get their funds from] because of the gains that they could get IF and WHEN they win.  Most of the time, insolvency and popularity mix together.  One insolvent BUT once popular candidate would be the benefactor of other people with vested interests that will collect what is due them later on.

I will miss the elections.  I probably will not be able to vote on this coming one.

Oh yeah.  I remember, when blogging wasn't even in the internet yet, I remember sending an e-mail to a friend from the U.S.  about the politics in my country.  I will try to find that e-mail and write it here next time.

To Belong

Maggie is pretty much not the ordinary girl of her time.  But I think her emtions is that of any ordinary girl, at any point in time.   Every child seeks for love and affection from her siblings.  She was trying to look for this with Tom, but it seems she couldn't.  Or maybe, she just couldn't get enough, or wanted too much?  At the same time, we are all seeking for sibling protection especially from a brother.

Protection that most of the time is being equated to love.  The sad part is our siblings couldn't protect us and wouldn't protect us all the time.  Most of the time, our innocent minds coudn't understand it - couldn't grasp it, yet.

Hence, lack of protection is being equated to lack of love.  The even sadder part is that it is quite unhealthy if we do not outgrow that feeling because we lose our sense of trust, our sense of belonging, not only to our siblings, but to our family and society as well.

The ripple effect.

I hope Maggie will be able to outgrow this chapter of her childhood; of her life.  To learn how not to expect too much so that she would not get disappointed.  To accept that we cannot get the most out of sibling love - most of the time.