RMST 202

I can wholeheartedly say I am very sad to be writing this blog post, the only thing keeping me a little happy about this course coming to an end is that we still have two classes together even after writing this.  It is a little surprising, (not in a bad way), that I managed to stick to my contract considering I remember feeling a little hesitant at the beginning of this course. I remember struggling to even write my introduction post, and now here I am having so much to say for my concluding post :)  Never once did I think about dropping this course, but I was definitely curious as to how much I would enjoy it. I can very confidently say this has been my favourite course I have taken so far at UBC. Not only because of the amazing structure, which I will get into, but the welcoming and comforting feeling I feel attending this class (when it was on zoom and in person).  The first day we were welcomed with music and little did I know every class we would be welcomed with mu...

 This feels very weird to be writing my final blog post (in terms of readings) of the semester. It feels like I was just beginning to read these new kinds of books I had never read before, and now here I am reading my last one.  This week I chose to read The Society of Reluctant Dreamers. And not only does the title directly point out a major theme but the book itself clearly highlights the most common theme we've seen throughout this course, dreams.  Although I feel myself being a little repetitive discussing dreams in every blog post, this one would feel wrong to not discuss it. While reading this book, I found myself consistently thinking about my own dreams, especially when Daniel Benchimol finds the camera in the water as the woman he sees in the pictures is someone he has seen before in his dreams.  I was glad to see that this was also brought up in this weeks lecture on the book because it helped me dig even deeper into the thoughts I was having while reading....

 At the beginning of this book I was very intrigued yet scared at the idea of a horror story taking place in this book. What took place was not what I was expecting but it was in fact intriguing and I wanted to read more. The narrator mentions that it will be a story of "murder, detection and horror" but that it wont seem like that. I was confused by this statement but it made such more sense after finishing the book.  The story takes off when the protagonist Lacouture hides in a bathroom of the "Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico for almost 2 weeks to resist the army during the "student movement". This is something I had no knowledge on prior to reading so I was very worried to see where it would go.  As I read on, I find myself once again relating this book to others we have read in the course. This is because, as I think I may have mentioned in every blog post, major themes of dreams and memories comes up once again. While she has locked herself in the ...

  The Old Gringo   Although this style of book is not usually one i’d reach for, I will say I enjoyed it. I had mixed feelings while reading it’s description as I wasn’t sure if i would be interested in the story or be able to follow. Once I began reading I found the almost poetic way of writing very pleasing to read and once the story began to unfold I was very interested to read all the way through.  As this book is considered the closest to a “romance” that I have picked to read during my contract, I was very surprised at the romance that was included in this book. I was very confused and taken back by the interesting relationship The Old Gringo and Harriet had. I could not tell what was going to happen, whether they would end up as a father - daughter relationship or if it would turn more romantic. once reading on, I began to realize it is a bit of both. Although these changes of dynamics happened so quick it was hard for me to even notice at times. As I was reading I...

I definitely found this book more confusing than others that we have read in this course (since Swann's Way). It took me a little bit to understand that it was switching between autobiography and fiction, but once I understood that, it made it much easier to understand. I actually ended up finding the aspect of alternating between the two texts very interesting and unlike anything i've seen or read before.  From what I understand, Georges is trying to recall memories from his childhood but it seems as though there are gaps in his memories, which you don't often see being portrayed in books. His memories are clearly uncertain and did not necessarily add up at times, both stories do come together in a way beautifully.  One thing I did notice and enjoy was how this book tied nicely into the common themes we have been seeing throughout this course. Memories being one that occurs in almost every book I have chosen to read so far. As well as family being another prominent theme. ...

Bonjour Tristesse was one of the books I have been looking forward to this entire course, just based off of the short description given, and it did not disappoint. I found this book to be one of the easier, or more liner books we have read so far. Not that the others haven't been interesting in their own ways but this one definitely held my attention the whole way through and it was very enjoyable to follow along.  I think that one of the main reasons I loved it so much was actually because I was able to see so many parallels between the relationship Cecile and Raymond had and Agostino and his mother had. The situations were so similar yet different dynamics so it was interesting to read both of these novels one after the other.  Another thing I really enjoyed was the relatability of this book, not necessarily content wise just based off of my own life ( I was not raised by a single parent etc. ) but in terms of approximate age, gender and the fact that it almost felt like thi...

 There is so much to think about after reading Agostino. Although I'm confused, not confused in the way where I don't understand the story, because I definitely understand why this story was written, but confused in the way where I have never seen a book take on growing up, sexuality, etc.. the way this one did, and it leaves me with many thoughts.  I may have said The Shrouded Woman was my favourite so far, but this one now takes the lead. Out of all of the novels I have read so far this one felt the most modern in a way, in terms of writing style and overall content which made it very easy to understand and almost felt like something I picked up myself and started reading, not something for an assignment.  After the first few pages of this novel I could already catch on to what the themes of the story were. There are a couple things that I don't know necessarily if they have the correct take on, but I'm not one to say they aren't correct either. We've seen the...

 The Shrouded Woman  The Shrouded Woman is my second text I have read for this course, and compared to the first novel Swann's Way, I really enjoyed it. When I first began reading I was worried I was not going to understand the story as i found Swann's Way difficult to understand. Despite going into it thinking I wouldn't understand, after the first page I was completely hooked to the story.  Similarly to Swann's Way, one thing that stood out to me was how beautifully descriptive and visual this story was. The language used was intense and thoughtful, but not to the point where it overcomplicated the story, it was the perfect amount. This aspect of the novel allowed me to feel as though I was there in all of these different situation with Ana Maria, and experiencing these things with her. It felt like a real journey into her mind where she wasn't necessarily telling me as a reader these stories, but almost like I was in her mind without her even knowing. These memor...

Combray - Proust  Part 1 of Combray definitely left me confused. Although it was beautifully written and was clear on some aspects of the plot, I still found it very difficult to follow any kind of storyline. This may because, from my understanding, Marcel is going back and fourth from reality to dreams/memories. If that is the case then maybe I was not supposed to follow a direct plot and it was supposed to feel like it was jumping from one thing to another. I'm not sure which parts Marcel was awake and which were dreams. Since I do not feel like I understood the story a whole lot, I will speak on the few themes I did catch from my reading and some things I liked about it.  The first thing I noticed within the first page was the use of imagery. Throughout the entire book I was able to visualize exactly what the author was trying to describe. One major example of this is when he was describing the stained - glass windows. I thought it was beautiful when he was speaking about h...

 Hi!  My name is Sidney Grigg. I'm currently in my second year and still have not figured out what I would like to major in. I'm leaning towards Psychology or Sociology but definitely still need some time to decide. I have lived in Vancouver my whole life and do not plan on leaving. Although I live Downtown and not on campus, I'm super lucky to live in a city like this where everything is so easily accessible. I love living downtown and definitely plan to stay here forever. Besides my studies at UBC, my dream career path is to become an actress. I've been acting since I was about 12 years old and hope to continue to pursue this dream of mine while still studying at UBC (just incase that doesn't work out haha!) This passion of mine really came out of nowhere, but I'm so glad I decided to take on the opportunity of getting an agent and started auditioning. As much as an amazing career path it would be, it also has become a hobby of mine. Other hobbies of mine incl...