A Year In Review 18 May 2021, 5:41 pm

Indisputable phenomena is one of the most unnerving concepts for the human brain to grasp. We are programmed to question; to look further; to hypothesize, and disprove or improve upon past findings. The unstoppable nature of time and the inevitable occurrence of manmade or natural disaster, death, and rebirth baffles us because these processes cannot be reversed, or stopped through human research and intervention. Indisputable facts. They cannot be changed. But that is not to say that indisputable facts or unstoppable processes would change for the better if they were not definite since the consistency of indisputability provides people with a sense of comfort. 

The past year has been indisputably unconventional; heartbreaking and breathtaking; confusing and frustrating; polarizing and unifying. 

The 2020 COVID-19 pandemic has completely shattered the ways in which societies all over the world function – from the most developed and largest cities to the smallest and poorest villages. Everyone has had to change something, great or small, about their lifestyle. Most people have had to accommodate the needs of society’s medically vulnerable people, and adjust to the loss of time with family members and friends due to virtual socialization, work, and school, or death. Some have sacrificed their own health for the sake of the public. Some have watched helplessly as their life savings, hard work, and jobs were effectively eradicated and destroyed due to economic decline. Some have lost the lives of many around them, and some have lost none. Many have recognized the flaws or qualities in their government, leading to an increase in the vocalization of concerns and discontent, or praise and adoration. Many have used the pandemic to their political, economic and social advantage. Many people’s true colours have been exposed. 

The inescapable nature of disaster – the indisputable fact that disaster leads to socioeconomic and political chaos – consequently causes people to feel intensely polarized, and incapable of seeing an end to the pandemic and the subsequent civil unrest it has caused worldwide. However, feeling anything but hopeful for the future and proud of what everyone has made of the past year detracts from the credit due to oneself and to the world.

We have created many vaccines at a record pace. People have reignited and started a plethora of movements – unaccepting of the pandemic slowing down their social, political and economic agendas. Political, medical and economic leaders of countries around the globe have had to focus on both their national initiatives- including elections and other natural or manmade disasters and affairs – while shifting time, money and resources to the international effort to prevent the spread of and provide treatment and solutions for the coronavirus pandemic. 

It is easy to sit in our homes and criticize our community members’ and national officials’ actions, but if we truly reflect on the multitude of strenuous issues and decisions that occurred in this past year, I find that it is nearly impossible not to be impressed with the progress and impact of global change in one year; a year in which a single obstacle’s, (the pandemic), successive challenges sparked global innovative and creative solutions leading to socioeconomic and political development. 

On a smaller scale, I am proud of myself for beginning the exciting challenge of college and living in a new country while facing national and international lockdown restrictions, online school, and limited social opportunities. I am hoping to continue the relationships I made this year – a year that allowed me to have more intimate and meaningful interactions, uninterrupted by the normally bustling nature of University social life. I am hopeful that this experience will teach me and those around me the importance of staying connected with family and friends amidst infeasible travel conditions. Above all else, this year has taught me, and arguably everyone everywhere, how to adapt quickly to change. I am hopeful that this lesson in modifying lifestyles, the workplace, social interaction and more will continue to spark creative and efficient solutions to sudden local and global challenges. 

It is unnerving to think that we can manipulate viruses, study disease, find treatments and cures, and attempt to prevent viral spread for the future, and yet despite all these efforts, the world will still face another health crisis in the future. It is unnerving to accept that disaster will inevitably strike – manmade or natural. But I find it comforting that adaptation in the face of adversity is indisputably human beings’ greatest trait. People repeatedly prove their resiliency throughout history, across all events, similar or completely different to the Coronavirus pandemic.

It is because of human’s historic resiliency that I know the world will persevere through the next few months, or potentially the next few years until the pandemic is a part of recent history. Just as the world rebuilt and developed further after World War I and II, and just as communities rebuild and develop after hurricanes and earthquakes, after this pandemic, the world will march on with a newfound appreciation for life as it was, and with a set of adaptive skills that will help us handle the next challenge life brings our way. 

No matter what the next global, local, or personal obstacle is, the world, and myself, will adapt; we will persevere through innovation, progression, hope, and faith in the indisputably determined and unrelenting human race.

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Artist of the Month: Waterhouse 17 May 2021, 4:57 pm

This month’s artist is John William Waterhouse purely because I think that everyone deserves some nice, peaceful, stress-free art after exams. At the current time of writing this article, I have just finished and submitted my Art History paper so I, for one, am in the mood for something beautiful.

Waterhouse was a member of the second phase of the Pre-Raphaelite Movement, artists that followed the values and the principles of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, a group of artists founded in London in 1848. The Pre-Raphaelites were a ‘secret society’ of young artists who originally formed in opposition to the Royal Academy’s promotion of the Renaissance master, Raphael. The concept behind their art was one of returning to nature and they believed in treating their subjects in absolute realism.

Waterhouse took inspiration from literature, painting over sixty pieces of characters of writers such as Homer, Ovid, Shakespeare, and Keats. He is, perhaps, most famous for his paintings of The Lady of Shalott and of Greek Myths. The second phase of the Pre-Raphaelite movement began in the 1860s and Waterhouse worked from the 1870s to the 1910s.

One of my favourite paintings by Waterhouse is Hylas and the Nymphs, 1896. The myth of Hylas and the water nymphs was a common subject among the Pre-Raphaelites, and they painted several different compositions and scenes taken from the myth. Hylas was a companion of Hercules and they were both Argonauts on the mission to find the golden fleece. During the journey Hylas is sent to find water, he comes across a pond filled with nymphs and promptly disappears.  

Interestingly, in 2018 the painting was temporarily removed from display in the Manchester Art Gallery where it had been acquired in 1896. This was the decision of the gallery curator and was following discussions among the museum staff about the recent rise in movements opposing the objectification of women. This act caused great controversy; some supported the decision while others interpreted it as a form of censorship.

The painting itself depicts Hylas being lured into the water by several nymphs, whose pale nudity contrasts with Hylas’ own tanned skin and Classical garb. The story is mythological, and Waterhouse has clearly made an effort to translate the ethereality of the nymphs into visual form. Their skin is almost luminous in contrast with their dark hair and the dark water. The figures of the nymphs are overtly sexualised, they are either seemingly unaware of their own nudity as they make no effort to hide their bodies, or Waterhouse is purposefully positioning them as ‘femme fatale’ types. They cock their heads, play with their hair and reach and grab at Hylas, implying they use their sexuality and their beauty to their own malicious advantage, the ‘Femme Fatale’ was a common trope in literature at the time.

Now, when you bear in mind what I said earlier about the Pre-Raphaelites striving to depict their subjects in utmost realism, and when you look at this painting there seems to be a little miscommunication. Despite this value of realism, Waterhouse’s nymphs are incredibly idealised. Each of them are thin and pale with youthful faces and long beautiful hair. Additionally, when you look closely you may realise that all the nymphs look remarkably similar, it’s thought that Waterhouse based them all on only two models.

When looking at the mythology behind this painting and combining it with the beauty of the nymphs, it is clear that Waterhouse was concerned with female sexuality. The disappearance of Hylas due to him being seduced and dragged into the water means the story is often connected with arguments for the dangers of female sexuality and autonomy. Waterhouse himself was obsessed with the depiction of female beauty and the hypnotic power of sexuality and youth and through the setting of mythology and fiction, he found an acceptable medium through which to explore the idealised erotic female form.

I feel I perhaps owe you an apology, dear reader. At the beginning of this article, I promised a light-hearted romp through beautiful paintings of Shakespearian heroines as a release after exams, and instead, I have dumped upon you a load of misogynistic rubbish about female sexuality and autonomy. I am so very sorry. Ultimately, I think it’s incredibly difficult to divorce any artwork from its context, regardless of how beautiful it is.

Having said that, if I were on a search for water and I came across a pond full of nymphs I would not hesitate to jump right in so I can’t exactly blame Hylas’ own stupidity.

Anyway, I hope everyone has a wonderful summer. Perhaps you can have a ponder over the intentions behind this painting or behind its brief removal from public display. You know, just in case you’re really bored.

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The “Time Well Wasted” Video Game Roundup (2020-2021) 16 May 2021, 1:35 pm

Morgan delivers his final judgements on the games he’s reviewed this academic year, just to cram it down your throat one last time. 

If there’s one thing popular review series have taught me, it’s that you can’t end the year (or in this case, the academic year) without some sort of list detailing the best and worst of it all. So I suppose I’d better do one quick before the Earth inevitably stops in its orbit around the sun. A couple of ground notes before we get started:

• If I’ve reviewed more than one game in a single franchise, only one of them can be included in this list (wink-wink, nudge-nudge)
• A full tier list of all the games I wrote about is available at the end

Now, to go forth and spread the word about games that you’ve most likely already forgotten that I played. 

3rd Best – “Poundland Bargain-Bin DVD” Award for Being Best Enjoyed Drunk

It was either this or Call of Duty Zombies and it feels a little disingenuous to give an award to a game mode that accounts for only about ten per cent of a full game. A full game that can be best described as the visual equivalent of horse tranquiliser. So, Injustice 2 it is. 

Yeah, it’s fine. Whatever. True, the story campaign has all the impact of a bread-and-butter boxing glove and the cosmetic system is laughably obsolete, yet the general design and gameplay still give it just the right amount of catharsis and allow you to find your own level of success. 

But before any DC fans out there start getting all smug about things, I want it on record that this is less an endorsement of the game and more a condonement of everything else I played this year. I had absolutely no problem choosing my three worst games, the list of candidates in that department was more drawn-out than the average Neil Young song. 

3rd Worst – “Sixty-Foot Water Cannon Backfire” Award for Most Disappointing Experience

I understand that in the modern games industry, small-time creators are rooted up the driveshaft more often than the Whore of Babylon, so naturally, it makes sense that they don’t get the biggest bucks for their projects. But what a moral hell it must be when you haven’t enough cash to render your game playable, yet too much to cancel the whole thing and not be jailed for fraud. One can only imagine the dilemma that faced Joey Drew Studios: a stretch in the slammer, or willingly releasing Bendy and the Ink Machine on Steam and admitting they made it. 

And it had such a promising concept, too. Older cartoons have always been slightly creepy, the recipe for horror success was always there. Focus on the blank-eyed stares or overly happy music of early Disney when creating your monsters. Not on which jump-scare noise best recreates the sound of an easily-startled wildebeest accidentally walking in on his parents having sex.

2nd Best – “Bar Fight at Your Grandfather’s Wake” Award for An Unexpectedly Fun Time

The phrase surprisingly good doesn’t do Doom Eternal (title drop) justice. It would have been surprisingly good if it didn’t lull me into a trance by the fifteen-minute mark, or the fiftieth demon skull being turned into an egg cup – whichever came first. 

Even if the platforming is blatantly unnecessary and defeating one enemy, in particular, is like trying to swat a fly with the help of a soda bottle, the more tactical mindset you’re forced to adapt builds challenge nicely, rather than having the game just parachuting in Hell’s entire buggery squadron the millisecond you touch an ammunition pack. The change in environments also gives it a much-needed sense of progression: we’ve moved on from the first game, we’re no longer just dithering around a laboratory complex modelled after a children’s adventure soft play for seven hours. 

2nd Worst – “Vanilla Ice Cream” Award for Something That Has No Taste, Yet Everybody Somehow Likes It

EA have done it again!

…oh, sorry, wrong tone.

EA have done it again. 

Star Wars is very much a safe investment; the world could be taken over by carnivorous grapefruit tomorrow and there’ll still be post-apocalyptic survivors uploading reaction videos on the latest Bad Batch trailer in between scrounging trips and being shot to death by raiders. And naturally, it’s the only type of investment EA would be willing to back when they’re not preoccupied with tossing foetuses onto piles of burning money. 

At best, Star Wars Battlefront 2 looks nice and plays nice. Just ignore the subconscious undercurrent of corporate mind-control that awakens slightly in your brain each time you hear a lightsabre igniting and you may even enjoy it. 

“English Premier League” Award for Completely Unsurprising Winner

I’m sure my choice for game of the year comes as little surprise; it’s been referred to multiple times within my articles, as well as recommended to every man, woman, child and paving stone I’ve come across. However, there still might be an entire two people in the country who can’t predict what that choice will be, so, to make it brief, the position as the only S-tier game on my list belongs to Bioshock Infinite. 

Some may call the plot’s themes slightly pretentious, but with a twist I didn’t see coming and an ending that actually made me feel something other than the usual air of vague contempt, I’m a hundred percent confident in stating that this is certainly one of the better experiences I had this year. It would likely be number two on my best-days-ever list, right after the time I threw that brick at Nigel Farage. 

“Cardi B Greatest Hits Album” Award for Absolute Worst

And so, we move from the best game to the worst. To put it simply, I’d honestly be hard-pressed to think of a better title with which to encapsulate the word boredom. Imagine picking up a spilt kilogram bag of rice one grain at a time with only an eyelash. Then forget that idea entirely, as you still would have gotten a more validating experience out of it than if you were playing Zombie Army Trilogy. 

If each feature of a functional-but-bland game was an infinity stone, then this debacle would be chosen to wield Thanos’ gauntlet. Bland hordes of enemies in bland “spooky” environments which you blandly shoot with your bland-looking sniper rifle…

It’s never a good sign when you can tell a prominently-released spin-off will be bad just by watching the trailer. There’s no attempt to adapt the original Sniper Elite gameplay or change it in any way, hell, there’s barely even a plot. It’s like they were aware that nobody would care enough to play it. 

Go ahead and have a play if you can never get enough of watching a head blow up in intense, gut-curling 360p quality. Maybe you’ll discover a hidden message within a level that reveals a deep and complex narrative, which I missed because I was too busy watching paint dry on the opposite side of the room. 

The full tier list:

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The Tales Our Clothes Tell: Part 2 15 May 2021, 9:10 pm

John

“I love old clothes. This must be distinctly understood from the start. Maybe you do not, but I do: Clothes which have worn soft and comfortable with age, moulding themselves to your shape; clothes in which your hand finds its way unbidden, unerriing, to a familiar pocket; I love the history of such clothes and the memories that they hold. I love other people’s old clothes too for with them you can add your own story to other stories lived perhaps long ago, imagine what kind of person wore them before and the experiences lived. But pride of place in my collection goes to a garment with a particular family connection: cricket flannels that belonged to my father’s brother, James. Now obviously I do not know the full history of these worthy strides (but then what is life without a little mystery), however, I do know that they were bought before 1937, for that is when their owner enlisted in the Royal Engineers.”

“Not a very wise time, you might think, to enlist but now’s the time for a little social history: James had served his time as an apprentice electrician but now that he was qualified, and due a journeyman’s wage, the company let him go; the effects of the Great Depression were still quite in evidence in our slow-moving corner of South West Scotland, so joining the army seemed to offer good prospects for an able young man, and so it proved. He was about the same age as many of you and enjoyed an active social life in the days when people relied on real personal interaction for their amusement and not just on Instagram and Netflix: as well as trying his hand at cricket he was a champion swimmer, and just making a name for himself in the local amateur dramatics scene; he was even invited to do a turn as a model in a fashion show for a local gentleman’s outfitter. All this apperently idyllic between-the-wars life he left behind to join up, and if he’d joined the army to see the world, he wasn’t to be disappointed, and soon found himself in the Far East: Singapore, Shanghai, Hong Kong. But this was just as Japan was flexing its muscles and sure enough, soon Hong Kong fell. I prefer not to imagine what cruelties he endured as a POW but they were many and he was soon destined to new horrors as forced labour on one of the many Japanese engineering projects such as the famous bridge on the River Kwai. But this was not to be James’ fate as he fell victim to the biggest “friendly fire” incident of the war when his unmarked prison ship, the Lisbon Maru, was sunk by an American torpedo. For James, that’s where the story of his short life ended. I found his flannels years later, still just as they had been carefully folded away by his grieving mother, alongside a few medals, his cap badge and some photos of him looking rather rakish in an Errol Flynn moustache. I wore the trousers quite a bit at University and I still wear them today, so, almost a hundred years later, his memory lives, on woven into the fabric of his flannels. They have lasted well; made of good stuff.”

Wissal

“I was in high school in 2012 until 2015. During those 3 years there was this particular classmate that I remember distinctly. We attended many classes together in the first and last year of high school although we were never friends. We were both very conscientious students and there was this rivalry between us. We were very competitive with each other in terms of our grades. But I began to find out more about his life and this made me feel closer to him. In the national exam we met during the ceremony. Both our parents were French teachers. Our parents had met before and his mum confided to my mum that she had really wanted him to study medicine although he had chosen engineering. We didn’t really talk until the first year of medicine. I went to the engineering building and I bumped into him and we started to chat. We then began to make small talk online. It stopped there until one day in 2019 he shared a picture of Lisbon on his Instagram account. I was traveling to Lisbon and I suggested meeting up! It was his last day there and my first day there. We had coffee together and wandered around. We spent the whole afternoon together. He showed me all the places he’d liked! He took lots of photos of me! He was an excellent photographer. He took the photo that I picked for this article. I began to really open up. I talked about previous boyfriends and my personal life. It was interesting given we didn’t use to get along but now it was like he was a close friend! We took a selfie at the metro station and he walked me back to my hostel. He was traveling to Spain after Portugal. I told him about a strange taxi ride I’d had with this really flirty taxi driver. He gave me his mobile number and everything! After that I sent him more photos of Portugal and my holiday there! Since then we’ve chatted l regularly! I can tell him about my love life, my personal life and I can go to him for advice. He is a lovely person and I really enjoy his company! He has since moved to the UK to London specifically. 2 years later we met on almost the same day as the day we met in Portugal. I was wearing the same outfit and he was wearing the same sweater. I didn’t even realize. We met at a tram way station! He tapped me on the shoulder and it was him! I thought about hugging him but because of covid I decided against doing that. In those 2 years we had become so much closer. On the train he told me about some exciting upcoming interviews he had with a British firm! We went to a lovely coffee shop called Paper’s Club. You can grab any book you want and read it while you have a coffee or some food. We had a great catch up! His cousin came to pick us up! He promised to meet me again but his exams got in the way! Now I really hope I can see him again!”

Honor

“The outfit which holds the most sentimental value for me, ironically enough, is one I would never be seen in again. When I was 13, my sister and I went down to London to see Taylor Swift for her RED Tour. Admittedly, I am still completely obsessed with to this day. We decided to really dress up, since she has a ritual where the fans who stand out the most are asked by her mum to come backstage after the show to meet Taylor herself. Naturally, Grace and I went all out. We had red hot pants (which I have never worn, nor ever will wear, since). We had home made t-shirts. We draped ourselves in fairy lights. We had sparkly bows. We even had illuminous shoe laces. We were basically walking Christmas trees. But… it worked! And honestly, I wouldn’t change anything about that night for the world. Especially not what I was wearing. Waffling my way through a very emotional encounter with one of the world’s most famous and successful artists, when else would you have the confident innocence to talk to your idol with smudged red lipstick on your face than at 13 years old ? Although our outfits were maybe the furthest thing from haute couture you could ever imagine, I have never been happier or looked back on an outfit with such fondness or pride. If I ever do meet her again, though, I might try to tone down the fairy lights (and the tears)!”

Jack

“As far as I can remember, I started wearing this hat around five years ago, when I was sixteen and a sophomore at my new high school. The earflaps in the winter were a blessing, which could be why I initially wore it. More than anything, I used the hat to keep my hair down (the long hair from then still haunts my passport photo though). It was a mostly calm time, mostly consisting of cruising through school. That winter we hosted a blind boy from China for a few weeks, and he would come back a year and a half later as my brother. One of the weird things I did was watch lots of anime, and listen to lots of Japanese music. My hat became an accessory to this goofy point in my life, when my biggest concern was getting homework in on time. The years since then have been turbulent to say the least. My hat has followed me through the messy latter half of high school, attending university across the Atlantic in Scotland, partying with friends, dropping out of said university, covid lockdowns, moving across the country, and working tirelessly towards building a potential career in law enforcement. I took a picture of myself wearing the hat in my new office because I just recently started a summer job as a Park Ranger with a local police department. A lot has changed in the five years since I first started wearing my silly winter cap. I have struggled and grown tremendously, trying to make the best version of myself as I entered adulthood. While I take myself more seriously now as I solidify my place in this world, I still blast weird Japanese music and use this same hat to manage bad hair days. My hat and I have been through a lot, with many more adventures to come.”

Kat

“My mom helped me shop for this outfit for my first internship when I was 17. It was the first time I bought pieces for such a professional setting, but we decided to have some fun with it since I was going to work at a fashion showroom so expressing your personal style was encouraged. The internship was in NYC and I was both excited and nervous to be living and working on my own. I remember wearing this dress on my first day because not only was it my favorite, but it made me feel confident and sure of myself. I may have spent two hours trying to deliver samples to a boutique in Brooklyn which turned out to have changed its name, but at least I looked good while doing it. Now, whenever I wear this outfit I’m reminded that although I was so anxious, I still managed to get the job done, even when I didn’t know what I was doing.”

This has been an incredible project which I have really enjoyed working on and I wanted to give a massive shoutout to everyone who sent me a memory and a photo and shared their tale. I genuinely loved reading them all and putting this together to show the diversity of clothes that are out there and the power they have to tell our stories. Each story is different, and this really shows how we all have a different story to tell the world.

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The Tales Our Clothes Tell: Part 1 14 May 2021, 6:05 pm

I have always been fascinated by other people’s stories. I am enthralled and interested to hear people’s different life experiences. I assumed everyone was like that- it was such a natural and significant part of me that I truly believed that’s how other people saw the world. I still don’t think I completely understand that part of myself but when I studied anthropology I began to. I realized I loved the discipline, so this article is anthropically based and pays homage to the power of anthropology to bring people together and truly understand ourselves through in particular with this article clothes we’ve worn that bring back or represent powerful and joyous memories.

I’ve always loved color and design ever since I was young, and of course fashion. If you saw my wardrobe and the two additional clothes racks you would know what I was talking about. So, let me just say this article combines two of my interests and the memories and pictures which you will come onto read act as personal fashion histories showing the power of clothes to retain memories.

I had this idea earlier this year and wanted to explore the concept of how our memories are woven into the fabrics of our clothes we wear whether that was the leather jacket you wore to your first interview, that iconic yellow dress you wore when you went with your friends to the beach and stayed out all night, or the blazer you wore on your first day to school. Stories are powerful so I hope you enjoy the plethora of different personal fashion histories below.

Asya

“As a child, I remember watching my grandmother hunched over a sewing machine. This was a hobby she had from a young age. At the time when my grandma started her family, buying clothes was expensive, many Italian housewives knew how to sew and would do so for their numerous family members. I remember when she would spend long summer afternoons (while everyone else was napping, as is typical in Southern Italy) working on a dress, or crocheting a beach cover-up. As she aged, she stopped sewing, only hemming a skirt or sewing on a button here and there. Although she’s stopped sewing, the clothes she made for my mother, my aunt and I still retain the memory of her artistry.”

“This dress in particular holds special meaning for me as my grandmother had initially sewed the silk dress for my aunt. As she can no longer wear it, I happily took it off her coat rack to wear it myself. To me, this dress holds the originality and timelessness I’ve grown to value in clothes. Having been sewn by my grandmother and worn by my aunt as a young girl the dress holds a memory of my family that I can find comfort in even when I am far from home. While a very simple silhouette, the dress not only reflects the summery style of the 70s but also holds the memory of my grandmother’s years of work and dedication to her family. “

Marilena

“One thing I really miss from my home country is the sunshine. The other my friends. The sun is, unfortunately, an infrequent visitor here in Scotland. So, when he graced us with his presence a few days ago my mood immediately turned equally bright, and I could not resist abandoning my studies and going for a long walk around town. My mood became even better the moment I opened my drawers and started going through my spring clothes, trying to decide what I was about to wear. Even though I knew the weather was undoubtedly going to turn chilly and cloudy once again, that sunny Tuesday felt as the beginning of summer. I had no difficulty picking up my outfit. The one you see on the picture is my all-time favourite look for the same two reasons I miss my home; it reminds me of my sunny summers in the city and my best friends.”

“The cotton white puffy crop top – short buttoned-down skirt with tiny red roses combo screams summertime. Together with black tights and a pair of classic brown fisherman sandals, the outfit turns more appropriate for spring. I wear it all the time during the spring and summer months, and I have lived many sweet memories in it. The most prominent is one of my last coffee shop visits with my best friend from school a few weeks before leaving for Scotland. We went to a cute little colourful place in a hidden paved alleyway in the centre of Athens. We sat at a table under a blooming tree, the sun was strong, and it was pleasantly breezy. Soft jazz music was travelling towards our way from the bar inside. He ordered a glass of coke and lemonade. Even though it was one of our simplest afternoons out, I miss it the most dearly. I wore the same outfit again when I went to visit one of my closest friends from my university. I was waiting for her at the side of the road when a girl approached me and told me my blouse reminds her of Lolita. I told this to my friend when she arrived, and she laughed at my apparent obsession with certain literary works. Remembering that event and my friend’s well-meaning teasing, I accessorised my outfit with red lipstick, red cherry earrings, and red heart-shaped glasses, all items a nod to Nabokov’s novel. Needless to say, I do not romanticise the relationship of the two protagonists, but I adore both the book and the 1997 film adaptation. This association of my outfit with the story reminds me of my other beloved friend from my undergraduate years. The summer before leaving home we spent a few days together at my grandmother’s beach house. It was the sweetest vacation. Every afternoon we chilled on the porch, sea-smell in the air, eating fruit and reading; she Dracula and I Lolita. I could keep on going about all the memories I revisit through this specific outfit, but those three are my most cherished. Fashion bears a lot of power, and its profound impact on our psyche is impressive, to say the least. But, as far as I am concerned, it is more than enough that I can put on a shirt and a skirt and immediately smile, for I feel closer both to my friends and to the most carefree summer of my 23 years on this Earth.”

Diandra

“This French marinière has been my ‘pal’ since my first year in Uni. The navy theme has been omnipresent present in my life, as the women in my family are very fond of this theme in clothing. Blue, red and white stripes have since a child been part of my closet: from kindergarten until now, I fancy these combinations, practical to match and pretty to the eye. This particular marinière has accompanied me in trips, parties and trivial but special moments of life, whether with jeans and sneakers or with a skirt and my espadrilles. I have not lived by the sea, but I love the ocean, and maybe wearing it is a way of having a bit of it in my daily life. I also like the ‘canoe’ cut of this long-sleeved shirt, and if you take care of it (I got mine from the brand Petit Bateau, which I highly recommend), this striped piece of clothing will gracefully last many years, hopefully.”

Sabrina 

“The skirt I’m wearing is Burberry, and it originally belonged to my mother. She first bought it around 2006, specifically to wear during a trip we were planning in Scotland! That was my first time visiting both Scotland and the UK in general, and I always associate this skirt with memories from that trip. I, of course, had no idea I’d be returning 12 years later for uni! She gifted me the skirt as I was packing for the move here, and went with me to get it tailored. I have bittersweet memories of that time, as I was both excited to start my time at St Andrews but also sad about saying goodbye to not only my parents for the first time, but also goodbye to my home in Singapore, since my parents would be moving to the US as soon as I left. The t-shirt I also bought with her, specifically in London, where we went together when she visited me at the end of my first year of uni. I never really got homesick during uni until covid, so it’s nice to wear these pieces that remind me of spending time with my family when that happens!”

Elizabeth

“It’s a french inspired outfit and it reminds me of being able to fit into the french community in Edinburgh, so quickly after moving here.”

Kira

“Although on the surface this is just a simple white shirt, the memories that are threaded through it make it so special to me. With the cropped, floaty sleeves and the delicate spotted pattern, this is a top that simply feels like me. And that is something that shone through when I subconsciously reached into my wardrobe for it on countless early mornings during my year abroad, getting ready to go to work as a teaching assistant at a school in southwest Germany. Whenever I wear this top, I am immediately transported back to the classrooms filled with pupils inspiringly eager to learn. I am transported back to teaching Year 5s how to talk about their favourite animals in English, teaching Year 7s how to Ceilidh dance, or (often hopelessly) attempting to answer Year 12s’ questions about the intricacies of British politics. Whenever I wear this top, I am transported back to warm evenings sipping Riesling by the Rhine after work, the sun beaming through its light fabric, laughing and sharing stories with the loveliest group of fellow foreign language assistants also living in the region. I find it fascinating how vividly these memories can be retained by a piece of cloth. So vivid, that I am somehow almost reluctant to wear it now, for fear of diluting the feeling of these happy memories coming flooding back to me whenever I put it on.”

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Summer Studying: The Library Books You Should Be Reading This Summer 13 May 2021, 6:09 pm

Right now, I’m sure many of us never want to read another book from the university library again. I get it. After spending weeks staring at a screen and now being in the middle of frantic essay writing, I cannot wait for the chance to switch off over summer. However, university is an investment, one that some would say doesn’t really feel worth it this year. If online teaching isn’t for you, you might feel like you have paid an awful lot for a reading list and a subscription to JSTOR. So, as a cheapskate to my very core, I have decided to make use of the fantastic array of ebooks we have at our library over the summer. 

Firstly, we have Gloria Jean Watkins, or her more famous pen name, bell hooks. If you search for ‘bell hooks’ and filter the results by only looking at ebooks, you will find an array of her work on race, gender, and its intersections, the impact of class, transforming education into a truly emancipatory tool, love as a transformational social force, and so much more. Being both an academic and activist, her work is multifaceted and visionary. If you are as bored of reducing social movements to infographics as I am, then consider spending some of your summers reading her work. 

Secondly, we have ‘Sister Outsider’ by Audre Lorde. I’ve known that this was an ebook at the library since Women in Work hosted a book club session about it at the start of term. This book is incredible! It’s a series of writings by the ‘black, lesbian, mother, warrior, poet’ about living at the intersection of all of her identities. It is compulsively readable because of how personal it is, while at the same time being an incredibly profound piece of social justice literature. 

And finally, I’m recommending ‘Bananas, Beaches and Bases: Making Feminist Sense of International Politics’ by Cynthia Enloe. While a chapter of this did make one of my reading lists this year, I continually came back to this book throughout the semester and am making plans to sit down and read it properly over the summer. Far from feeling like a dense, academic text, Enloe investigates the myriad of roles women play in international politics that have been overlooked and undervalued from garment workers to wives. 

The library has digitised a bunch of works because of the past year of online learning, so whatever you’re interested in, I recommend having an investigation and seeing if you can access some free books!

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The Next Summer of Love? 12 May 2021, 1:15 pm

It’s been more than year since we’ve experienced summer festivals filled with live music, face paint, and muddy boots. Now there’s hope that festivals such as TRNSMT could return in September 2021. Some are anticipating that the return of nationwide festivals will create a Third Summer of Love. So, I wonder, could the return of outdoor festivals after more than a year of social restrictions feel as significant as the Summer of Love in 1967? 

1967: Make Love Not War 

Of course, the world today feels completely different to 1967. In April of that year, Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his “Beyond Vietnam” speech in New York, denouncing the conflict of the Vietnam War, which lasted from 1955 to 1975. Viet Thanh Nguyen explained that the war was close to its peak in 1967, with around 15,000 American soldiers in Vietnam at the time. Nguyen explained that the US dropped explosives on Cambodia, Vietnam and Laos, resulting in an estimated 2,000,000 civilian deaths to both sides. In his speech, King called the US the “the greatest purveyor of violence in the world today.”

April 14th 1967 saw demonstrations in New York, and around 10,000 people marched in protest of the Vietnam war in San Francisco. “Make Love Not War”, was one of the slogans and anti-war messages which captured aspirations of world peace and travelled across the globe. Rosemont et al highlight that “Make Love Not War” travelled from Chicago – were it was printed onto buttons for the first time in a bookshop in 1965 – to Vietnam in 1967, where a marine corporal scribbled it onto his helmet with a marker. 

Hippy Counterculture

At the same time, the hippy movement in San Francisco was gaining momentum. They opposed the violence of the Vietnam war. The hippie movement was a counterculture all about promoting idealistic visions of a world, one without racial or sexual oppression or capitalistic ideas of ownership. The idea of ‘Hippy Privilege’, however, clouded outsider perspectives of the counterculture. Maldono highlights that the majority of hippies were young, white and from privileged backgrounds, which meant that for them, ‘dropping out’ of the system was a choice. Furthermore, Maldonado notes that hippies romanticised eastern culture by adopting a ‘bohemian’ lifestyle, while glossing over the poverty that marginalised peoples faced. 

The Summer of Love in Haight-Ashbury

“If you’re going to San Francisco/ Be sure to wear some flowers in your hair/ If you’re going to San Francisco/ You’re gonna meet some gentle people there,

For those who come to San Francisco/ Summertime will be a love-in there/ In the streets of San Francisco/ Gentle people with flowers in their hair,

All across the nation/ Such a strange vibration/ People in motion/ There’s a whole generation/ With a new explanation/ People in motion/ People in motion,

For those who come to San Francisco/ Be sure to wear some flowers in your hair/ If you come to San Francisco/ Summertime will be a love-in there”.

For many, Scott McKenzie’s ‘San Francisco’, released in May 1967, captured the feeling of the Summer of Love. Online comments highlight the song’s social significance: “No song better sums up the great haight ashbury days than this song”, “1967 was definitely the turning point in rock and roll music and this song led the way to the hippy movement, psychedelia, peace, and love”, “Many young (and some not-so-young) adults interpreted this as a call to join a growing movement of peace, love, being and creativity, centered in San Francisco”. 

The song called around 100,000 young music-lovers and hippies to travel to the Haight-Ashbury district in San Francisco in 1967 for the “Summer of Love” festival-style event. It was “happening” in Haight Ashbury, the focal point of the hippy movement. Savage explains that the hippie counterculture had been growing in Haight-Ashbury since 1965, which was manifested in psychedelic shops, the increasing popularity of LSD, and young activists and idealists in the district promoting peace. By 1967, Haight-Ashbury attracted thousands of Americans who wanted to “drop-out”, explore and find freedom, LSD and music in San Francisco. 

Psychedelia

William Hedgepeth remembers experiencing the summer while he was living in Haight-Ashbury for 3 weeks on assignment. He described men with shoulder length hair, which at the time was a statement against conformity. Women in flowing dresses gave him LSD in Golden Gate Park, and he had joined a commune within 2 days of his stay. 

‘Psychedelia’ and the effects of LSD inspired music, fashion, and art in 1967, and significantly influenced the vibe of the ‘Summer of Love’. Jimi Hendrix’s Are You Experienced?, Pink Floyd’s Piper at the Gates of Dawn, and The Doors’ Eponymous debut album were some of the psychedelic albums released in 1967. In addition, The Beatles’ album, Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, released on June 1st 1967, was one of the sounds of the summer – which some remember for it’s references to drugs. For example, Lennon illustrates an acid trip in “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds”: “Picture yourself in a boat on a river/ With tangerine trees and marmalade skies/ Somebody calls you, you answer quite slowly/ A girl with kaleidoscope eyes/ Cellophane flowers of yellow and green/ Towering over your head/ Look for the girl with the sun in her eyes”. The Beatles also released “All You Need is Love” on July 7th 1967, which became another iconic song that reflected the feel and aspirations of the summer. 

Across the Atlantic – The Technicolour Dream and the Non-stop Happening

The Summer of Love and the hippie movement spread across the Atlantic to the UK, which was home to Swinging London. The “14-hour-Technicolour Dream” (the poster reads: Alexandra Place N.22/ 8pm Saturday/ 29 April-Sun30/ tickets £1) was held in London on April 29th 1967. Psychedelic band ‘Tomorrow’ played, along with Pink Floyd. Around 10,000 people attended. Newspaper clippings from the time describes the scene:

“14-Hour Technicolour Dream which will include innovations such as an indoor ferris-wheel, a festival of light machines on a scale that will never before scene in this country, and an environmental atmosphere that has never been attempted before with such a great number of people”

John Crosby wrote down conversations he overheard at 14-Hour in an article:

“the fragments of conversation were delicious: ‘I like Tom Leary all right, but I can’t stand the people around him. But you’re all supposed to love each other.’ ‘ Yes, but we don’t have to like each other.’

‘I’m told in the seventies we all get to be serious’ ‘Really, we get turned off in the seventies? Whatever for?’

Sandie recalls her own experience at the 14-Hour:

“it was definitely BEFORE hippie culture hit the world. I remember seeing young men with long hair wearing cowbells – one woke another up in the morning by ringing it in his ear. I remember Pink Floyd’s light show – truly amazing. I remember there being two stages – one at each end of the venue.”– Sandie.

A more low-key festival, the “3 day Non-Stop Happening Festival of the Flower Children”, was held in Woburn Abbey in England between the 26th and the 28th of August 1967. By this time the hippie counterculture was probably more widespread in the UK than it was back in April 1967. Black and white photos of the festivals show crowds with flowers in their hair wearing kaftans, headbands, and beaded necklaces. Flowers were painted on their cheeks, and many held small spinning fireworks. An online blog (ukrockfestivals.com) archived the stories and memories of some Woburn festival goers:

“We were sort of hippy-ish, (Art students in Oxford) so we borrowed my Mum’s Triumph Herald convertible … borrowed some of her cheap beads because we were a bit short on beads –Jerry

I remember sleeping under a tree and waking up several times during the night to hear the Doors (record) “Light my Fire” – Jerry

I went there with a couple of my mates -we had an old Bedford van and was picking up hitch hikers on the way. I remember a lady refusing to serve us in the village pub because we were ” beatniks”. – Dicky

“I was a student at the time but also worked in Tiles Club in Oxford Street (the first gig the Bee Gees played in the UK). One of the DJs – chas – offered to take me to the festival … aged 17 in my Biba frock and some turquoise beads from Indiacrafts… It was really warm and sociable. I certainly don’t remember heaving crowds – it wasn’t the way it is these days. People just wandered around, danced, laughed and talked and watched the line-up… Looking back it was all so tame and safe. I still have no idea how I got home to London”. – Lindsay

Moving On

Like all good things, the Summer of Love had to come to an end. Savage highlights that the number of “drug-dazed, homeless teens” who were left hanging around Haight Ashbury at the end of the event were “unmanageable”. Local residents couldn’t wait for the visitors to leave, and they were tired of the “buses full of gawking tourists [that] clogged Haight Street”. The Summer of Love ended with a symbolic funeral called the “death of the hippie”, which symbolised the end of summer’s event on October 6th 1967. Kasper, one of the organisers of the symbolic funeral said: “We wanted to signal that this was the end of it, to stay where you are, bring the revolution to where you live, and don’t come here because it’s over and done with.” Some used the moment to leave the hippie counterculture behind in Haight Ashbury. Photos show a group of “freebies” (the term for the those who had been ‘freed’ of the hippie label) with recently cut hair and peace signs carrying a casket filled with beads, pot, flowers and locks of long hair.  Bill Niekerken explained that these objects represented hippie lifestyle, and carrying the casket through Haight-Ashbury to its resting spot symbolically marked the end of the movement in Haight Ashbury (even though hippies were still around until the mid 70s). 

The Next Summer of Love

Today, there is a nostalgia for the hippie counterculture, decorated in public memory with freedom, “Make Love Not War”, flower power, and peace signs. Or maybe we just yearn to experience the feeling of large open-air festivals the way we used to. One rejected online petition called for the UK government to allow another “Summer of Love” for young people across the UK:

“allow the youth of the UK to have a summer of love as a thank you for abiding to the lockdown rules… these are very hard times for young people, with them having no work, being restrained from living a free life and being ordered not to socialize… the youth are not being given a chance to release all the inner frustrations.”

Freedom from social restraints and releasing “frustrations” underlies the motivation for the “free summer of love 2021”. It echoes the image of the 60s ‘hippy’ ideal, ‘dropping out’ of the system and travelling to an outdoor festival where everyone can ‘let go’ and dance. Maybe the return of crowds at a summer music festival could do just that and create a form of escapism from our socially distanced towns and cities. 

Liverpool held “The First Dance”, a trail club event which ran from April 30th until May 1st, where 6,000 people returned to the dancefloor without masks for the first time in over a year. People’s reactions to the night could give us an insight into the effect the return of outdoor festivals could have. Sam Newson, the producer of the event said: “I’m not going to lie, it is very emotional.” He added: “Any event is special but with the amount of work that has gone into this and to be the first in the country in over 12 months, it is very special.” Lauren Losung, described the buzz of the music and the feeling of being back in a club: “when I got to play that first track, it hit me like a ton of bricks… You could just feel the energy in the room.”

There’s no doubt that the return of outdoor festivals will feel “special” and maybe a little historic after the past year. Those aspiring for a third Summer of Love are holding out for a summer of freedom, good music, dancing, and travel (which we will get back to) – which is what many imagine that the Summer of Love was all about. That being said, nothing can quite replicate the “Summer of Love” in 1967, mobilised at the peak of hippie counterculture, psychedelia, and against the backdrop of protests against the Vietnam War. 

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5 Books to Pick Up on Your Days off This Summer 9 May 2021, 9:34 pm

Exams are upon us and summer break is rapidly approaching, which means everybody’s minds are occupied by thoughts of studying and the plans that await them the moment that studying is over, or, just the fun plans if you’re being honest with yourself. Despite the promise of open bars and live concerts, it’s been a long year, and a couple of days with minimal obligations, whether social or school-related, are inherently necessary. Whether you’re laid out by a pool, tucked away in a garden, or situated on a beach, but consider picking up a book, maybe one that’s been on the “to read” list for too long or one you were gifted for Christmas but didn’t have the time to commit. If you haven’t even been to a bookstore or can’t stand the sight of a library after exams, fear no more, because a book on this list might just inspire you to read something other than history textbooks and eighteenth century literature. You can finish these books in a day, or space them out for the duration of your vacation – whatever the setting, these books are perfect for taking a break from your summer break.

The Creative Crime Story:

If you’re looking for something slightly more sinister, look no further than The Dinner by Herman Koch. Masterfully paced, readers are brought along to a family dinner where a dirty secret waits to be discussed. A book about how far parents will go to protect their children, I was definitely reminded of Defending Jacob without the procedural aspect, and the concept is one of the most creative I’ve read in a long time. The tension is literally palpable and the language will stick with you long after you’ve put it down, and you’ll likely be left questioning everything you think you understand about family.

The Chill Coming of Age:

When you hear the title, My Year of Rest and Relaxation, you’ll probably think of yourself sipping fruity drinks on the coast of some island. That’s not exactly what our protagonist has in mind when she embarks on a hilarious, heartbreaking, and weirdly beautiful journey to reevaluate her life after college. Author Ottessa Moshfegh creates the ultimate New York girl and breaks her down to her most basic, somehow writing a study and a coming of age story that is extraordinary in its normalcy. It’s unconventional but real, and I genuinely cannot wait to read more of Moshfegh’s writing. 

The Science Fiction Meets Comedy:

If you finish Cat’s Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut and think “what on earth did I just read?” then I am fairly sure you read it correctly. This book is just fun, it’s satirical, it’s comedic, and it’s endearing, in its own confusing way. Every character is eccentric, every setting fantastical, so if the apocalyptic tales of a writer on the search for a chemical capable of freezing the earth over piques your interest… I suggest you just dive right in. Ultimately it’s layered and intelligent, a critique of all kinds of modern institutions, but it doesn’t take itself too seriously and that comedy is what has made it timeless. 

The Relatable Romance:

If romances are more your summer read, then you’re in luck – kind of. Normal People by Sally Rooney will have you smiling and then in tears within the space of a couple pages, and it’s what I love about it. At this point, I think everyone has heard of this book or watched the series, and I am here to tell you that it is all 100% worth it. The span of time which Rooney covers and her ability to do so both beautifully and truthfully is astounding. Normal People is not a normal romance by the industry’s standards, but in reality, I think everyone can relate to Connell and Mariaanne in some form, and that’s what makes it both heartbreaking and joyous at the same time.

The My-Mom-Would-Read-This: 

It’s the season of the summer book club, and the sheer array of novels recommended to middle aged women by Reeese Withersppon and Oprah actually blow my mind. However, you have to admit they have amazing taste, because Reese’s recent recommendation, Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid, lives up to the hype. Two very different worlds collide when the lives of an influencer and her babysitter are forced to entangle deeper than surface-level, and each has to reconsider what they know about themselves and each other. It’s real and it’s relevant, and it’s just plain well-written, and if I can’t convince you to read it, maybe you’ll listen to the countless awards and renowned recognition it has received. 

This summer, take a minute to be productive without feeling like you’re doing work – get lost in someone else’s problems, their world, their dramatic event that turns their life upside down and changes them forever…you catch my drift. Regardless, you can choose to read for the sake of education or escapism or what have you, and it’s a perfect way to spend those days where you’re not experiencing the reopening of life as we know it. I promise you’ll learn something about yourself, the world, and worst-case scenario, you can say you read a book this summer!

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DEATH ROAD TO CANADA – “ARE WE THERE YET?” 8 May 2021, 8:04 pm

This week, Morgan further plans for the zombie apocalypse via video game, despite the fact that he would no doubt be the first one to die.

I’m tired of this, Steam. You tease good games, then try to pawn them off for full price when I can get them for at least half the cost elsewhere. I’ve taken the position of the dog who’s not sure if its owner’s hand even contains a biscuit after all. Either give me some good games to play or I’m throwing myself off of this cliff.

“Well, there’s Death Road to Canada. It’s a pixel-art zombie survival – no, wait, don’t jump! It’s a pixel-art zombie survival game where your death is permanent and you’re forced to start right from the beginning again should you be overwhelmed by the hordes. A “rogue-like”, as the kids are calling it these days.”

Sounds like an interesting enough concept, I pondered. And it’s always worth to fund independent game designers, even if it is just used to pay for EA’s protection racket. 

Death Road to Canada doesn’t have a story; it’s a very fill-in-the-blank scenario and it’s all summed up in a three-sentence text screen. The zombie apocalypse has happened in some assuredly inevitable way and you take control of a random citizen who is attempting to reach safety in Canada. Along the way you collect resources, add NPC friends to your travelling group and level up your character’s qualities, eg. stamina, charisma, strength, etc. 

Oh, and you also fight zombies. Let’s not forget that there’s plenty of those hanging around. The combat is simple enough, just hit the attack key and back away for a few seconds when your character starts to tire out, but the number of zombies nearby increases with each new level, almost ridiculously so. Your first trip out has the number you’d expect to be near the likes of a supermarket, but then on the next visit there’s enough of them there to fill a third of London. Maybe the toilet paper craze struck again (yeah, remember the time we thought that was the craziest thing we’d see all year?).  

I was enjoying Downing Street to Canada up to a point, and by “a point”, I mean fifteen minutes in. Random character generation does admittedly add more tension to proceedings than I first thought it would. There is little on this Earth more galling than surviving the harsh wastes as Indiana Buckington, adventurer extraordinaire with a billion charisma points, only to break your neck after tripping on your own shoelace and respawning as sweaty neckbeard Joey Slothman (complete with all the charm of a shopping trolley in the public pond). 

That was until I found out that you can save a generated character pre-game if you want to, meaning they’re always there for you to pick when you have to try again. Hell, there’s even an option to make your own, so the bottom of the self-proclaimed “rogue-like” genre plops out, like you’ve mishandled a steak pie with too much filling and not enough pastry. 

The game also likes to pretend that anything bad that happens to you is entirely your fault, but don’t believe it, as this is how abusive relationships get started. Where you travel for a level is technically up to you: in any scenario, you get a choice of four options and you have to choose whichever one you feel won’t end with the newly-undead making hot dog meat out of your joy department. Between missions, when you’re simply driving your car around, you might lose a certain number of resources based on you and your group members’ moods or skills. For example, a consistent factor you have to account for is losing 10 lots of gas every time you finish a level. But then the game randomly jerks the steering wheel in the direction of Dickingaround Avenue and starts taking other resources from you for absolutely no justifiable reason. 

“You’ve hit a road block! Lost five food points!”

“Bandits have randomly been conjured from the ether! Lost fifteen bullets!”

“You scraped your car roof on a low-hanging bridge! Lost another five food points, why the hell not?”

Look at me, everyone: it took nine paragraphs for me to arrive at the conclusion that Hitchhiker’s Guide to Cameroon is basically okay. It’s an entertaining enough little yarn that should do fine when it comes to staving off the massacre for the next few weeks. It’s beautifully designed with a ridiculously good main theme, yet I don’t think it’s something I’ll be returning to very soon. But you know what, the developers clearly want to appeal to a more niche audience than bigger releases and honestly, I can respect that. This is for people who like brief, repeating challenges which are mixed up just enough each time. They don’t need the likes of me bumbling around their treehouse club. 

It’s not even enough to write a full-size review for, really, its charm is in its simplicity. What else can I say about it? Oh, if you like road trips but think the journey is missing that essential threat of death at each fuel stop, then this is the game for you?

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The Joy of Reading 7 May 2021, 8:40 pm

I’m not a bookworm-since-childhood bibliophile. Fun fact: I didn’t know the proper way of reading books (and it’s so silly) because I’d read the same row of words on both pages before moving to the next row on the left page and start over again. After that, I couldn’t take up a book the same way again – whenever I read, or once in a while, I’d reminisce this unintelligent side of me in childhood. I think it was later in primary school, I slowly let myself indulge in the pleasure of reading, which I’ve started with the Geronimo Stilton series. Later in secondary school, I started reading more and embrace reading as a hobby of mine. Wherever I go in school, no matter it is physical education class or lunchtime, you’d find me with a book in hand. That was just how much I love reading.

When I entered university though, my reading time was cut short, and I only let myself read novels during summer and winter breaks. I couldn’t trust myself to start a book in the middle of the semester and put the book down when there are lectures and coursework to prepare. Also, because I couldn’t read that often anymore, I make sure to put on my year resolution to read finish 20 books annually. Lately, I’ve also challenged myself to pick up more general fiction, scientific, classical literature books instead of my usual teen fictions. I’m a girl slowly entering adulthood with every year passing by so I’d like to learn more about the world (and adulthood) through what I’m most comfortable with, and I can expand my vocabulary and knowledge from reading a wider field of genres.

Reading can be something many students find tiresome as now it’s required for us to read academic papers during the semesters. Why would you want to read novels when you have been reading papers right? That was what my friend asked me once and he never really picked up a book to read for pleasure and is more into watching TV series and films. I guess, like how TV producers/directors have different styles of filming, if you read from many genres or authors, you’d find that it’s the same with writing – there’s no universal style (or is there? I’m not studying literature or English to make that statement). Reading also opens you to different perspectives and different scenarios that you may have possibly wondered but there’s no film for it. For instance, there are books like “Love, Rosie” that are written in a letter exchange format; or some, such as “Dorothy Must Die”, that takes you on a storyline where Dorothy from the infamously known Wizard of Oz film has become evil and Oz is not the same as it was, and someone has been transported to Oz to save it again. Such a great series, I’d recommend anyone to give it a go! Love, Rosie is also one of my favourite books and has a film adaptation – I’d say the film is lovely too, although it doesn’t outcompete the original material.

So, when was the last time you’ve ever picked up a book or a few and just read all day? Does reading enlighten you? Do you consider reading an educative, essential activity or an essential one for entertainment? Well, it can surely be both!

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