Do Humans Want to be Good?

All Art is Propaganda:

 Critical Essays 

by George Orwell

“On the whole human beings want to be good, but not too good, and not quite all the time.”   ― George Orwell, All Art is Propaganda: Critical Essays









All Art is Propaganda is a collection of George Orwell's essays bound by the theme of philosophical and aesthetic commentary. It includes such masterpieces as "Propaganda and Demotic Speech," "Charles Dickens," and "Rudyard Kipling." Of particular interest in our political enthused year are the essays addressing the nature of propaganda; both directly in "Propaganda and Demotic Speech," and somewhat tangentially in "Politics and the English Language," the latter of which is more important and contains many insightful statements like "if thought corrupts language, language can also corrupt thought. Bad usage can spread by tradition and imitation, even among people who should and do know better."

I hope that some of the many readers of Orwell's novels will take the time to savor their fine prose. Orwell's essays are always both enlightening and interesting on each of the disparate topics he addresses. The usage of political speech in the twenty-first century is proof enough of Orwell's claim. Thoughtful criticism, such as Orwell's, is woefully lacking in our current day, particularly among practicing politicians and their supporters.

Scientific Woman

Lessons in Chemistry 

by Bonnie Garmus

“Whenever you start doubting yourself, whenever you feel afraid, just remember. Courage is the root of change and change is what we're chemically designed to do.”   - ― Bonnie Garmus, Lessons in Chemistry

My experience reading this book was at times unpleasant since the characters were often caricatures and the events appeared forced, especially when they were opposed to Elizabeth Zott, the main character, a scientist. So, even though the book was very readable and difficult for me to put down, this reduced my enjoyment of it.

The main character of Elizabeth, however, really pulls this book together. Elizabeth is not only intelligent, but also incredibly rational, pragmatic, and level-headed; she just won't accept being underestimated. She continues to defy the restrictions that some (sometimes it seems like everyone) would place on her due to her sex, telling her audience that "the reduction of women to something less than men...is not biological; it's cultural." Not so much because she defies these boundaries but because she recognizes their absurdity and acts appropriately, which made me fall in love with her. It is the absurdity of some situations that provides a level of comic relief in what is often a very dark story.

The novel's opening chapters, which seem almost like they were written for a young adult readership, highlight the author's straightforward writing style. Although the approach becomes less obvious as the story goes on, some readers might become disinterested before the action truly picks up. The characters that surround Elizabeth also lack complexity; for the most part, the "good" ones are all very wise and helpful, while the evil characters are naive and malicious; I thought this distracted from the message of the book. Lastly, a lot of the storyline, especially the fairytale conclusion, is highly dependent on coincidence. These aspects detracted from what I otherwise found to be a pleasant read.

Insights and Discoveries

The Heart in Exile 

by Rodney Garland

"It was all clear now, or at least as clear as it could be. I had discovered and could explain many things, but there was so much, of course, that I could never hope to explain."  - Rodney Garland, The Heart in Exile

Although this book is a mystery set in the gay community of post-World War II London, it is much more than that. It explores the nature of love and the very personal truths experienced by homosexuals, as well as the gay life, which was necessarily an underworld in London at the time. It is this second aspect of the book that allows it to rise above the average sentimental story. This book is intensely about the lives of a psychiatrist and his former lover, who was found dead from what appeared to be an overdose of sleeping pills. The doctor's investigation into what happened led to revelations about himself that profoundly affected his life.

This book, which examined the variety of homosexual life in London and offered a touching account of how one might transform his life in unexpected ways when faced with the ups and downs of daily existence, captivated me. It was both fascinating and profoundly touching.

Interesting but Unconvincing

Trust 

by Hernan Diaz

“they all believed, without any sort of doubt, that they deserved to be heard, that their words ought to be heard, that the narratives of their faultless lives must be heard. They all had the same unwavering certainty my father had. And I understood that this was the certainty that Bevel wanted on the page.”   ― Hernan Diaz, Trust

This novel is an interesting blend of different genres, spanning historical fiction, autobiography, and critical memoir. In addition to facing the lies that frequently lie at the core of interpersonal relationships, the imagined might of capitalism, and the ease with which power may corrupt facts, Trust is part an engrossing story and part an attempt to construct a literary puzzle. 

I found the first two sections interesting reading, especially as they read like a fantasy of a superman of finance. However, the final sections did not impress. With the unsatisfying sections just hanging on to the somewhat dull but interesting first two parts, the whole was ultimately unconvincing as a modernist literary construct.