Wow! I can not believe how fast this semester has gone. For the final week, I chose to read The Society of Reluctant Dreamers. This was surely one of the longest reads and once again, I am not too knowledgeable of the history of the Angolan Independence which does add a level of complexity when […]
Posted in Blogs | Tagged with José Eduardo Agualusa, the society of reluctant dreamers
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. It’s an interesting concept because I am someone who dreams a lot, and I know other people who never dream (or at least can’t remember them). I always wonder what this means and I also always wonder who these “characters”are that are appearing in my dreams.. Are they real people and I just do not know it? And if they aren’t, how is my mind creating completely fictional people if I have never seen them before?
I also enjoyed the idea of Freuds take on dreams mentioned in the lecture as well. Freud states that “dreams are derived from the past in every sense”.. which is interesting to think about considering Daniel Benchimol is dreaming of people he has never met, how is that possible? I think the same thing for myself.
Overall, the only struggle I had with this book was not having enough knowledge on the historical contexts taking place, but it was good to be educated on something new, as I usually am each week with our readings. Which bring me to mention that war has also been a common we have been seeing in our readings lately. Other than that (which isn’t really a bad thing at all), I enjoyed this novel a lot despite there being a lot going on, I managed to grasp the concepts a good amount and considering we have read so much involving dreams.
I feel as though I have become an expert at differentiating between what is a dream and what is reality (although still a little hard to tell sometimes I won’t lie). But that is what keeps me invested in reading, I love the back and fourth between the two states.
Posted in Blogs | Tagged with the society of reluctant dreamers
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. It’s an interesting concept because I am someone who dreams a lot, and I know other people who never dream (or at least can’t remember them). I always wonder what this means and I also always wonder who these “characters”are that are appearing in my dreams.. Are they real people and I just do not know it? And if they aren’t, how is my mind creating completely fictional people if I have never seen them before?
I also enjoyed the idea of Freuds take on dreams mentioned in the lecture as well. Freud states that “dreams are derived from the past in every sense”.. which is interesting to think about considering Daniel Benchimol is dreaming of people he has never met, how is that possible? I think the same thing for myself.
Overall, the only struggle I had with this book was not having enough knowledge on the historical contexts taking place, but it was good to be educated on something new, as I usually am each week with our readings. Which bring me to mention that war has also been a common we have been seeing in our readings lately. Other than that (which isn’t really a bad thing at all), I enjoyed this novel a lot despite there being a lot going on, I managed to grasp the concepts a good amount and considering we have read so much involving dreams.
I feel as though I have become an expert at differentiating between what is a dream and what is reality (although still a little hard to tell sometimes I won’t lie). But that is what keeps me invested in reading, I love the back and fourth between the two states.
Posted in Blogs | Tagged with the society of reluctant dreamers
Hi Everyone! I have to say, I feel quite sad writing the (second) last blog post for this class. This…
Posted in Agualusa, Blogs | Tagged with context, Dreams, historical background, identity, nationality, psychology, reading, reflection, the society of reluctant dreamers
blog#11 – Time and the way She swims through Dreams — As soon as I finished the book, I fell asleep. I read The Society of Reluctant Dreamers in a period where I was (and am) sleeping a lot. I clocked in about 14 or 15 hours straight the other night. I’m not quite sure why […]
Posted in Agualusa, Blogs | Tagged with Angola, Dreams, reality, revolution, Swimming, the society of reluctant dreamers, time
This is another surreal novel，which are often associated with those ethereal things, just like the theme of this novel-dream or a dreamer. Under Jose’s pen, his articles are very beautiful and colorful. You can see rainbows, blue houses, blue whales in the sky, avocado trees and more. We found a reunion of four different type … Continue reading Review of The Society of Reluctant Dreamers →
Posted in Blogs | Tagged with José Eduardo Agualusa, Nier, Romance Studies, the society of reluctant dreamers, week12
This book was definitely up there among my favourites of this term. It was simultaneously light and dealt with themes that I connected with, so I was able to engage with it more than I could with some other books we read. There were many themes involved in the novel, but the one that resonated with me the most was that of identity. On pages 117 and 118 (of my pdf – not sure what the page numbers are for a physical copy), there is a discussion of nationality and identity. I found it funny that Clarice Lispector was mentioned; though I didn’t personally read her book this term, it still felt like a fun little crossover.
As someone who has Iranian heritage, was born and raised in the UK, and is now living in Canada, I’ve thought a lot about how nationality may or may not be part of our identities. I would still consider myself Iranian if I didn’t have citizenship, though I’m not sure that I’ll ever consider myself Canadian even if I get the passport. I just think it’s interesting how some places become ingrained in our identities, while some don’t ever get to that status.
Another quote that got the wheels in my head turning was: “Pacifism, my dear brother, is like mermaids: it can only breathe in the sea of fantasy, reality doesn’t suit it”, (p132 of my pdf). It reminds me of the quote from Soldiers of Salamis I discussed last week; “to me a civilised country is one where people don’t have to waste their time on politics”. Both contain a thread of idealism, though one is idealistic and the other shuts it down. It also makes me think about my stance on pacifism. Does it really work? Maybe it does. I feel like I could argue both sides.
Overall, I think this novel did a good job of illustrating the places in between; neither fully good, nor fully bad, neither completely real, nor completely fantastical. The line that struck me as illustrating this idea well was: “Yes, he’s a thug and a good father. I don’t like the thug, but I love the father me is to me”. It’s a reminder of all the shades of grey in life and in people. I find it a more balanced view of the world, and an understanding that comes with age; 10 year old me certainly wouldn’t have been able to fully comprehend it, and I think 30 year old me will have an even stronger grasp of the concept.
The question I now pose to you is about pacifism. Do you think it can only exist in fantasy? Or can it survive in our current world?
Posted in Agualusa, Blogs | Tagged with balance, idealism, identity, pacifism, the society of reluctant dreamers
This book was definitely up there among my favourites of this term. It was simultaneously light and dealt with themes that I connected with, so I was able to engage with it more than I could with some other books we read. There were many themes involved in the novel, but the one that resonated with me the most was that of identity. On pages 117 and 118 (of my pdf – not sure what the page numbers are for a physical copy), there is a discussion of nationality and identity. I found it funny that Clarice Lispector was mentioned; though I didn’t personally read her book this term, it still felt like a fun little crossover.
As someone who has Iranian heritage, was born and raised in the UK, and is now living in Canada, I’ve thought a lot about how nationality may or may not be part of our identities. I would still consider myself Iranian if I didn’t have citizenship, though I’m not sure that I’ll ever consider myself Canadian even if I get the passport. I just think it’s interesting how some places become ingrained in our identities, while some don’t ever get to that status.
Another quote that got the wheels in my head turning was: “Pacifism, my dear brother, is like mermaids: it can only breathe in the sea of fantasy, reality doesn’t suit it”, (p132 of my pdf). It reminds me of the quote from Soldiers of Salamis I discussed last week; “to me a civilised country is one where people don’t have to waste their time on politics”. Both contain a thread of idealism, though one is idealistic and the other shuts it down. It also makes me think about my stance on pacifism. Does it really work? Maybe it does. I feel like I could argue both sides.
Overall, I think this novel did a good job of illustrating the places in between; neither fully good, nor fully bad, neither completely real, nor completely fantastical. The line that struck me as illustrating this idea well was: “Yes, he’s a thug and a good father. I don’t like the thug, but I love the father me is to me”. It’s a reminder of all the shades of grey in life and in people. I find it a more balanced view of the world, and an understanding that comes with age; 10 year old me certainly wouldn’t have been able to fully comprehend it, and I think 30 year old me will have an even stronger grasp of the concept.
The question I now pose to you is about pacifism. Do you think it can only exist in fantasy? Or can it survive in our current world?
Posted in Agualusa, Blogs | Tagged with balance, idealism, identity, pacifism, the society of reluctant dreamers
In “The Society of Reluctant Dreamers” by José Agualasa, he creates a world within which dreams are clues to the future, a place where all the potential tomorrows of humanity are housed. Written in the backdrop of civil war, political … Continue reading →
Posted in Blogs | Tagged with Authoritarianism, despair, hostory, Jose Agualusa, mundane life, puzzle, the society of reluctant dreamers
“The Society of Reluctant Dreamers” was an interesting one! There were a lot of aspects to this book surrounding the past/future, dreams, love, and politics. Personally I appreciated the letters being included in the pages because it made it feel very personable and you got to see how Moira and Daniel’s relationship formed. “To […]
Posted in Blogs | Tagged with Dreams, politics, the society of reluctant dreamers
