Welcome to this week’s 5BF: Joyce Carol Oates on writing, on
the limitedness of death-bed final thoughts, Mossadegh’s tragic story, and more…
1 – what I read
The Patriot of Persia by Christian de Ballaigue – not only
was he a true patriot of Iran, but a true champion of democracy too: democracy
which never came to Iran due to the inconsiderate policies of the goliaths, UK
and US. Ballaigue’s biography of Mossadegh paints a comprehensive picture where
every reader can witness one of the greatest patriot stories of Middle East.
2 – food for thought
What is logic @aeon – the author Catarina Dutilh Novaes
investigates the history of ‘logic’ and how was it defined by the many
philosophers and mathematicians alike. She asks the question ‘what does it mean
to be logical: Is it to engage in discussions with others? Is it to think for
ourselves? Is it to perform calculations?’, and answers it through the evidence
of history.
Final Thoughts @aeon – almost everyone who has surfed
internet or scrolled through YouTube would have come across videos of old
people telling their intimate regrets about their, now completely lived, lives.
This article challenges the authenticity of the death-bed thoughts, saying they
might not be relevant to everyone, or that it presents a very narrow viewpoint
on life. A must read!
Podcast: Joyce Carol Oates @timferrisshow – author of 60
plus books of fiction, nonfiction, memoirs, poetry, and more, and with an
average of 2 books per year, Carol Oates in this podcast shares her wisdom and experience
on writing: on the preservation on energy, the importance of appreciation by
teachers to young writers, on reading a single author for months on end, and so
on…
3 – what I watched
Whisper of the Heart (1995) – this anime movie is about two
young lovers who get to know each other through the books that they borrow from
the town’s library. The boy, a talented violon maker has to go to Italy to
pursue his dreams, which in turn, motivates the girl to test out her writing
talents too as she starts to write a story of her own. A warm, illustrative,
and beautiful movie.
Godzilla vs Kong (2021) – newest from Warner Bros. this much
anticipated movie is where the Titans share some fists, and oh boy, it is
amazing! Without giving away spoilers about the plot, which is really good, all
I can do is recommend it, and that I definitely do.
4 – Adam Curtis’s new documentary
Can’t get you out of my head (2020) – It is now my
established belief that Curtis is one of the few geniuses that has some deep,
patterned, and important insights into human psyche and the multi-environments
they live in. His newest documentary, based on six one-hour episodes, is about ‘An
emotional history of the modern world: Love, power, money, ghosts of empire,
conspiracies, artificial intelligence and You.’ I cannot emphasis enough how brilliant
his films are and how urgently important it is for everyone to watch them.
5 – this week’s quote
‘the silence had for me the force of eternal life; for on the plane of eternity without beginning and without end there is no such thing as speech.’ – Sadegh Hedayat (the blind owl)