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In Some Words with a Mummy (1845), a group of Egyptologists reanimate a mummy, who speaks to them with an unexpected eloquence. He asks his readers to consider at what point death truly occurs if the dead can still speak or inhabit the bodies of the living. In his work, Poe continually blurs the boundary between life and death. Poe, wrote Griswold, had a “morbid sensitiveness of feeling, a shadowy and gloomy imagination”. Griswold established this image in his 1849 obituary, in which he reflected that Poe was “a dreamer – dwelling in ideal realms – in heaven or hell”. They are influenced by the image of Poe as a melancholic loner, tormented by bereavement and alcoholism, and fascinated with the otherworldly. The posthumous “Poe” poems are not very good, but they attempt to capture the content or style of Poe’s living poems: dramatic and dark lyrics about the loss of loved ones and the crossover between the living and spirit worlds. Read more: Depression and language: analysing Edgar Allan Poe's writings to solve the mystery of his death The living and the dead Spiritualists produced these celebrity ghost writings to demonstrate the authenticity of their practice and the radical possibility of the living and the dead merging consciousnesses. Magazines and collections produced “original” posthumous texts on a monthly basis. The fever for spirit writing covered several well-known deceased writers and historical figures. They are: Fuku-roku-ju, Hotei, Jurojin, Ebisu, Bishamonten, Daikoku-ten and Ben-ten. Only one of them is a female – Ben-ten, the Goddess of Arts. They represent Seven Gods of Fortune and are believed to bring good luck. Shichi-fuku-jin figurines and images of all kinds are very popular in Japan. The real name of the doll was “Shichi-fuku-jin” while in Russian sources has misnamed it as “Fukuruma." Later, I found a sample of Matryoshka’s “Japanese father” displayed in the Doll Museum of Yokohama and knew it was produced in Kanagawa Prefecture. But, later she found it through an internet shop and presented it to me! I was surprised that it hadn’t changed a bit since the 19 th century. Since that time Matryoshka became the symbol of Russia and a well-known as Russian doll.įunny enough, in Japan the Russian Matryoshka is more known and popular than their own nesting doll! When I asked my Japanese friend about it, she didn’t know anything about the doll at all. Matryoshka became internationally known after its showing at the World Exhibition in Paris in 1900 where it received the bronze medal. It was named Matryoshka from the name Matryona (mother) and became very popular. Matryoshka is a very famous Russian doll all over the world, but its roots are in Japan! At the end of the 19 th century, history shows that a nesting doll from Japan had inspired Russian artists from a Moscow workshop called, “Children’s Upbringing,” to create their own version of a nesting doll. The prophecies inform their next five decades. The Gold children-four adolescents on the cusp of self-awareness-sneak out to hear their fortunes. It's 1969 in New York City's Lower East Side, and word has spread of the arrival of a mystical woman, a traveling psychic who claims to be able to tell anyone the day they will die. If you knew the date of your death, how would you live your life? “This literary family saga is perfect for fans of Celeste Ng and Donna Tartt.”- People Magazine (Book of the Week) “A captivating family saga.”- The New York Times Book Review A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: Washington Post It’s a beautifully filmed, feminist romance about a young woman with an arranged marriage in her future and the painter who is commissioned to secretly paint her portrait. Portrait of a Lady on Fire was the last film I saw in a theater in 2020 (back in March). There are laggy bits in the middle and some story lines are stronger than others, but you basically forget all of that by the time you get to the ridiculously entertaining finale. This candy-coated romp through Gotham City’s very messed-up underworld is probably my favorite DC extended universe movie so far. I was a blubbering mess during the finale. Characters grew, changed, and everyone got a happy ending. This show got better with every season and the final 14 episodes were a wonderful high to go out on. I did watch a lot of YouTube though, with Eurogamer, Platform 32, Outside Xbox, Outside Xtra, and Drawfee being on pretty constant rotation. Almost all of my recommendations are from January, February, and March. While almost everyone I know spent the long pandemic months binging shows and movies, I watched very few new things in 2020. |