"In whatever form a slowly accumulated past lives in the blood . . . It has the same power of broadening and deepening the individual existence, of attaching it by mysterious links of kinship to all the mighty sum of human striving."
This quote comes from The House of Mirth. Lily's life is destined for heartbreak because of her past. Wharton seems to blame her misfortunes on the "power of the blood, " and her family history. That is why Lily had to die: she could have never overcome her fate because it is in her blood.
I thought about this when my beautiful niece came by my mom's the other day to help us make fruit cake. She said, "I have 'shit magnate' across my forehead. If a guy is a jerk and a loser, I will find him out in a crowd of winners." She should have better luck. She is tall and thin, blonde, beautiful and smart. She is working on her master's in education, goes to a big university and has an amazing personality. However, it's in her blood to have that kind of luck. Everyone says she reminds them of me (not that I am tall, blonde or beautiful), but she has my type of luck. She thinks with her heart and not her head. She makes choices on how it will feel right now and not how will it feel ten years from now. I like to go to school and have fun, and if there is a loser in the room, I find him like a heat seeking missile. I wonder, Are we destined for our life? Can we do anything to change our fate? Wharton and Hardy seem to think not.
No comments:
Post a Comment