[Eliza Hodgkins 1812]

Originally Posted by Ghoulish Delight

Spoiler:

And in many ways, these physical manifestations of feelings, as well as rememberences of the past are far more substantial than anything happening in the present to the characters. I like that view, that something isn't real, isn't solid until it's a memory. You don't really know a moment's true shape and form while it's ocurring. Only once you've experienced it, processed it, and internalized it does it become solid.

It was in the 300s when I had this reaction to the book (cross-posted from LJ):

Then, somewhere between pages 300 and 400, it began to feel like something I didn’t even know I had, a giant knot on the inside of my body that holds everything together, loosened up a bit, and hidden parts began to free-flow inside of me. Like the book’s unfolding story, something in me was being unwrapped and took in fresh air for the first time ever. It feels like I’m receiving much needed CPR and these internal experiences, given life anew, are walking about on colt legs. Or maybe it’s more like your subconscious solving a problem you’ve been having while you sleep. I cannot put into words exactly what is happening. I can’t even explain what exactly, in the book, triggered such a release. It’s as though the book is speaking directly to my subconscious and things are being sorted out without my having to put in the effort.

I've experienced the feeling of my stuffing being ripped out and put back inside of me, like I’m some kind of living taxidermy.

This feels like more like a fisherman has untied an old unreliable knot and is now fashioning something stronger and more flexible out of the same material. Meanwhile, something within the knot that was being contained is now running wild. Whatever this is, it's comprised of helium. I seem to be floating.

I seem to internaliz more than process the themes in this book. I react more by feeling than intellectualizing. It's why it's been so hard for me to discuss the book's specifics, I think.