This comes at a very good time for me - on the one hand I crave time in a room by myself as a busy mum (to read mostly!), and on the other I am working as a junior doctor on a psychiatric intensive care unit where I'm seeing the horrible effects of secluding patients for months at a time amd seriously questioning the morality of doing it. Agency and control are clearly key, yet Piranesi and a gentleman in Moscow managed to find contentment when it was outside their control... really interesting description of Piranesi - who's to say that he should try to escape if he's found genuine meaning and contentment- is that just our perspective from our particular set of norms on the outside? Thanks for your work!
Ah there's a big difference between solitude through peace and loneliness for sure. It's so interesting to analyze the character of Piranesi from different angles! I think society and its views on mental health play a big role with Piranesi, specifically, it is such a layered book.
Piranesi is one of my favourite books, but I never thought of it this way! I think what spoke to me about it was the interaction with inanimate objects and forces of nature (nature versus nurturer debate).
Thank you for sharing your thoughts and for including my newsletter in your recommendations.
Piranesi is definitely one of my favorite books too, and I am so glad we discussed it on the podcast! It's a great book for discussion. Shruti and I picked death and discovery as our themes, but nature vs nurture is so interesting as well!
Looking forward to Emma!
This comes at a very good time for me - on the one hand I crave time in a room by myself as a busy mum (to read mostly!), and on the other I am working as a junior doctor on a psychiatric intensive care unit where I'm seeing the horrible effects of secluding patients for months at a time amd seriously questioning the morality of doing it. Agency and control are clearly key, yet Piranesi and a gentleman in Moscow managed to find contentment when it was outside their control... really interesting description of Piranesi - who's to say that he should try to escape if he's found genuine meaning and contentment- is that just our perspective from our particular set of norms on the outside? Thanks for your work!
Ah there's a big difference between solitude through peace and loneliness for sure. It's so interesting to analyze the character of Piranesi from different angles! I think society and its views on mental health play a big role with Piranesi, specifically, it is such a layered book.
Piranesi is one of my favourite books, but I never thought of it this way! I think what spoke to me about it was the interaction with inanimate objects and forces of nature (nature versus nurturer debate).
Thank you for sharing your thoughts and for including my newsletter in your recommendations.
Piranesi is definitely one of my favorite books too, and I am so glad we discussed it on the podcast! It's a great book for discussion. Shruti and I picked death and discovery as our themes, but nature vs nurture is so interesting as well!