Category Literature & Leisure

What are the phobias of literature?

Some fears seem less rational than others. Here is a list of literary phobias that you might find intriguing.

In the realm of writing and literature, where words flow like rivers and imagination dances on the page, there exists a shadowy undercurrent of fears and phobias that grip the hearts and minds of some individuals. While books and the written word have long been celebrated as gateways to knowledge, for a select few, they serve as gateways to a world of dread and irrational anxiety. Step into this labyrinth of ink-stained fears as we explore some literary phobias.

  • Bibliophobia is a specific phobia characterised by intense fear or aversion towards books. Individuals who experience bibliophobia may feel significant anxiety, panic, or discomfort when they are near books or even when the idea of reading is brought up.

The underlying causes of bibliophobia can vary from person to person. It may stem from a negative experience related to books, such as being overwhelmed or intimidated by the content, struggling with reading difficulties, or associating books with traumatic events.

  • Logophobia is a term used to describe the fear or aversion to words. This fear can make it difficult for individuals to read books, write essays, or even have conversations.
  • Scriptophobia is an extreme fear of writing in public. It can make everyday writing situations such as taking notes during a lecture or participating in group activities that involve writing, extremely challenging and distressing. The fear of making mistakes or being embarrassed in front of others becomes so overwhelming that it may cause one to avoid these situations altogether. It can hold one back from expressing their thoughts and ideas freely in public, hindering their academic and social growth.1`
  • Metrophobia is the fear of poetry. Individuals with metrophobia experience anxiety, discomfort, or fear specifically related to poetry or poetic expressions. It may manifest as a fear of reading, reciting, or engaging with poetry in any form.
  • Papyrophobia is an irrational fear of paper. Individuals who experience this phobia may feel intense anxiety or fear even when thinking about paper. They are often extremely anxious about touching paper, writing on it, or even the possibility of getting a paper cut. It is important to note that papyrophobia is relatively uncommon, with only a small number of people in the world have it.
  • Abibliophobia is a word that represents the fear or anxiety someone can feel when they do not have a book to read or when they cannot access reading materials.

People with abibliophobia have a strong emotional connection to books and reading. Books may provide them with an escape, knowledge, or a sense of companionship. When they do not have a book, they might feel lost or disconnected, which leads to a fear of being without the comfort and stimulation that reading provides.

It is important to understand that the intensity of abibliophobia can vary from person to person. For some, it might be a mild uneasiness, while for others, it can be a stronger fear that affects their daily lives. They might constantly search for books, feel anxious when they do not have one, or avoid situations where books are not available.

  • Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia, is the fear of long words. The humorous contrast between the fear and the cumbersome word used to label it adds an interesting twist to this particular phobia. It is important to note that it is primarily used for amusement.

Phobias such as “abibliophobia” and “Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia,” were created with a humorous intent or are not officially recognised. However, it is crucial to acknowledge that there are real and debilitating phobias that can significantly impact individuals who have them.

Remember, it is important not to dismiss or trivialise someone’s fear, regardless of whether it is a recognised phobia or not. Most of these phobias can be addressed through therapy and gradual exposure to the stimuli in a supportive and controlled manner. Offering understanding and support can make a significant difference in helping individuals navigate and overcome their fears, enabling them to lead happier and more fulfilling lives.

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Why serialised novels were precursors to book series?

Whether it is “Harry Potter” or “Percy Jackson and the Olympians”, book series have their own unique charm. Waiting eagerly for the next instalment in the series, speculating what lies in store for your favourite characters, and binge reading all the books at once are some of the joys associated with reading a series. But did you know that serialised novels were precursors to book series? Or that Charles Dickens is credited for popularising serialised novels? “The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club” (popularly known as “The Pickwick Papers”) was published in instalments over 19 issues from March 1836 to October 1837.

Dickens wrote most of “The Pickwick papers” under the pseudonym Boz, It follows an elderly gentleman named Samuel Pickwick as he journeys around the British countryside. It was through this work that Dickens established his characteristic writing style, which was marked by humour and exaggerated characters. He also highlighted the shortcomings of Victorian society.

Buoyed by the success of “The Pickwick Papers”, Dickens serialised all his work, including classics such as “Great Expectations” and “Little Dorrit”, Soon, scores of other notable Victorian novelists joined the craze,

Today, however, book series are more popular than serialised novels. From “The Lord of the Rings” to “The Chronicles of Narnia” and “Harry Potter”, book series are turned into franchises with spin-offs, films and merchandising.

 

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What is the story of Lady Xu Mu?

About Lady Xu Mu

Lady Xu Mu was born to Wan, Count Zhao of Wey and his wife Xuan Jiang, with the clan name Ji. When she was older, she married Duke Mu of the neighbouring State of Xu and became known as Lady Xu Mu. She wasn’t particularly thrilled about the marriage since she saw Xu as a weak State that wouldn’t protect her homeland in times of need. But persuaded by the rich gifts of the Duke of Xu, per parents decided that he would be her husband. With that agreement forged, Xu Mu left her beloved homeland.

Her longing for home was expressed in the poems she wrote during her times in Xu. “Bamboo Pole” and “Spring Water” spoke of how much she missed home. These were the only two works of hers from that time that survived.

Her uncle, who took over Wey after her father, was an incompetent ruler who drained the coffers with his affinity for pet cranes. In fact, it is said he gave his pet cranes important places in his court. In 660 BS, when the northern Di nomads invaded Wey, the State was left defenceless and the capital was burnt and pillaged. After her uncle was killed, her brother took over the throne and he too died soon after. During this time, she realised it as her duty to help her homeland and drove on a chariot towards Wey, requesting help and supplies from neighbouring States. The Xu courtiers stopped her and persuaded her tp return to Xu. It was at this time she wrote “Speeding Chariot”, a scathing critique of bureaucracy.

The poem had a strong response, especially from the neighbouring Qi statesmen, who rode to Wey and solved its crisis. The State shifted its capital elsewhere and survived for another 400 years, thanks to its daughter Lady Xu Mu. Her poems were praised by her contemporaries and carried down the Wey State through generations.

Excerpt

Poetry was an art from that many cultivated women were trained to write, and when she moved to her husband’s kingdom, Xu wrote “Bamboo Pole”, solved in nostalgia for her home.

With a long and slender bamboo

I fished by the shores of Qi;

Can’t help thinking of the river

And the land so far from me.

On the left, the fountain gushes,

On the right, the river flaws.

Far away the girl has travelled.

From parents, brothers and home.

 Did you know?

When Xu Mu’s homeland was under siege, she approached her husband for help and asked him to send his forces. He refused and so she left Xu to go towards her homeland in search of help. Many called her rash and meddlesome but she was also appreciated for her strong and capable leadership during hardship.

 

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Who is Britain’s first feminist?

About Mary Wollstonecraft

Mary Wollstonecraft was born in London to a comfortable family but soon her father, who was a bully and abusive, diminished the family’s wealth through a series of bad business choices. When her mother passed away in 1780, Marry moved out of her home to earn her own living.

She was angry that her brother was allowed to receive formal education but she wasn’t. So she began to educate herself and dedicated her life to writing and speaking for women’s rights.

Along with her sister and her friend Fanny, Mary established a small school for girls, and from her teaching experience came her first piece of writing – a pamphlet called “Thoughts on the Education of Daughters” (1787). When her friend passed away, the school went through some financial struggle, and Mary had to move on.

For some time, she worked as a governess for a family in Ireland but soon discovered that domestic work was not something she liked doing. Three years later, she returned to London and began to work as a translator and literary advisor for a radical publisher called Joseph Johnson. In this capacity, she entered the intellectual circles in London and became known as a radical thinker.

She published “A Vindication of the Rights of Woman” in 1792, where she argued passionately for women’s equality and laid down the doctrines of the feminist movement that followed many years later. It lamented on women’s position in society as adornments at home and described society as rearing ‘gentle, domestic brutes’. This book made her both famous and infamous in her own time.

In 1792, she moved to Paris and began to write critically against the violence taking place in the early stages of revolution. She met Captain Gilbert Imlay in the English circles there and had a daughter with him. They soon separated, and a few years later, she met an old friend of Joseph Johnson, political writer-novelist William Godwin, in whom she found an intellectual companion. Both William and Mary abhorred marriage but eventually did tie the knot. Soon after, Mary gave birth to her second daughter. She died a few days later due to complications in childbirth.

 

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Who were the joint winners of the Booker Prize 2019?

Margaret Atwood and Bernardine Evaristo were the joint winners of the Booker Prize 2019. The judges broke the rules of the award to declare a tie for the first time in 30 years. The pair spilt up the prize money equally. Evaristo is the first black woman to win the Booker.

The chair of judges, Peter Florence, emerged after more than five hours with the jury to reveal that the group of five had been unable to pick a single winner from their shortlist of six. Instead, despite being told repeatedly by the prize’s literary director, Gaby Wood, that they were not allowed to split the £50,000 award, they chose two novels: Atwood’s The Testaments, a follow-up to her dystopian The Handmaid’s Tale, and Evaristo’s Girl, Woman, Other, which is told in the voices of 12 different characters, mostly black women.

Evaristo’s win makes her the first black woman to win the Booker since it began in 1969 and the first black British author. At 79, Atwood becomes the prize’s oldest winner. The Canadian author previously won the Booker in 2000 for The Blind Assassin; she becomes the fourth author to have won the prize twice.

 

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Why was the Nobel Prize in literature postponed?

The Nobel Prize was postponed in 2018 in light of a scandal that exposed harassment, infighting and conflicts of interest among the 18-members of the Swedish Academy, founded in 1786. In 2019, two literature prizes were announced. Polish author Olga, Tokarczuk for 2018 and Peter Handke for 2019.

“The present decision was arrived at in view of the currently diminished academy and the reduced public confidence in the Academy,” the academy’s press release read.

The group’s permanent secretary, Anders Olsson, said: “We find it necessary to commit time to recovering public confidence in the academy before the next laureate can be announced.”

He added that the cultural institution also made the decision to delay the 2018 award “out of respect for previous and future literature laureates, the Nobel Foundation and the general public.”

The academy said it intended to bestow the 2018 literature award in 2019.

 

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