The beauty of fiction lies in the several different interpretations that each of us give to the characters of a book. No two people interpret a character in the exact same way - our own experiences tend to color the way we look at and understand a character.
This first post is about two of my favorite fictional characters. As you would have guessed from the title, they are Lisbeth Salender of the Millennium series and Elizabeth Bennet of Pride and Prejudice fame.
Needless to say, Eliza Bennet is one of the most popular female characters ever brought to life by an author, what with the many television/movie adaptations of P&P. Coming to the most recent addition to my favorite characters list: Lisbeth Salander's Hollywood avatar will soon be on screen and I'm looking forward to see how my imaginary Lisbeth compares to the on-screen one.
What strikes me the most about these two ladies is their willfulness which leads to unpleasant experiences, but also carries them safely through the challenges they face. Though I'm no position to comment on the challenges and pressures faced by women during the Victorian (possibly earlier than Victorian) times, I like to think that Lisbeth is the 21st century Elizabeth. Their complete disregard for 'propriety' and consequently their penchant for shocking the more conservative folks stirs up the sleeping rebel in me!
I have always admired AND secretly envied non-conformists whenever I've run into one of the tribe - they are the ones that add much needed masala to my banal day to day existence. That's what makes these characters my favorites - I just love it that they dare to stand up and be different. So to wrap up, what started as a tribute to the two Lizzies ends as a cheer to all the wild and colorful people whom I've met, for spicing up things with their craziness!
