Essay
Capitalism in Intensive Care: Notes from a World Too Busy Buying Itself
The global economy today sits like an aging monarch in a glass ICU, draped in silk hospital gowns woven from speculation and denial. Tubes of liquidity drip-feed borrowed time into a system allergic to introspection, while its caretakers—central banks, financial institutions, and think tanks—applaud the twitching of GDP as if it were a sign of vitality rather than convulsion. The prognosis? Complicated. The diagnosis? A civilization obsessed with consumption, terminally ill with its own success.
By Andra Hikmal12 months ago in Critique
The Poison Season
'The Poison Season' is a teen or even an adult romance novel written by Maria Rutherford. It is all about family and friends living on the island of Endla that is protected by magic and a wandering forest. It is also surrounded by a poisoned lake. The main characters of Leelo and her cousin Sage are known as watchers for the Endlans believe that the citizens on the mainland are their enemies. The island is self-sustaining as long as the inhabitants give sacrifices to the forest. If any Endlan does not show some sort of magic they are incantu (this means the person does not have magic) and must be banished. Music and singing are the ways that magic is done in most cases on Endla Tate seems not to have magic and Leelo keeps hoping right to the last minute that Tate exhibits something.
By Mark Graham12 months ago in Critique
Earth's Children 2
Book two of 'Earth's Children series' entitled 'The Valley of Horses' picks up with Ayla all alone for she has been exiled from the Clan. Ayla learns that she has many talents that seem to let her make 'friends' with pretty much all of nature its flora and fauna. Ayla likes living and learning what is around her, but she is also lonely. This is also the story of Jondalar on his journey of growing up and while on this journey with his brother there are choices that need to be made for all, and relationships are made for both.
By Mark Graham12 months ago in Critique
Earth's Children
There is a series of novels out there written by Jean M. Auel known as 'Earth's Children'. The first in the series is entitled 'The Clan and The Cave Bear' that starts out with a five-year-old child named Ayla, who lost her parents during an earthquake. Ayla is found by a clan of cavepeople who are not like her for she is one of the 'Others'. Ayla grows up and becomes in a way one of them even though she is different she still loves the clan for the most part. The first of novels set during the prehistoric eras.
By Mark Graham12 months ago in Critique
Charlotte's Web
Just finished re-reading 'Charlotte's Web' by E.B. White for the umpteenth time, and for me it shows me many lessons that we all need to learn and remember. Actually, it is the story of the facts of life from birth to death to dealing with other societal issues like dealing with family relationships like Fern does when saving the 'runt' as well as just plain growing up issues, and learning how to accept what happens to all involved in living life and making various kinds of friendships and still learning that there is a higher power to live our lives.
By Mark Graham12 months ago in Critique
Individuality is dying
Nowadays, everything feels grey. The dark gets darker, and the rest fades into the background. Some of us lose our uniqueness, blending into the crowd like worker ants in an endless anthill. Others convince themselves they’re part of something bigger, something unstoppable—and damn, they’re making things dangerously move with anger. Everything burns in red rage, while blue, once calm and steady, has sunk into passiveness. It used to mean peace. Now, it feels like it’s fading, struggling to mean what it once did.
By Onur Maran12 months ago in Critique
Reader Response Analysis of Borges
Jorge Luis Borges’ short story The Circular Ruins is often read as a meditation on reality, illusion, and the nature of creation. However, through the lens of Reader-Response Theory, the meaning of the story becomes deeply personal—formed not solely by Borges’ intent, but by how the text interacts with the reader’s beliefs and experiences. For me, this story resonates profoundly with my spiritual belief that the soul is eternal and that after death, it transcends this earthly plane and moves to a higher state of being. Through that perspective, the story becomes not a tale of existential dread, but one of comfort, transformation, and divine continuity.
By Henry Parrish Jr.12 months ago in Critique
