It Takes Courage To Die For A

Those In The West Who Dismiss The Repressiveness Of Laws Against Women In Countries Like Iran, No Matter How Benign Their Intentions, Present A Condescending View Not Just Of The Religion But Also Of Women Living In Muslim Majority Countries, As If The Desire For Choice And Happiness Is The Monopoly Of Women In The West.

The Revolution Taught Me Not To Be Consoled By Other People's Miseries, Not To Feel Thankful Because So Many Others Had Suffered More. Pain And Loss, Like Love And Joy, Are Unique And Personal; They Cannot Be Modified By Comparison To Others.

Empathy Lies At The Heart Of Gatsby, Like So Many Other Great Novels-the Biggest Sin Is To Be Blind To Others Problems And Pains. Not Seeing Them Means Denying Their Existence.

I Could Have Told Him To Learn From Gatsby. From The Lonely, Isolated Gatsby, Who Also Tried To Retrieve His Past And Give Flash And Blood To A Fancy, A Dream That Was Never Meant To Be More Than A Dream.

That, Of Course, Is What Great Works Of Imagination Do For Us: They Make Us A Little Restless, Destabilize Us, Question Our Preconceived Notions And Formulas.