Let's all play the quiet game

I borrowed my mother's copy of Susan Cain's new book Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking, which I read mostly on the noisy subway.

I liked this book immensely, largely because it was very validating. It was all about all the things that we fail to sufficiently value due to the "extrovert ideal" that's been reigning for the past century or so. It even has evo-psych about how introverts are evolutionarily important! As far as I can tell, it is relatively not-totally-bogus evo-psych (they mention actual specific genes at one point!) but I suppose I can't quite be sure, since the whole point of evo-psych is to believe the stuff that you personally like and feel makes you look good.

Other introverts, as well as the parents/spouses/bosses/teachers/etc of introverts, might benefit from this book somewhat more than I did on a personal level, as I am already familiar with some of the basic psychological literature about introversion and extroversion, and also because I was lucky enough that my family didn't totally freak out about me being an introverted nerd like the parents of some of the kids interviewed in this book (although I certainly had my fair share of the obligatory alienation all introverts must feel in a public school). (It also just doesn't seem to have occurred to me to spend a lot of time wondering what was wrong with me, because I spent so much time wondering what was wrong with the extroverts I knew... *is stuck-up*) But I could definitely relate to a lot of the material in the book, including both the anecdata and the psychological studies (although I don't have any idea how 'reactive' a baby I was, only that I was apparently very spacey even then).

I think I was actually most interested in the explication of extroverts; I think it could help me try to differentiate between when an extroverted person is just being more extroverted at me than I would like and when they are actually being an asshole. I admit I do still find some common "extrovert" traits puzzling and straight-up rude no matter what bizarre leaps of logic their actors use to justify them, such as "ritual opposition", which is where you don't necessarily disagree with something someone says, but you pretend to because you think your job in a conversation-slash-debate-clearly-these-are-the-same-thing-always is to be The Other Side, and then you get all confused when the other person thinks you're mean for picking a fight. I think I particularly have trouble with this concept because it never comes with a discussion of what sorts of conversations this "conversational style" is for, and I still think it's an asshole idiot move when someone's like "Such-and-such thing happened to me this morning" and you're all like "Are you sure? I think it probably didn't. Have you considered that you're crazy, or possibly just making shit up? ...What do you mean I'm being mean? I AM JUST TRYING TO HAVE, LIKE, A DEBATE" Eh, maybe I've just known a lot of assholes. But I am trying to work on differentiating better between extroversion and self-centered douchebaggery, and learning more about extroversion might help.

Yes, I am super judgy. I AM WORKING ON IT.

This book is a must-read for anyone who is having a difficult time "getting" the introverts in their lives, and any introverts who want to read a bit about how totally awesome they are.

There must always be a Starkadder at Cold Comfort... wait...

Source: quickmeme.com via Clare on Pinterest

My head is full of weird Game of Thrones crossover memes.

"What do we say to the God of Death?"
"Feck off, Death!"

Revenge! Revenge! Revenge!!!

So it has been a very long time since I have blogged about anything here that is not a book, and that is because I am a lazy arsehole. But I am going to try and blog about this movie, since... actually, I don't know why. I feel it must be recorded that I saw it.

Last night I met up with bookelfe (in real life!) and some other people I had never met before (but they all were quite nice and seemed very cool) and we went to the Harvard Film Archive to see Revengers Tragedy, a wacky surrealist post-apocalyptic version of a Jacobean revenge drama, featuring Christopher Eccleston cuddling a skull and making crazy eyes, and a metric shit-ton of facial piercings.

The original play apparently takes place in Italy somewhere, going by all the characters' names, but this version takes place in a dystopian futuristic Liverpool that appears to have been depopulated somehow (by a plague or something? Idunno) where all the nobles apparently entertain themselves by getting into fights and seeing how elaborately they can self-adorn. Future!Dystopian!Liverpool is run by an evil Duke, played by Derek Jacobi in fabulous shades and purple lipstick, who some number of years ago poisoned the main character's wife because she wouldn't sleep with him. Now the main character (whose name is Vindici, which means "avenging" because the character names in this play are SUPER SUBTLE) has come back to wreak havoc on the Duke and his family! Vindici enters the employ of the Duke's oldest son, named Lussurioso, because he is lecherous. Lussurioso wants to bang Vindici's sister. Lussurioso is also played by EDDIE IZZARD, who is FABULOUS AS ALWAYS. The younger brothers are also awesome, including Ambitioso, who schemes to kill Lussurioso so that he can be Duke next instead, and Supervacuo, who is an airhead. Jacobean airheadedness is motherfucking HILARIOUS, now that all Jacobean talk sounds fancy. There is plotting and murder and more plotting and more murder, and increasingly outlandish murders, until pretty much everybody is dead. Usually in weird ways.

So, basically, if you are ever like "I want to watch a super weird movie; none of the movies I have are weird enough," try to see if you can track this one down! It is weird enough!