Hi y'all.
Here's to you some inspirations 'On History and Writing'. Enjoy.
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Until next time - Majken xx
Personality - it’s about where you are, not who you are
Or: the Marshmallow Test re-visited
Which element plays the bigger part in human development: our genetic inheritance or the environment surrounding us during childhood? I’ve never seen any definitive answer to this question, but I read an interesting article by anthropologist Dorsa Amiris, who puts forward the idea - based on tests and research - that the environment might play a more significant part than we usually think.
Amiris mentions the famous ‘marshmallow test’, you know, the one in which a child is offered one marshmallow, however, two or more if they can wait a certain amount of time eating that first one. The study was made in the 1970s, concluding that children who are patient and not tempted to eat the marshmallow immediately will have better opportunities in life in general. They’ll get a better education, job, income, etc. than the impatient ones.
However, as Amiris points out, the marshmallow test has only been tested on children from the so-called WEIRD countries - i.e. the Western, educated, industrialised, rich, and democratic parts of the world (representing only about 12% of the world’s population). So! How would it look like if it was made in surroundings that were the opposite of WEIRD?
Amiris decides to find out, and she and her team make an exciting discovery: children living in societies with more unstable conditions are not very willing to take risks. When the candy was put in front of them, they grabbed it straight away - probably because they’d lived all their short life knowing that if an opportunity comes along, it pays off to go for it immediately, which makes perfect sense.
The perfect crime according to Agatha Christie
How did Agatha Christie craft her crime stories? In this TED-ex animation, Dr. Jamie Bernthal-Hooker - a writer and academic specialising in crime fiction - dissects the grand old lady’s writings. We are told that some key components are the setting (the crime party is placed somewhere isolated from society), simple characters (yet trustworthy), and straightforward language.
Also, we are told that Christie’s older sister, Margaret 'Madge' Frary Miller, was the one who got Christie into writing in the first place. 'Madge' herself was a novelist publishing books before Christie even started her crime career, and she challenged Christie to begin writing, convinced she could not create a mystery at all. Well, indeed, Agatha proved her wrong!
Try something new
I’ve listened - twice - to the Desert Island Discs radio programme on BBC Radio 4 starring the American multiple Grammy-winning record producer Rick Rubin. As the programme prescribes, Rubin can choose eight records, a book and a luxury item he would take with him should he be cast away on a desert island. While playing the records, Rubin speaks with the host, Lauren Laverne, about his life and choices, which is very inspiring. Like when Rubin talks about how he's recorded a new album on a mountaintop in Costa Rica with the band outside looking over the ocean. Which they did because, as he says, if you get stuck in a routine, it can be fruitful to shake things up and try something new. To get a different experience. Then, perhaps some new ideas and perspectives on how to do your work will turn up. And it doesn’t have to be as dramatic as standing on a Costa Rican mountaintop; you could also try switching off the light in the room. (Noted!)
So, what book and luxury item did Rubin want to bring? The Red Book by Carl G. Jung and a set of tarot cards.
A friendly reminder
The American actor Scarlett Johansson is not a fan of social media, she says in an interview. She’d once joined a platform but only stayed there for a day or so. Her ego was too fragile, she stated. When scrolling the texts and photos, she explained, she’d stumbled upon this old friend of hers who’d now settled somewhere in California and who had this dog and who was doing all these exciting things in his life and, well, seeing this Johansson suddenly felt how she too wanted to live in California, have a dog and do activities that resembled her friend’s. His life was so much better than hers, she thought, which, she realised, it, of course, wasn’t when it came to it. And then, she ended her account and backed out of social media altogether.
Here’s a friendly reminder inspired by the Japanese idiom Oubaitori, which might help you lower your shoulders and get on with what you find important in your life.
Oubaitori comes from the kanji [i.e. the Japanese writing system] for the four trees that bloom in spring: cherry, plum, peach, and apricot. Each tree blooms in its own time and the meaning behind the idiom is that we all grow and bloom at our own pace.
It is a reminder that everyone has their own journey through life and that we should focus on our own growth and not compare ourselves so much to others. That we should celebrate our individuality and our uniqueness.
Oubaitory;
Don’t compare yourself to others.
Everyone has a different timeline and unique path.
So, focus on your progress rather than trying to measure yourself against others.
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‘On History and Writing’ is a blog post from me to you in which I share historically rooted real-life stories from around the world - told in exciting and creative ways - along with thoughts that circle the creative process of writing non-fiction texts. I post an email once every fortnight. If you're not already a subscriber, you are welcome to join the list. Thanks for reading! Majken xx
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