Humanity and Nature in ‘Where the Crawdads Sing’
Daisy Edgar-Jones as Kya Calrk in an upcoming film adaptation
Although it was hard to separate the author from their art, especially with the close relation of controversy being that ‘Where the Crawdads Sing’ is a murder mystery, I cannot lie and say that this book did not keep me on edge late at night and had me absolutely astonished and mouth gaping by the end.
Tate Walker and Kya Clark in 'Where the Crawdas Sing'
FAMILY
The story follows Kya, referred to as the Marsh Girl in town, who lives in an old shack by herself, left and abandoned by her family one by one. Having only spent a few pages with Kya, Owens was already able to have me heartbroken and attached to the love and siblinghood the protagonist eventually came to lose.
But if Ma came back now when Pa was acting decent, maybe they could start over.
Page 67 of ‘Where the Crawdads Sing’
Though already knowing that everything would eventually crumble at some point, the way her father had been with her for the short time after all her siblings and mother left was something I couldn’t help but hold on to and hope so much would stay. But, of course, loss continues to prevail in life.
Still photo from ‘Where the Crawdads Sing’ adaptation
NATURE
I have found what I might call the greatest descriptions of nature and its contrast and similarities to humanity in this book. It showcased how both living beings manage to survive in the world with each other as their only companion.
Tate idled back, watching as Kya and Chase spun around each other in the blue-gray waves, in ever-smaller circles like eagles courting in the sky.
Page 180 of 'Where the Crawdads Sing'
You never really know how beautiful a fair description of the world around us can enhance a story until you read a book written by a naturalist with a Ph.D. in Animal Behavior. Reading this book, I was fully immersed in the life Kya lived and felt as if I was there with her and finished with a new view of the world; a new sense of appreciation for its beauty and the way it functions in similar ways to humans.
As she pushed off, she knew no one would ever see this sandbar again.
Page 214 of 'Where the Crawdads Sing'
That line made me think of all the people there are in the world and all the different lives they live and the sights they see from the moment they wake to their last breath. You could see a person in the street, adore the way they smile at a cat passing by, and never see them again or be able to tell them of the beautiful sight you’ve witnessed.
Miss Catherine “Kya” Clark painting in her shack
ENDING
The way the story was set up and led to the trial and final verdict, you were made to think that something was wrong—that another person had murdered Chase Andrews and it certainly would not have been Miss Kya Clark. After all the pages that unraveled Kya’s life, I, as a reader, if not felt I was with her, felt I was her and that I, myself, was the one accused of murder.
Down, down he falls - His eyes still holding mine - Until they see another world
Page 367 of ‘Where the Crawdads Sing’
This book had left me with chills running down my spine, to think that a person I had grown attached to was not fully who I saw them be. To think that I didn’t know myself.
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by Isobelle Cruz, 16/06/2022
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In this article we’ll tell you Top 10 Must Read Murder Mystery Books. In the vast realm of literature, few genres captivate readers as effortlessly as crime fiction. Among the myriad of authors and their gripping works, a select few have etched their names into the annals of literary history, weaving intricate plots and compelling characters. In this article, we delve into the world of crime novels and explore READ MORE
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While we’re on the subject of names, is there an explanation for how traditional nicknames came about that are seemingly unrelated to, or have little in common with, the original name?
ie- John/Jack, Richard/Dick, Henry/Harry/Hank, Charles/Chuck, Margaret/Peggy/Daisy, Sarah/Sally, Mary/Molly, Anne/Nan, etc
I am actually over a week into researching a huge follow-up post (probably more than one if I’m being honest) about the history of nickname usage, so I will be going into this in much, much more detail at a hopefully not-so-later date - if I have not lost my mind. (Two days ago I spent three hours chasing down a source lead that turned out to be a typographical error from 1727 that was then quoted in source after source for the next 150 years.)
As a preview though, here’s some info about the names you mentioned:
The origins of a good portion of common English nicknames come down to the simple fact that people really, really like rhyming things. Will 🠞Bill, Rob🠞Bob, Rick🠞Dick, Meg🠞Peg.
It may seem like a weird reason, but how many of you have known an Anna/Hannah-Banana? I exclusively refer to my Mom’s cat as Toes even though her name is Moe (Moesie-Toesies 🠞 Toesies 🠞 Toes).
Jack likely evolved from the use of the Middle English diminutive suffix “-chen” - pronounced (and often spelled) “-kyn” or “kin”. The use of -chen as a diminutive suffix still endures in modern German - as in “liebchen” = sweetheart (lieb “love” + -chen).
John (Jan) 🠞 Jankin 🠞 Jackin 🠞 Jack.
Hank was also originally a nickname for John from the same source. I and J were not distinct letters in English until the 17th Century. “Iankin” would have been nearly indistinguishable in pronunciation from “Hankin” due to H-dropping. It’s believed to have switched over to being a nickname for Henry in early Colonial America due to the English being exposed to the Dutch nickname for Henrik - “Henk”.
Harry is thought to be a remnant of how Henry was pronounced up until the early modern era. The name was introduced to England during the Norman conquest as the French Henri (On-REE). The already muted nasal n was dropped in the English pronunciation. With a lack of standardized spelling, the two names were used interchangeably in records throughout the middle ages. So all the early English King Henrys would have written their name Henry and pronounced it Harry.
Sally and Molly likely developed simply because little kids can’t say R’s or L’s. Mary 🠞 Mawy 🠞 Molly. Sary 🠞 Sawy 🠞 Sally.
Daisy became a nickname for Margaret because in French garden daisies are called marguerites.
Nan for Anne is an example of a very cool linguistic process called rebracketing, where two words that are often said/written together transfer letters/morphemes over time. The English use of “an” instead of “a” before words beginning with vowels is a common cause of rebracketing. For example: the Middle English “an eute” became “a newt”, and “a napron” became “an apron”. In the case of nicknames the use of the archaic possessive “mine” is often the culprit. “Mine Anne” over time became “My Nan” as “mine” fell out of use. Ned and Nell have the same origin.
Oddly enough the word “nickname” is itself a result of rebracketing, from the Middle English “an eke (meaning additional) name”.
I realized earlier this week that my cat (Toe’s sister) also has a rebracketing nickname. Her name is Mina, but I call her Nom Nom - formed by me being very annoying and saying her name a bunch of time in a row - miNAMiNAMiNAM.
Chuck is a very modern (20th century) nickname which I’ll have to get back to you on as I started my research in the 16th century and am only up to the 1810s so far lol.
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the juxtaposition between "it's pronounced Fae of Maleficence, but it means Blessing!" is sure an interesting choice there, Mal.
still not 100% happy with this one, but I know I keep overworking it, so I think I need to just be done! getting all the important elements in without overcrowding it turned out to be more of a challenge than I anticipated. :')
(also, we're going to have to wait at least a month to find out what it even does exactly, uggghhh I'm so impatient)
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