#lenu

Starting the final countdown to my destruction

Lenù

Sloth bear Mahi is determined to get all the sweet treats hidden inside her ball.

This photo was taken by staff photographer Lenu.

Wildlife SOS

At first I didn’t expect I would be capable of reading such a vivid work, teaming with life and energy; but the story was so tempting that I couldn't resist the invitation to explore the diverse community of Italy. And as I read on, I realized it's much more than just a story about friendship.

It sheds light on Italy's academic status, the oppressed people of Napoli, the working class, the political movements and social injustice, the sufferings of women in a patriarchal society, and how women are created by men to be the likes of what they want and require.

It's a story about the struggle against life and the internal/external evil. It describes how people grow, change their perspectives, and open themselves to all the changes happening around. Besides, It depicts the struggle of motherhood as well as the fierceness of human nature and society. It also indicates the notion of alienation which manifests itself in Lenu’ unsuccessful attempts to metamorphosis herself from Lila, her mother, and Napoli. It's impressive that the author excelled in writing about all this and more in a coherent narrative format.

The world which Elena Ferrante created is a dynamic world, unsteady. The personages, so many they are, yet each of them has distinguished characteristics, different personalities, and they’ve come from different backgrounds, making each of them unique and deeply embedded in the narration of events.

So many things are happening on a daily basis, starting from the transformations of the personal life of characters to the political transformations of the entire country. Everything is changing constantly, including the living conditions, the political issues, the academic status, the characters relationships, and the continuing struggle between good and evil. In short, there were too many ups and downs, but Ferrante kept an eye on everything while focusing on Lila and Lenu's extraordinary friendship, which is considered to be the heartbeat of the work. It seems somehow impossible to discuss this friendship without mentioning all the people who were involved in the lives of Lila and Lenu and sharing their experiences in detail because they were all interconnected. even though the fancy of individuality hunts some of them as they grow older.

The story was told by the first person narrator, which means that Lenu -one of the main characters- is the only narrative voice and all other characters appear to be speaking through her. I found this a bit annoying while reading because It’s quite impossible to shape more accurate judgments on the other characters. Despite the fact that the narrator appeared to be fair to everyone in the story, we are kept on the outside of the narrating frame. Without hearing the other characters, I can't attest to the credibility of Lenu's narration. What, for example, would Lila say about Lenu and their friendship?