I've just finished reading The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett. And I just wanted to tell everyone the sense when I read this book. So, in between the pages, I smiled, thrilled, and excited. The book is very enchanting. It can bring the readers to the feeling that Marry Lennox felt. Or the excitement of Colin Craven about the outside world he never saw. Or the warmth that Dickon Sowerby felt when he interacted with the nature. And most importantly, this book would make you want to grow your own garden!
Anyway, I am not going to talk about the process of planting plants or growing a garden. I am going to talk about the characters of Mary, Colin, and Dickon and how they relate to each other. In the book, it is explained that Mary is a stubborn and sour little girl. She is so spoiled because she is always served by servants. Meanwhile, her parents do not really care about her existence. After their parents' death, Mary is brought to his uncle's house. Little does she know that her characters will be much improved once she gets there. There he meets Colin, her cousin, and Dickon, the brother of one of the nurses there, Martha Sowerby. Colin and Dickon are two little boys but they each have very different characters. Colin is like Mary, he is so spoiled, he likes to throw tantrums, and he acts like a Rajah who gives order to everyone. While Dickon is a very understanding young lad. He is calm and caring. He is just a simple happy boy. Mary likes to befriend these two boys. With Colin, she can scold him whenever he throws tantrum. It's like she finds her own mirror in Colin. They get upset to each other. They don't hesitate to present their own ego. While with Dickon, Mary is fond of him. She likes him the first time she meets him. Here's a piece of conversation with her and Martha about Dickon:
“I've seen Dickon!” said Mary. “I've seen Dickon!”
“I knew he'd come,” said Martha exultantly. “How does tha' like him?”
“I think—I think he's beautiful!” said Mary in a determined voice.
Martha looked rather taken aback but she looked pleased, too.
“Well,” she said, “he's th' best lad as ever was born, but us never thought he was handsome. His nose turns up too much.”
“I like it to turn up,” said Mary.
“An' his eyes is so round,” said Martha, a trifle doubtful. “Though they're a nice color.” “I like them round,” said Mary. “And they are exactly the color of the sky over the moor.”
Martha beamed with satisfaction.
“Mother says he made 'em that color with always lookin' up at th' birds an' th' clouds. But he has got a big mouth, hasn't he, now?”
“I love his big mouth,” said Mary obstinately. “I wish mine were just like it.”
Martha chuckled delightedly.
“I knew he'd come,” said Martha exultantly. “How does tha' like him?”
“I think—I think he's beautiful!” said Mary in a determined voice.
Martha looked rather taken aback but she looked pleased, too.
“Well,” she said, “he's th' best lad as ever was born, but us never thought he was handsome. His nose turns up too much.”
“I like it to turn up,” said Mary.
“An' his eyes is so round,” said Martha, a trifle doubtful. “Though they're a nice color.” “I like them round,” said Mary. “And they are exactly the color of the sky over the moor.”
Martha beamed with satisfaction.
“Mother says he made 'em that color with always lookin' up at th' birds an' th' clouds. But he has got a big mouth, hasn't he, now?”
“I love his big mouth,” said Mary obstinately. “I wish mine were just like it.”
Martha chuckled delightedly.
Mary feels an instant feeling of comfort the first time she meets Dickon.
This piece of story really got me thinking about the relationship between man and woman in general. I am gonna relate this to my own story. I always like the typical boy like Colin. It gives me thrill to be with a boy like him. It's a challenge to conquer his ego. But at the same time it's very exhausting. I have to put up with him and sometimes he ignores me. And I get upset, and he gets upset too. It's a never ending cycle. And then one day I was given a chance to meet a man like Dickon. And I felt the sudden comfort and happiness like Mary had with Dickon. You know he won't let you down because he isvery nice. You know that he will put you on a pedestal. Someone who doesn't give mixed signals. Someone who is a real gentleman.
Perhaps the more mature you are the more you expect a man like Dickon. I don't judge that the man like Colin is bad. But he is simply immature. He still doesn't know how to treat women, in a nice way.
I am not actually trying to ruin the story and the characters. I just try to see the story from a different perspective.
Overall, I must say this is a very good book, especially about children and parenting. Must read one!
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| Mary, Colin, and Dickon (The Secret Garden Movie) |
