This was all very interesting to read, partly because I've been very interested in this case, partly because I'm interested in this book, and partly because I'm as interested as you seem to be in the idea of purity as a thing to be jealous of, jealous enough to commit murder over.
I wonder how you feel about Knox's impending retrial in September.
It's definitely worth a read (my complaints of dryness aside; that might be my own finickiness, though) if you've got an interest in the case.
She talks in the book (I'll try not to blather on too much more and spoil it), about how she and Kercher were BOTH serious students and BOTH had casual sex, concepts that apparently the prosecution (and a large portion of the public) couldn't wrap their heads around, which was... intensely troubling. I mean, I'm reading some of this shit where it goes into the "luridness" of her sex life like it's dropping some kinda smoking gun about the murder. I kinda felt the same way watching Paradise Lost all those years ago, when somehow the number of black t-shirts the guys owned was apparently as good as DNA evidence
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Great review! At the risk of sounding prejudiced, this misogyny/Madonna-Whore dychotomy seems to be SO essential to the Italian culture. :( They have a huge problem with the treatment of women and it's terrifying that it could have this kind of repercussions. One reason I could probably never live there permanently, even though I do love the country in many ways.
And yeah, I was kinda drawing that same conclusion both from the book and other reports about the case. The predominant Catholic influence in the country, I'm guessing. :^\ But then, Ireland (not that I know a great deal about their culture, admittedly) doesn't seem to have as much of an ingrained misogyny? Meh.
The Catholic influence is definitely a big part of it - it's a bit similar in my own country, although there isn't quite as much of it (e.g. there is a bit less objectification - but part of the reason why it's so awful in Italy is probably their TV and its gross treatment of women as sex objects; a lot of it is Berlusconi's television though, so...)
I'm not sure about Ireland tho' because I've never been there and I don't know any Irish folks. It could be that the UK these days has become so secularized that the religious influence doesn't matter so much anymore, but then there is the rest of Ireland and I've never thought of it as particularly misogynistic either, so dunno but I'd definitely like to read more about this.
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I wonder how you feel about Knox's impending retrial in September.
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She talks in the book (I'll try not to blather on too much more and spoil it), about how she and Kercher were BOTH serious students and BOTH had casual sex, concepts that apparently the prosecution (and a large portion of the public) couldn't wrap their heads around, which was... intensely troubling. I mean, I'm reading some of this shit where it goes into the "luridness" of her sex life like it's dropping some kinda smoking gun about the murder. I kinda felt the same way watching Paradise Lost all those years ago, when somehow the number of black t-shirts the guys owned was apparently as good as DNA evidence ( ... )
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And yeah, I was kinda drawing that same conclusion both from the book and other reports about the case. The predominant Catholic influence in the country, I'm guessing. :^\ But then, Ireland (not that I know a great deal about their culture, admittedly) doesn't seem to have as much of an ingrained misogyny? Meh.
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I'm not sure about Ireland tho' because I've never been there and I don't know any Irish folks. It could be that the UK these days has become so secularized that the religious influence doesn't matter so much anymore, but then there is the rest of Ireland and I've never thought of it as particularly misogynistic either, so dunno but I'd definitely like to read more about this.
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