Mule Like

Brown. Such an ugly word. Stubborn, unchanging, steadfast, and beautiful. These words come to my mind when I think of the color brown, because no matter what color one adds to brown (excessive amounts excluded) it will not change. Perhaps become a shade lighter or darker, but in essence, will not change. The reason I identify Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout with brown stems from the fact that I have never seen a more stubborn and steadfast group of characters! Henry, Olive, Harmon, Christopher, Ann, the Larkins... they all remain set in their ways! For example, Strout indirectly characterizes Olive as unchanging for she has "sharp opinions" (11). This remains constant throughout surfacing again when Olive refuses to acknowledge she shares in the blame and accuses Chris through harsh diction of "You haven't...!" (230). I demonstrate this "brownness" with Olive however the same holds true for all the characters. This brings me to the final word I think of with brown which is beautiful. There is something magical about remaining true to oneself. If I took the route of a skeptic, I would say that the times of the work attributed to the character's personalities however I want to accredit the author, Ms. Strout. In her calm, methodical, never changing style I believe she put some of herself into the work subconsciously. If I were a betting man, I would wager that Elizabeth Strout rarely waivers in her steadfast opinions - a trait I very much admire and attempt to emulate.