CC BY
8Yulia Ponomareva
Far Eastern State Humanties University, Khabarovsk
I'd like to present my own evaluation of the book An Experiment in Love. I can divide this book into two parts, the first one that I didn't like at all, and the second one that I have valued so much, you know. I'll try to explain why this book made me think such things. The book begins with the description of Carmel life and particularly her childhood, in what manner she dressed, what she liked and what she didn't, and all those problems touched upon in these parts were not interesting for me. I don't know why, but maybe because I am a student, 20 years old, and of course I am interested in something else. It seems to me that I've read two books, the one which was full of infantile things, and another one which described our own life, the life of the youth, the life of the girls. I stress the word girl, because I understand all problems and the wish for becoming an adult as soon as possible. But one thing that distinguishes a mature woman from a young girl is that there is no any sense of responsibility in our behavior. I always think why so many girls
face the same problems as Sue, Carmel and every girl at Tonbridge Hall, and even Karina. Karina who always denied everything that was connected with the men and with sex.
Well, Karina! She is a very special person, she is not like other people and that is her tragedy. At first we see a kind of downy cat who is very silent and there is only disadvantage in her, overeating. But then, a very cruel and jealous person appeared in our mind. I am always afraid of such a person, you never know what to expect from him, help - no, treason - you don't know when it will happen. I am not blaming her; I don't even say that she is guilty of Lynette's death. Although it is obvious. I m just trying to understand why such people exist and why they do not live as everybody does, why they do not enjoy life, why they get into the corner and think of how they are ugly and are not happy. And they destroy the word, the life and happiness and Lynnette. The best always die so early. This is not the only problem that affected me so much. The problem of sex and the problem of pregnancy for young girls and, especially, for girls of that time. The strict rules ruined so many lives and so many girls.
I am thinking about the title. I understood how the word 'experiment' is terrible. An experiment is an act of conducting a controlled test or investigation. A test, an investigation conducting on love, on life. Your heart is like a laboratory animal, your heart should die several times after having found the truth, after having found true love.
