Darlings from Fiction

Here is a list of my all time favourite women from fiction.I have read and re-read these books time and again , going through their trials and tribulations and happiness every time . It is not a top ten because each character has a part of me and is dear to me in a special way.

Scarlett O' Hara -Gone with the Wind -Margaret Mitchell

Practical, Cunning, Scheming, with the most earthy never say die attitude. She is optimism personified with the ability to say "Tomorrow is another day" when adversity is smiling at her from all sides. The vow she makes to "Never stay hungry again" makes you love her in spite of all her  flaws. Just a small introduction to one of the most famous women characters of all times.

Laura Castellano- Doctors -Erich Segal

Extremely beautiful, superbly talented , yet insecure and never really realizing her true worth until she meets the right man in her life. Somehow it is this insecurity that makes her so endearing to me. And every time I read the part where she says "Nothing's Up, everything is down." I can feel tears in my eyes.

Elizabeth Bennet- Pride and Prejudice -Jane Austen

Prudent, Intelligent and sensible would be the words to describe Jane Austen's most famous heroine. But Elizabeth is all this and more. Though she represents an era where women were brought up with the sole objective of hunting for a rich husband, her situation is identifiable with the contemporary Indian society that considers the marriage of its girls as the parents' primary duty. Her pride , and her natural prejudice towards a rich arrogant man, her inner turmoil as the man she hated turns out to be the one to help.. All this make her a living breathing woman rather than just a character.

Sarah Crewe- A little Princess -Frances Hodgsen Burnett

Who cannot but love the sweet and angelic Sarah Crewe who bears all her sorrow in un-complaining silence even when her situation changes over night from that of a parlour boarder (special student) to that of a maid. And I feel happy for this little Cinderella every time I read about the magic that makes things happy for her once again.

Jo March -Little Women -Louisa May Alcott

Tom -boyish, with a flair for the pen. That is Jo March for you. But that is not all. Despite her wild nature and her unsuccessful attempts at being lady like, she is a most sensitive person. Loving , and caring and feminine in a totally different way.

Tracy Whitney -If Tomorrow Comes -Sidney Sheldon

If you have seen 22 Female Kottayam /Ek Haseena thi and similar movies, and admired the heroine, rest assured you will love her . For she is their fore -runner, the inspiration  and the original avenging angel. Beautiful and Brilliant like all of Sidney Sheldon's heroines, she is more than a few notches above all of the rest because of her pluck in times of adversity that rasies her from the ashes like a Phoenix from fire. She is truly what dreams are made of.

Hermione Granger - The Harry Potter Series- J. K. Rowling

She knows everything and she can apply her knowledge. It is safe to say that without the help of the brilliant girl ,the most famous boy wizard of all times could never have achieved his destiny. More than her brains , her love for her friends and the ultimate sacrifice that she makes to erase herself from  the memory of her parents to keep them safe, endear her to me.

Durga -Pather Panchali -Bibhuti Bhushan Banerjee

Tied to a childhood in abject poverty , for no fault of hers. She represents the flickering innocence in children even when poverty tries to snuff it out at an early age. The earthy and childlike Durga who guards her possessions like a tigress till she succumbs to starvation., can bring tears to my eyes after every read.

Thethi (Devaki Manambilly) - Agnisakshi -Lalitambika Antharjanam

A character from Malayalam literature.I'm sure she would not be on most people's list. But to me she is special because , her life symbolizes what my life would have been like a century or may be even half a century ago. Her courage to stand up against a society that shuns her, the trials of a free spirit chained to the whims of an archaic society oblivious of the changing world and the ills within itself.
The story that inspired a thousand women to come forward during those tough times.

Maya -

She is the elusive protagonist that keeps coming back to my mind though I can remember neither the book nor the author. Maya is just an ordinary girl, in an ordinary Indian family that considers the marriage of its daughters as the sole purpose of its existence.When arranged marriages f her sisters fail , her strength helps her face life in her own way.

Hope you enjoy it.. :). Happy reading..