Learn to write from the Masters: #2 Charles Kiefer – “Para ser escritor”

The writer’s struggle for the right word is the most painful struggle. This is Charles Kiefer’s statement, Brazilian literature professor and author who shares his thoughts on the most common challenges writers face. Finding the right word, or le mot juste that Flaubert himself struggled with, is obviously one of the obstacles in the writing process. In Flaubert’s case, this struggle turned into obsession (it … Continue reading Learn to write from the Masters: #2 Charles Kiefer – “Para ser escritor”

Vegetarianism in literature: 9 vegetarian authors and their thoughts on plant-based diet

Ovid – Metamorphoses In the book XV of the Metamorphoses, Ovid talks about a philosopher who greatly influenced him – Pythagoras. Born in 570 BC in Samos, Pythagoras contributed to mathematics with his scientific discoveries, including the Pythagorean theorem, the Theory of proportions, the sphericity of the Earth, etc. He was a strict vegetarian and he implored people to adopt his diet. It is a … Continue reading Vegetarianism in literature: 9 vegetarian authors and their thoughts on plant-based diet

French literature #1: Candide by Voltaire – the master of irony

18th century France: the socio-economic injustice becomes so unbearable that there are only two solutions. A revolution takes place in 1789 when an aggressive mob attacks the Bastille, and a literary revolution – the one that seems silent and pacific, yet is more powerful than a guillotine. Voltaire was one of the authors who dared to criticize every rotten detail of the French society, starting … Continue reading French literature #1: Candide by Voltaire – the master of irony

Erasmus changed my life and it will change yours too

Let me tell you about my first Erasmus experience – in the middle of a pandemic, or, was it my first pandemic experience in the middle of my Erasmus exchange? I will never know. I spent the past six months in a small town in France as an Erasmus student. If you’ve never heard of the Erasmus Exchange Programme, I bet you’ve already heard of … Continue reading Erasmus changed my life and it will change yours too