General Characteristics of Memoirs - Essay Example

?Memoir and a Canvas A memoir is a kind of an autobiography however the difference between the two lies in the form of writing meaning that a memoir is written on the basis of the development of an individual’s personality rather than the life events that the person went through as would be written in the autobiography. A person who writes a memoir is known as a memoirist and the word is derived from the French word meaning memory referring to the memory that a memoirist possesses while talking about his or her personal significant development process. Most memoirs are written by influential people in society like politicians or businessmen; today there are many celebrities that have written their personal memoirs as well, as accounts of their memory lane and the manner in which they grew up to be who they are. A memoir thus rightfully is a canvas that allows a writer to portray his feelings and emotions in the manner that he wants, through his choice of setting, style and dialogue. Influential people in society that have written their memoirs have most likely put down the events of their careers rather than their personal and private lives however in history, there have been a number of memoirs written talking about the private lives that have shaped people to be who they become. There are many memoirs that have also been written without any information about the author at all, thus talking about the life development process of a human being and sharing the thoughts from one individual to another. They are written from the point of view of a first person, much like recounting the events of a person’s diary or a journal. A memoir thus negates the use of research, factual data and proper dates that are double checked because it only accounts for all that a person remembers and the events that he writes about, based upon his memory; in this manner it can be said that a memoir is a narrative of an individual based upon his own personal thoughts and ideas, notwithstanding the kind of setting that an individual would be forced to think twice and write about in an autobiography. In a memoir thus, one can talk about any period from his life, include any characters that he deems fit, and talk about whatever pleases him in the form of a memory. The thoughts in the memory may vary from one mood to another and float from one individual to another; the setting may be one or many depending upon the wishes of the writer. A memoir thus is like probing into the life of an individual’s mind as he collects his thoughts and writes about it. One can thus preserve his memories through a memoir and that is why it is called the personal canvas of a writer where he can paint a picture as he likes and is not subject to any form of literary adherence. Many individuals even take lessons on how to write a memoir meaning how to collect their thoughts together and pen them down based from the many memories that they have. The skill involves sorting out one’s thoughts and memories and prioritizing them in order to write about them and the revelations that they had through them. Elizabeth Gilbert’s Eat Pray Love is a popular memoir based on her life in three different settings; told in the form of a story, the book talks about her finding love in Bali, spirituality in India and love for the taste of food in Italy. She talks about her memories in the three countries and the journey that she experienced along the way, revitalizing her soul and making her a better person. Anne Frank’s The Diary of a Young Girl is a world famous recollection of memories in the form of Anne Frank’s personal diary that she kept hidden in her attic during the period of the Holocaust.1 Many have even compared the efforts of young child activist Malala Yousufazai’s BBC blog to Frank’s diary. It may thus be considered that in today’s modern world, a memoir can also be documented in the form of an online blog or journal as it runs on a similar concept and is accessible to a larger number of people, just like a book is. Reading Lolita in Teheran by Azar Nafisi is another memoir about young women living in Teheran and trying to attain freedom and understand what it means to be liberated with respect to gender and sexuality and the million unanswered questions they have in their mind. Moreover, the author talks about the memories of living in a world where a taboo was a common societal norm associated with many activities of women and thus the kind of life one lived amidst all that.2 Another very renowned memoir written by Marjane Satrapi entitled Persepolis has even been turned into a film today, inspiring many people. Satrapi writes about growing up against the backdrop of the Iranian war, moving to France, discovering her identity and formulating the same. She talks to herself a lot mainly because she spent these significant years of her life by herself travelling from one place to another, and finally goes back to her parents when everything seems to fail her and she does not have much energy left in her to discover and explore. This memoir finishes off with a note on continuation of life rather than an end of a journey and thus sets itself apart as compared to all other memoirs written. There are many other memoirs that talk about the life of people inspiring others to work and discover the true purpose of their lives; today, one can browse the internet and read people’s blogs or online diaries as these also, in my opinion are forms of memoirs because they have the same element of being formed from the thoughts and memories of an individual and assist an author in painting a picture as he wants, to be discovered by a reader. References Goodreads.com (2006) Popular Memoir Books. [online] Available at: http://www.goodreads.com/shelf/show/memoir [Accessed: 30 Nov 2012]. Ranker (1961) List of Famous Memoirs. [online] Available at: http://www.ranker.com/list/list-of-famous-memoirs/reference [Accessed: 30 Nov 2012]. Read More