By Sonja Belkin
Maybe you’re lucky enough to be graced with a reading week, or maybe you’re an unfortunate Econ student looking to distract yourself from the mid-term blues. Either way, this list of short reads is sure to be more entertaining than desperately trying to summon the energy to watch the five hours’ worth of lectures you’ve fallen behind on.
Monday: In Praise of Idleness, Bertrand Russell
Recommended for: every overachieving, workaholic LSE student sacrificing their physical and mental well-being in pursuit of a coveted IB internship.
While it’s certainly demoralising that an essay criticising society’s prioritisation of work rings just as true now as it did in the 1930s, there’s no denying that Russell’s utopian ideal – wherein we limit our work to just four hours a day in order to spend the rest of our time focusing on leisure – is one worth aiming for. A thought-provoking read which will, at the very least, make you question when exactly was the last time you did anything just for pleasure, rather than as a means to an end.
Tuesday – Even If You Beat Me, Sally Rooney
Recommended for: every self-important, God-complex-owning LSE student who loves playing devil’s advocate in debates they have never done any research for.
Before ascending to royalty status in the contemporary fiction world, Rooney wrote this insightful essay on her experience of being the ‘number one competitive debater on the continent of Europe’. Rather than what you might expect (a list of every competition she broke in, for instance), Rooney portrays the debating circuit fairly pessimistically, reflecting on the way it reinforces pomposity and the erroneous belief that you can argue about anything, even the ‘secession of Republika Srpska from Bosnia and Herzegovina’, as long as you sound persuasive enough.
Wednesday – The Yellow Wallpaper, Charlotte Perkins Gilman
Recommended for: every LSE student bed-ridden with freshers’ flu who hasn’t left their uni dorm in days (note: if this short story hits uncomfortably close to home, it might be worth contacting the counselling service).
With Halloween right around the corner, it seems only fitting to recommend this psychologically terrifying story about a woman driven to madness after being confined to the rest cure by her controlling spouse. Trapped in a room with nothing to distract herself but peeling wallpaper, the protagonist slowly becomes obsessed and starts to hallucinate about faces in the wall. Beyond just being a deeply unsettling story, Gilman’s sharp criticism of women’s lack of autonomy and vivid portrayal of postpartum depression makes this well worth the read.
Thursday – Who Is the Bad Art Friend?, Robert Kolker
Recommended for: every LSE student endlessly scrolling through LSE Love hoping for a crumb of gossip.
A deep dive into the court case that captured the Twitter-sphere for at least a week, ‘Who Is The Bad Art Friend’ recounts the dramatic saga that took place between two horrifically self-righteous authors – one of whom donated her kidney for clout and then took the other to court for ‘plagiarising’ her experience. The article is full of twists and turns (a personal favourite moment is when all the email chains bitching about the organ-donation woman get subpoenaed) and can definitely scratch the itch for people who enjoy hate-consuming media.
Friday – Secret Oral History of Bennington College, Lili Anolik
Recommended for: every Oxbridge reject who gave up their dark academia daydreams for a corporate culture which, let’s be honest, is impossible to romanticise.
What could be better than living vicariously through Donna Tartt and Bret Easton Ellis’ experiences of Bennington College (which Tartt modelled Hampden college on for ‘The Secret History’)? With juicy anecdotes and vivid writing, Anolik brilliantly portrays the decadent experience of the pretentious American elite of the 80s.
Hopefully at least one of these takes your mind off the ambitious list of articles you planned to get through this week – happy reading!
Hi, I’m Sonja! I’m currently studying Psychology and Behavioural Science at LSE. I’m interested in discussing politics, books, music, food, and films (and am always grateful for recommendations!). Feel free to reach out to my instagram @sonjabelkin if you have any questions.
Sonja Belkin
