Word: harshness
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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...collection Heartsongs in its unwavering gaze at human tragedy in nature's liminal spaces, where no quarter is asked and none given by protagonist, nature or narrator. It is this equanimity of Proulx which, together with her remarkable and idiosyncratic eye for texture, makes her stories so compelling. Throwing harsh light, she does not appear to cede sympathy; but it is true that there exists, in her strongest work, a kind of vast and vague mourning call, a deep sighing identification...
...courts for admission to the Citadel, the previously all-male South Carolina military academy. Faulkner left after Hell Week, the first week of training at the academy, citing stress and illness. Her quick departure only provided ammunition for critics who argued that women were unlikely to succeed in the harsh, competitive environment of academies like the Citadel. The following year, four women entered the ranks of cadets at the school. Yesterday, Nancy Mace became its first female graduate...
...prepares to enter the next world, Carmen looks back on her life: her masked desires for passion, her resistance to change, her assertions of power in a male-dominated religion and male-dominated world and her constant struggle to find beauty in a harsh and unforgiving terrain. The saints that Carmen addresses have given her solace and guidance through the years, from Saint Liberata, the patron saint of abused women represented as a crucified female martyr, to Saint Theresa of Lisieux, who teaches Carmen to find beauty in adversity...
...piece used by that eerie little Russian girl to intimidate Richard Dreyfus in "The Competition," came off worse. Its main weakness was lack of dynamic range--or rather, lack of sensitive dynamic range, as one tended to be awed by Zimerman's ferocious key depth without forgetting the harsh sounds it sometimes produced. A stricter observance of tempi would also have been in order; this was Chopin, not Debussy. In any case the risks he took at high speeds were admirable, and his confident, blind leaps across three octaves are a reproach to showier pianists who conduct their business...
...expect to do well in the box-office whether it's any good or not. Two hours of gazing at Brad Pitt and Jared Leto is reward enough for many young ladies. However, from the standpoint of critics, I predict mixed reviews, some praising its original and harsh social critique while others are disturbed by its perhaps unnecessarily grim and graphic depiction of the fight scenes...