We Interrupt this Blog...

Me at age 2

 ... to join a blog party I'm way late for.

But I'm posting about it anyway.

The question Cocoa put to her readers was this:

What fictional character do you identify the most with?

Because I am generally indecisive and because I like waay too many characters and read waaaaaaaay too many books, I cannot answer this question with a single character. So here are my top seven. 

Yes, seven. Ten is too many, but five is too little.

(See? Indecisive.)

Some of these characters are warnings for me to not give into my bad tendencies and habits. (I think I'll start with the bad ones.) 

7) Mrs. Jellyby (from Bleak House by Charles Dickens) 
 I include Mrs. Jellyby here as number seven because she is the one I dislike the most, and yet find I have to constantly work at not being more like her. She is my "id," you might say. She spends so much time working hard on her pet "cause" that she no longer sees or concerns herself with the needs in her own home. Yeah. Not a happy thought. But she reminds me that I need to truly see what is of most importance in my life.

 "We passed several more children on the way up, whom it was difficult to avoid treading on in the dark; and as we came into Mrs. Jellyby's presence, one of the poor little things fell down-stairs-- down a whole flight (as it sounded to me), with a great noise."

"Mrs. Jellyby, whose face showed none of the uneasiness which we could not help showing in our own faces, as the dear child's head recorded its passage with a bump on every stair... received us with perfect equanimity. She was a pretty, very diminutive, plump woman, of from forty to fifty, with handsome eyes, though they had a curious habit of seeming to look a long way off. As if... they could see nothing nearer than Africa!"

6) Mrs. Bennett (from Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen)
 Poor Mrs. Bennett. No one seems to understand her! Unfortunately, I do far too often. Luckily, I am married to a husband who loves me even when I channel her silliness and laziness from time to time. (He's actually a lot like Mr. Darcy, but I'm no Elizabeth.) Oh, and I also can go from depressed and crestfallen to giddy and silly in an instant.

"Ah! you do not know what I suffer."

 5) Molly Weasley (from the Harry Potter series)
 I share many attributes with Molly Weasley. I have a large family that I like to fuss over. We don't have a lot of money in our family, but we do have a lot of love. I like to cook for and feed an army of teenage boys, I worry about my children and my husband, and I do tend to yell more often than I should. All that's missing is the red hair and her immense knitting talents. Oh, and the magic thing.

"You'd best hope I don't put bars on your window, Ronald Weasley."

"Where Have You Been?!"

4) Sophie Hatter (from Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones)
 I have to re-read this book at least once a year, but it's usually more like every six months. I don't know that I can accurately explain why I love this book so much. I think a big part of it is that I've always wanted to be beautiful, but never really ever have been. I mean, I'm fine with how I look, but somedays I feel like young Sophie burdened with a magical spell that makes her look and feel like an old woman. (Why would the handsome Howl ever think of her?)

She's also the oldest of her sisters and has always carried the burden and responsibility of being the strong one who needs to make everything good and happy for everyone-- even if that means sacrificing herself. I adore Sophie because she finally breaks out and stands up for herself once no one knows who she really is. And because she doesn't ever realize how very talented with magic she is in her own right.

 ""It's just a tantrum,' Sophie said. Martha and Lettie were good at having tantrums too. She knew how to deal with those. On the other hand, it is quite a risk to spank a wizard for getting hysterical about his hair. Anyway, Sophie's experience told her that tantrums are seldom about the thing they appear to be about."

"She stumped into the bathroom and stared at her withered old face in the mirrors. She picked up one of the packets labeled SKIN and then tossed it down again. Even young and fresh, she did not think her face compared particularly well with Miss Angorian's."

3) Anne Shirley (from the Anne of Green Gables series)
 I know, I know. So many young girls identify with Anne, but so do I. (I especially love Anne's adventures as a parent and adult in the later books.) When I was a child, my vivid imagination got me in to lots of trouble. And I am flighty and easily distracted by lovely thoughts and wild stories in my mind. I am stubborn and determined, digging in my heels even when what I am rebelling against is not the best thing for me. Oh, and I am a pretty big drama queen!

 "The downfall of some dear hope or plan plunged Anne into 'deeps of affliction.' The fulfillment thereof exalted her to dizzy realms of delight."

"There is a book of Revelation in every one's life, as there is in the Bible.Anne read hers that bitter night, as she kept her agonized vigil through the hours of storm and darkness. She loved Gilbert-- had always loved him! She knew that now. She knew that she could no more cast him out of her life without agony than she could have cut off her right hand and cast it from her. And the knowledge had come too late-- too late even for the bitter solace of being with him at the last."

2) Clare Peggotty (from David Copperfield by Charles Dickens)
 I love Peggotty! She is kind, but strict, and loyal to a fault. I have often caused myself trouble and headache because of my dedication and loyalty to those I love, though I've never had to endure some of the things dear Peggotty had to go through. I hope to be a solid, and strong, and as dependable as she was!

"'My own!' said Peggotty, with infinite compassion. 'What I want to say is. That you must never forget me. For I'll never forget you. And I'll take as much care of your mama, Davy. As ever I took of you. And I won't leave her. The day may come when she'll be glad to lay her poor head. On her stupid, cross old Peggotty's arm again. And I'll write to you, my dear. though I ain't no scholar. And I'll-- I'll--' Peggotty fell to kissing the keyhole, as she couldn't kiss me."

1) Pollyanna (from Pollyanna by Eleanor H. Porter)
 I have always been a wide-eyed Pollyanna. I love to talk, and I love people, and I want to believe the best of everyone. And I like to be hyper and cheerful, though I often annoy the daylights out of many. I don't think before I act, and I make all kinds of mistakes and silly assumptions. I want to be happy, and I want to make as many people happy as I can. (Which also can get me into trouble, too. I have a hard time realizing that I can never please everyone!) But I am glad to be "a Pollyanna."

"...I love folks so I just can't help it! I saw you from my window, Aunt Polly, and I got to thinking how you weren't a Ladies' Aider, and you were my really truly aunt. And you looked so good I just had to come down and hug you!"

"A little later Pollyanna and the minister descended the hill, hand in hand. Pollyanna's face was radiant. Pollyanna loved to talk, and she had been talking now for some time."

Thanks for letting me indulge in a bit of introspection. So fun!

What literary characters do YOU identify with the most???