The Italics are Mine

 Word count: 256 words

    The thing that immediately interested me about Nina was how she was the only child from a North Russian mother and an American father. Fleeing to Paris for 25 years had to of strongly changed her character and childhood. She was used to not having much money at all, especially after joining a literary group of fellow Russian women. She faced hardship just surviving, and then took a huge leap to move to the United States with no money and little English. Later, becoming a professor of Russian Literature at Princeton is remarkable in regards to where she began. Besides all that she accomplished in life, Nina compared the different lifestyles in this time, where she expressed her strong opinions. She says, "To warm myself nears someone, to settle in some secure place, to find a shelter- in a way this seemed to me not only repugnant, but humiliating." I believe she finds this almost unsettling due to her independence. She wants to make her own decisions, not settle down. I know we don't all agree with this but taking it in a lighter way is enlightening, we should strive for opportunity, and taking the risk whenever it comes. Going by this mindset could open up endless opportunities for women if we keep open minds and don't feel like we should be stuck in one location or position for the rest of our lives. Nina definitely does not want to be a traditional or societally normal woman, alike many of these other authors in our textbook.