The Chemistry of Love
Written by Begoña Devis
BIOGRAPHY
She was born in Dalkey, Ireland, May 28, 1940. She studied History at University College of Dublin and worked as a teacher and as a journalist. She taught languages at several girls’ schools, a job she combined with contributions to The Irish Times before deciding to dedicate herself entirely to literature. Binchy was known for her novels, short stories, and plays in which she reflected, with a sharp and biting wit, the reality of small Irish towns and their typical inhabitants. Throughout her career, Binchy sold more than forty million copies of her books, which were translated into thirty-seven languages, making her one of the best-known and most beloved authors in her country.
In 1978, Binchy won a Jacob Award for her play Deeply Regretted By. The National Portrait Gallery in London owns a 1993 photograph of the writer with Richard Whitehead (a Paralympic runner), and a painting of her with Maeve McCarthy (a famous Irish artist), commissioned in 2005, was exhibited at the National Gallery of Ireland.
In 2000, Binchy announced that she would no longer tour to promote her novels, but, instead, she would devote her time to other activities, and to her husband, the children’s author Gordon Snell.
She was awarded prizes such as the British Book Award for Lifetime Achievement, the PEN Irish Award and the Irish Book Award. Binchy’s work has been adapted for television and films on several occasions. Among her novels, notable titles include Under the Dublin Sky, Tara Road, and Circle of Friends.
She died in Dublin, July 30, 2012.
She was born in Dalkey, Ireland, May 28, 1940. She studied History at University College of Dublin and worked as a teacher and as a journalist. She taught languages at several girls’ schools, a job she combined with contributions to The Irish Times before deciding to dedicate herself entirely to literature. Binchy was known for her novels, short stories, and plays in which she reflected, with a sharp and biting wit, the reality of small Irish towns and their typical inhabitants. Throughout her career, Binchy sold more than forty million copies of her books, which were translated into thirty-seven languages, making her one of the best-known and most beloved authors in her country.
In 1978, Binchy won a Jacob Award for her play Deeply Regretted By. The National Portrait Gallery in London owns a 1993 photograph of the writer with Richard Whitehead (a Paralympic runner), and a painting of her with Maeve McCarthy (a famous Irish artist), commissioned in 2005, was exhibited at the National Gallery of Ireland.
In 2000, Binchy announced that she would no longer tour to promote her novels, but, instead, she would devote her time to other activities, and to her husband, the children’s author Gordon Snell.
She was awarded prizes such as the British Book Award for Lifetime Achievement, the PEN Irish Award and the Irish Book Award. Binchy’s work has been adapted for television and films on several occasions. Among her novels, notable titles include Under the Dublin Sky, Tara Road, and Circle of Friends.
She died in Dublin, July 30, 2012.
SUMMARY
The story talks about a young couple in their twenties, Shane and Moya, who met at a Christmas party and intermediately liked each other. Over time, they discover they have more and more things in common; they both like being in good shape, they both have office jobs, their family types are also similar (Shane has a difficult mother, and in Moya’s case, the difficult one was her father), and above all else, they love having holidays abroad. They explain each other their exotic travels, and consequently, they began to think about having a very good holiday that summer. It would be the high spot of the year for them.
They collect brochures as early as January, and try to discover the secret message behind the sentences apparently very attractive. They worked out the jargon so as not to be deceived. The trip can be exotic but not so much expensive. Both of them hate the Single Room Supplement. Must people go off on their holidays two by two, like animals into an ark?, they think. Why is travelling alone penalised? It’s difficult to travel with other people; you can start the trip as friends and end up as enemies. Shane knew of a case like that.
But several months later they began to realise that that summer they would probably travel together. They admitted it one evening over a plate of spaghetti: they would go to Crete. The only knotty problem was the matter of the Single Room. They weren’t lovers yet, so Shane said that the most sensible thing would be to book a double room, with two separate beds. They were grown-ups, and to sleep in separate bed wouldn’t be a problem. Deep down, they both believe they will end up being lovers, even spending their lives together, but they didn’t want to be forced into it simply because they had to sleep in a double bed.
Their differences became apparent when, looking at a magazine about it, they decided what kind of suitcase to take. Shane chose a huge suitcase with wheels and a matching smaller suitcase. Moya chose two normal suitcases, easy to identify on the carousel, Both of them thought that the other must be looking at the wrong page. A cloud appeared between that happy relationship, but both of them decided to ignore it. However, another storm came in April, when Shane gave Moya a travel iron as a birthday present. Moya desperately wished it was a joke, but it wasn’t.
The
truth was that Shane wanted to bring mountains of clothes, and spares
for everything, to have a wardrobe like a sultan’s. That vision
horrified Moya. She planned to bring only the bare minimum, which
meant washing it regularly, and therefore spreading it around the
room while it dried. That vision horrified Shane. They wish they had
met on vacation, so they would have known these things from the
beginning, and not to discover that terrible shock at the height of
romance.
At first, they thought of booking separate rooms, which could avoid that horrifying visions to them. But it went deeper than that, it seemed to show the kind of people they were, and they eventually realised that it would be impossible to spend two weeks together, let alone a life time. So they transferred their bookings to separate holidays, and with separate hopes and dreams.
At first, they thought of booking separate rooms, which could avoid that horrifying visions to them. But it went deeper than that, it seemed to show the kind of people they were, and they eventually realised that it would be impossible to spend two weeks together, let alone a life time. So they transferred their bookings to separate holidays, and with separate hopes and dreams.
PERSONAL OPINION
I like that short story because is both simple and profound. In my opinion, the reflections you can do after reading are more interesting than the story itself.
Here the writer encapsulates the problems of living together. Why do couples divorce? Is it because of philosophical or existential issues, or because she can’t stand the coins falling to the floor every night when he takes off his pants, which drives her crazy? Or because she leaves her purse and wallet lying around day after day, and it takes her hours to find it, which drives him crazy? These are just examples, but I’ve always thought the latter outweighs the former. Another very common problem that also ends relationships is not talking about problems when they arise. They think it won’t happen to them, but when the time comes, they make the same mistake. Has this happened to any of us? I think so.
On the other hand, a holiday trip it’s a moment very well chosen by the author, because it is like an obstacle course that helps you to get to know someone you are interested in. «The couple that travels together stays together», you could say. Age is also very important here. When you are twenty is easy to fall in love and think you can spend your life with a charming person who you just met, but a trip —and in this case even just the planning for it— can ruin everything.
QUESTIONS
-Do you believe in love at first sihgt?
-Do you agree with the popular saying «out of sight, out of mind»?
-In your opinion, what is the difference between liking eomeone and falling in love with someone? Are there special signs which help you to tell the difference between infatuation and love?
VOCABULARY
bedsitter, stamina, glossy, haranguing, dalek, gear, holdall
