The book Wasted:A Memoir of Anorexia and Bulimia, contains plenty of quotes that interest me. I find that the most intriguing quote was: “When I was growing up, I always felt there was an expectation that I would do one of two things: be Great at something, or go crazy and become a total failure. There is no middle ground where I come from.” This quote is significant, because it shows Marya Hornbacher's extreme behavior. The pressure to live perfectly, work perfectly, and do things perfectly is exhausting and grueling. It displays a glimpse of the various reasons that drove her to unimaginable coping techniques. Marya Hornbacher felt that she had to do so well in all situations and tasks and if she failed to meet the expectations that she had set for herself, then she was driven mad with her failure. Facing one's own failure is not a simple task one may not stay calm when one realizes that one was not "good" enough to successfully complete the desired task. The middle ground that the narrator mentions is where all people should stand; they should strive for greatness and perfection of any task, but they should not treat their failure as a grave situation, rather as a useful, learning experience. Marya Hornbacher's decisions could have been from the extreme desire to complete all tasks perfectly. This quote jumped off the page when I read it, because it is relevant to my own life. I am a perfectionist when dealing with most school assignments. I can not let go of small errors and kinks in my assignments. If I do not complete the assignment my way, with my personal idea of perfection, then I feel it is not worth it to work on it at all. I do not have a middle ground to settle on. If I catch an error in sight, I attempt to fix it, but, many times, this leads to an assignment with a greater number of errors than the previous one. Ultimately, all people should work to reach a middle or stable ground, to truly be successful. Marya Hornbacher was critical towards herself and all she expected from herself was perfection. There was no space for error, which is part of the reason that she felt the need to self-harm. Unfortunately, nobody is perfect in all aspects of life, and each individual must learn to accept that crucial fact.
Pick A Quote