When I decided to read Prince Harry's confession published in his book Spare, I knew that I would write about this topic. Now that I have read the book, I am reconsidering the angle from which I will express my impressions. First, the book is not just readable, it is excellently written. This text was not written by Prince Harry himself, but by a ghost-writer, the award-winning American journalist J.R. Moehringer. Secondly, the book is honest. In it, Harry describes himself and those closest to him without reservation and explains events from his life and relationships with his family as well as his and their relationship with the public and media.
As a twelve-year-old boy, he lost his mother, and that marked Harry, that trauma staying with him long after her death. He describes in detail how he dreamed that “mom was just hiding” and that she didn't really die. This thinking follows him for years after her death, which shows the extent of the trauma and grief for his unforgotten mother. The relationship with his father is complex, Harry admits that King Charles was a solidly caring father, who made the effort to support him. However, he did not give him the intensity of love that he needed and that he would have had from his mother if he had her by his side. Due to the circumstances in which his mother passed away, as well as personal experiences, Harry has a strong hatred for the paparazzi who follow him wherever he goes. Harry's distaste does not stop there but spreads to both newspapers and tabloids. At the time when, as a young man, he entered relationships with girls, it happened several times that after a public revelation in the newspapers, those relationships ended. Harry's girlfriends could not or did not want to deal with the fame that came along with the persecution of paparazzi and journalists, not only to them but also to members of their families.
Harry had a ten-year career in the British army where he participated in the war in Afghanistan and Iraq. He describes his path to becoming a military pilot and his dedication to his military profession. Harry also carries traumas from the war that some British media have speculated caused post-traumatic stress disorder. From reading his memoir where he thoroughly considered his own death and questioned the form of his possible funeral, this does seem likely.
Harry describes his relationship with his brother, and there he gives the impression that he did not get the kind of attention he wanted from his brother. From the book, one gets the idea that Prince William was not an older brother up to the task and that he did not care enough for his younger brother. William does not appear to support Harry in difficult life situations when perhaps he should have given more of himself in relation to his younger brother. That's Harry's side of the story, of course. It would be interesting to hear what William says about that, but we will probably never know.
The last part of the book is dedicated to Harry's life with his wife Meghan. The fact that the woman in Harry's life was an American and an actress did not help Harry in his relationship with his family, the media, and his homeland. Harry proudly points out that Meghan knew almost nothing about him or his family from the media. It can be read between the lines that this is a matter of a lack of information on cultural differences, but also about historical and related facts. He notes with satisfaction that Meghan didn't google him even after they became a couple. Harry writes about his despair at the ugly treatment of his wife by the British media and often points out that this was blatant racism.
Harry and Meghan wanted to spend part of their lives outside of Britain but still thought they could work for the monarchy. They had their own idea of how they wanted to live and raise their children, but they also wanted to preserve the many privileges that come with the positions of high-ranking members of the royal family. But the British royal family is not Hollywood, nor are the members of the royal family celebrities. There are strict rules and protocols on how to work and live as a member of the royal family. Harry does not give the impression that he knows what kind of life he will provide for himself and his family, he only has a strong feeling that he wants to protect them, especially from the writings in the British media.
From the book, and outside of it, you also get the impression that for Harry, his role as a prince is more of a punishment than a privilege. In my opinion, this is exactly what annoys people and journalists in Britain.
I am happy to have read the confession of a real prince. Whatever your opinion of Harry or members of his family is, you have to agree that this is an interesting book that opens the door to the British royal family at the innermost level.
Kristina
Tuesday, February 14th, 2023
Ispovjest princa Harija
Već kad sam odlučila pročitati ispovjest princa Harija objavljenoj u njegovoj knjizi “Spare” ili u prijevodu “Rezerva”, znala sam da ću o ovoj temi pisati. Sad nakon što sam knjigu pročitala preispitujem ugao iz kojeg ću iznijeti svoje dojmove. Ponajprije, knjiga je čitljiva, izvrsno je napisana. To štivo nije napisao sam princ Hari nego unajmljeni pisac koji piše za druge. Ovdje se radi se o nagrađivanom novinaru i autoru J.R. Moehringeru rođenom u New Yorku. Zatim, knjiga je iskrena. U njoj Hari opisuje sebe i svoje najbliiže bez zadrške, opisuje događaje iz svog života, odnose sa svojom obitelji kao i svoj i njihov odnos prema javnosti.
Kao dvanaestogodišnji dječak izgubio je majku i to umnogome obilježilo Harija jer ta se trauma u njemu zadržala dugo nakon njezine pogibije. U detalje opisuje kako je sanjao da se mama samo pritajila od javnosti i da nije uistinu umrla. To ga razmišljanje prati godinama nakon njezine smrti što pokazuje opsege traume i tugu za neprežaljenom majkom. Odnos sa ocem je kompleksan i iako je kralj Charles bio solidno brižan otac i često ga podupirao nije mu pružio intenzitet ljubavi kakva je njemu bila potrebna i kakvu bi imao od mame da ju je imao uz sebe. Zbog okolnosti u kojima mu je majka preminula, ali i zbog osobnh iskustava ima izrazitu mržnju prema paparzima koji ga slijede komo god pošao. Harijeva odbojnost se tu ne zaustavlja nego se širi i na novine i tabloide. U vrijeme kad je kao mladić ulazio u veze sa djevojkama, često se dešavalo da su nakon javnog otkrića u medijima te veze pucale. Harijeve se djevojke nisu mogle ili nisu željele nositi sa slavom koja sa sobom nosi proganjanja paparaza i novinara i to ne samo njih nego i članova njihovih obitelji.
Hari je imao desetogodišnju karijeru u britanskoj vojsci gdje je sudjelovao u ratu u Afganistanu i Iraku. Opisuje svoj put do zvanja vojnog pilota i predanost vojnoj profesiji. Hari nosi i traume iz rata za koje neki britanski mediji nagađaju da su uzrokovale posttraumatski stresni poremećaj. Čitajući njegove memoare u kojima je temeljito razmatrao vlastitu smrt i preispitivao oblik svog mogućeg sprovoda, to se čini vjerojatnim.
Hari opisuje svoje odnose sa bratom i tu ostavlja dojam da od brata nije dobivao onakovu podršku kakvu je kroz život priželjkivao. Iz knjige se stiče dojam da princ William nije bio stariji brat na nivou tog zadatka i da za svog mlađeg brata nije dovoljno brinuo. Isto tako nije mu bio potpora u nekim životnim situacijama kad je trebao dati više sebe u odnosu prema mlađem bratu. To je naravno Harijeva strana priče. Bilo bi zanimljivo čuti što na to kaže William, ali to vjerovatno nikada nećemo saznati.
Zadnji dio knjige je posvećen Harijevom životu sa suprugom Meghan. Činjenica da se u ženi Harijevog života našla Amerikanka i glumica nije pomogla Hariju u njegovom odnosu prema obitelji, medijima i svojoj domovini. Hari sa ponosom ističe kako Meghan nije gotovo ništa znala o njegovoj obitelji i o njemu iz medija. Iz redova se isčitava da se radi o neinformiranosti i o kulturološkim razlikama, ali i o povjesnim i relevantnim činjenicama. On zadovoljno konstatira kako Meghan nije googlala o njemu niti nakon što su postali par. Hari piše o očaju zbog ružnog tretmana britanskih medija prema njegovoj supruzi i često ističe da se tu radilo o rasizmu.
Hari i Meghan su željeli dio života provesti izvan Britanije, ali oni bi rado i dalje radili za monarhiju. Imali su svoju ideju kako su željeli živjeti i odgajati svoju djecu, ali su isto tako željeli sačuvati brojne privilegije koje idu uz pozicije visokorangiranih članova kraljevske obitelji. No, Britanska kraljevska obitelj nije Holivood, niti su pripadnici kraljevse obitelji slavne ličnosti. Postoje stroga pravila i protokoli kako se radi i živi, ako si pripadnik krljevske obitelji. Hari ne ostavlja dojam da zna kakav će život obezbjediti za sebe i svoju obitelj, jedino ima jak osjećaj da ih želi zaštiti, ponajprije od napisa u britanskim meijima.
Iz knjige, ali i izvan nje, također se stječe dojam da je za Harija njegova uloga princa više kazna nego privilegija. Po mom mišljenju to je upravo ono što ljude i novinare u Britaniji nervira.
Sretna sam što sam pročitala ispovjest jednog pravog princa. Kakvo god mišljenje imali o Harryu ili članovima njegove obitelji morate se složiti da je ovo zanimljivo štivo koje otvara vrata britanske kraljevske obitelji na najvišem nivou.
Kristina
Utorak, 14. veljače 2023.
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