tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6083612851716281896.post356966318493782634..comments2024-03-28T02:34:34.041-07:00Comments on Rachna's Scriptorium: Why do we Like Happy Endings?Rachna Chhabriahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16900999965919504282noreply@blogger.comBlogger19125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6083612851716281896.post-31815923613817773352017-05-06T02:37:04.721-07:002017-05-06T02:37:04.721-07:00I hate sad movies and books, and I really get tire...I hate sad movies and books, and I really get tired of people acting like a happy story is somehow less worthy or artistically valid. Why seek out more loss, sorrow and hardship? I wonder if it's based on how sad your own life is?<br />Anyway I just wondered why people think that tragedies are better. I read somewhere about how they makebsome people happy, but I do not have that experience.Desmereldahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08269608962722663002noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6083612851716281896.post-35755378388285036002010-10-22T02:22:10.357-07:002010-10-22T02:22:10.357-07:00Hi Friends, thank you for chiming in. We all agree...Hi Friends, thank you for chiming in. We all agree that the ending should be satisfying and should have reached that point logically, and should not make us feel worse or depressed after we have finished the book. After, all we read because we want to be entertained and not depressed.Rachna Chhabriahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16900999965919504282noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6083612851716281896.post-19036862898657333102010-10-21T17:21:14.150-07:002010-10-21T17:21:14.150-07:00I personally prefer the happy endings,... but I al...I personally prefer the happy endings,... but I also like satisfying endings and they don't always have to be happy.Lynda R Young as Elle Cardyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09975442291393246148noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6083612851716281896.post-52516068457876659172010-10-21T11:29:04.934-07:002010-10-21T11:29:04.934-07:00Great question, Rachna. I like a good HEA as much ...Great question, Rachna. I like a good HEA as much as the next person and they're required for modern romances, but what I really love are the HEAs with twists. Maybe the main story resolves well, but there's a bittersweet aspect, too. I love it when an author can add in an aspect of, "life continued after this story, ya know." Sometimes that life might be good. Sometimes, maybe not, which makes me consider what else those characters might have to confront. It gives them an afterlife. To me, that's par excellence writing. Thanks for dropping by! I'll have a two-part posting next week along with a give-away. ;DVictoria Dixonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14012092208934951963noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6083612851716281896.post-222365309588629142010-10-21T10:36:13.063-07:002010-10-21T10:36:13.063-07:00I avidly avoid any books that do not have a HEA. T...I avidly avoid any books that do not have a HEA. They're a must for me. I started Anna K as a kid and stopped because I heard she killed herself and I just knew there was no way I could read that. Like you, I think there's plenty of sad, horrible things in reality. I don't like them in my entertainment. :-)<br /><br />Thank you for popping by my blog!Jessica Nelsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12365768876905444157noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6083612851716281896.post-88271776158512620722010-10-21T10:34:57.578-07:002010-10-21T10:34:57.578-07:00I prefer happy endings. If books are part of a ser...I prefer happy endings. If books are part of a series, I prefer that they are able to stand alone. Good food for thought, thank you.<br />Have a good weekend,<br />KarenKaren Langehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18177923284595298347noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6083612851716281896.post-23075091847021580232010-10-21T09:52:10.655-07:002010-10-21T09:52:10.655-07:00I think Alex said it very well. I don't want t...I think Alex said it very well. I don't want to feel worse after the experience. <br /><br />Sometimes a tragic ending will uplift you in some way--where a character has made a sacrifice for the greater good--like the end of Pay It Forward. You'll cry, but you still feel hopeful about the world. Or with a tragedy like MacBeth, you know justice has been done. (Although not all tragedies do that. There's not a whole lot to feel good about in King Lear. A few years ago I decided I'd seen enough of Lear for one lifetime and I won't go through it again.)<br /><br />For me an ending doesn't have to be "happy" but it has to be hopeful.Anne R. Allenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02420000168356370825noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6083612851716281896.post-34909162872649912422010-10-21T04:07:58.171-07:002010-10-21T04:07:58.171-07:00It doesn't have to be a happy ending, but if I...It doesn't have to be a happy ending, but if I've devoted time to a book or movie, I don't want to feel worse when it ends.Alex J. Cavanaughhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09770065693345181702noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6083612851716281896.post-15085424051775378852010-10-20T20:51:07.620-07:002010-10-20T20:51:07.620-07:00I love happy endings too but have got used to the ...I love happy endings too but have got used to the fact that apart from romance novels, all other novels bear a fifty percent chance of going with a sad ending. If it’s logical I don’t mind, but I don’t like it when it’s deliberately done that way.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6083612851716281896.post-37268466495367688962010-10-20T17:53:24.807-07:002010-10-20T17:53:24.807-07:00Hi! Thanks for visiting my blog. I'm a follo...Hi! Thanks for visiting my blog. I'm a follower of yours now. I love books with happy endings. Although I realize real life is not always like that, that's why I read books, to escape reality! So I get pretty bummed if a great book has a tragic ending.alexiahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07122487552931794871noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6083612851716281896.post-32614161974026009272010-10-20T15:26:15.329-07:002010-10-20T15:26:15.329-07:00I'm interesting in lots of different endings, ...I'm interesting in lots of different endings, it doesn't have to be happy for me to be satisfied with the story. But at the same time I totally agree with you in that most people do want happy endings. <br /><br />I think it has something to do with a sense of hope, that no matter how bad it seemed, all turned out for the best. People want to believe that it's possible to be happy even after great hardship. They need hope.<br /><br />JaiJai Joshihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04858987106548357551noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6083612851716281896.post-73653856652679667122010-10-20T15:25:24.655-07:002010-10-20T15:25:24.655-07:00You said it! I LOVE happy endings or I do feel che...You said it! I LOVE happy endings or I do feel cheated--too much time invested to feel no good resolution.Terri Tiffanyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07771622379178654235noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6083612851716281896.post-56396088040506172812010-10-20T13:03:25.228-07:002010-10-20T13:03:25.228-07:00I'm totally with you on happy endings, Rachna,...I'm totally with you on happy endings, Rachna, even though I'd like to be all sophisticated and worldly and say that any ending as long as it fits the book is fine by me :). I think you hit the nail on the head as to why the majority of us feel this way.<br /><br />I'm currently writing for middle-garde. I hope to end my WIP on an open-ended note, with some room for interpretation.Hema Penmetsahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08448481721288158816noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6083612851716281896.post-43679913121818927782010-10-20T10:36:26.658-07:002010-10-20T10:36:26.658-07:00I love happy endings, but what's more importan...I love happy endings, but what's more important is closure that makes sense. Kind of like what RAchel said!Lydia Kanghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00484415427764822386noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6083612851716281896.post-38527186240019448432010-10-20T10:35:25.287-07:002010-10-20T10:35:25.287-07:00I love happy endings :-) But not just for happy en...I love happy endings :-) But not just for happy endings' sake. It's got to make sense that it worked out that way. Otherwise believability goes out the window and then I'm just not interested...<br /><br />Thanks for stopping by my blog :-)Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06181241692016438730noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6083612851716281896.post-69567251111146246242010-10-20T08:52:11.854-07:002010-10-20T08:52:11.854-07:00Ack! My comment disappeared! One more time, I'...Ack! My comment disappeared! One more time, I'm a big believer in making my readers happy. I hate picking up a book and investing my time when it either goes nowhere or there is no HEA. =)Tanahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10518718614911804428noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6083612851716281896.post-65672783438767806982010-10-20T06:42:38.878-07:002010-10-20T06:42:38.878-07:00Kim...I agree that the ending of Anna Karenina fit...Kim...I agree that the ending of Anna Karenina fitted with the morals of the story, but I still found it a sad ending. Like you some of my favourite books too have sad endings. A sad ending does challenge a reader more than a happy ending. But, I hate it when the MC dies. I feel slightly let down. <br /><br />Ellie, I am sure your readers will be satisfied with the ending as long as its justified and has reached that point through a logical sequence of events. Like you, I too like endings that make sense, never mind the fact that they are not happy ones. But, for love stories, I prefer Happy Endings.Rachna Chhabriahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16900999965919504282noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6083612851716281896.post-60804220140172164992010-10-19T23:49:53.908-07:002010-10-19T23:49:53.908-07:00A very apt post for me, as I'm currently writ...A very apt post for me, as I'm currently writing a story that could be used as the basis for a movie (it's for the A Tribute to the Stars Anthology) and I'm in a quandry over the ending. Currently my MC comes out on top at the end of the story but has to kill his main love interest to do so. So it does have a happy ending because the MC survives, but not a happy love ending. I'm more than happy with that ending but will my readers be?<br /><br />Personally, unless I'm reading a romance novel, I wouldn't expect a happy ending. As long as the ending is a logical progression of all the other things that have happened, then it's fine with me. I might not always like the ending but if it makes sense then I happy!<br /><br />Great post.Ellie Garratthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03731071128348213067noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6083612851716281896.post-53356262433868194962010-10-19T20:36:57.150-07:002010-10-19T20:36:57.150-07:00Good post my friend! I for one actually loved the ...Good post my friend! I for one actually loved the ending of Anna Karenin...to me it fit with the morals of the story...I am not against happy endings but I must say that I prefer books that challenge us and sometimes a sad meaning has more "challenge" value than a happy ending...Some of my favourite books have sad endings but justified endings all the same...another one of my favourites is Wuthering Heights that also ends sadly..there is of course a place for both types of endings and there will always be readers that will want both types of endings but for me sad endings tend to outweigh happy endings because they make me as a reader question more.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com