When I was a child I was very shy and an Introverted person. I used to talk very less to the people. For me everyone was bad. In addition I grew up with the stories of Panchtantra, Mahabharata, Ramayana. Then in my school days I used to read one Gujarati magazine 'Balsrushti' and sometimes 'Yug Gayatri' also. Both the magazines included moral stories. I also used to read Vikram aur Betaal. In addition it was a time of Television(still it is), I used to watch TV series like 'Shaktiman', 'Shakalaka Boom Boom' 'Sonpari' etc. All were showing some kind of magical thing which led me to the world of fantasy. I also started believing in all this and started to live in a fantasy world.

Moving further, I was egoist and an angry girl. I had different perspectives to see myself as well as others. But Literature has broken my ego and anger. With the help of literature I came to know about my inner dark side. It breaks my perspective towards society, towards people. It met me with myself. It is not only the mirror of society, it is the mirror to see our own dark side. Which any external mirror can not show us. It breaks all the cultural norms, limitations and whatever I was taught from childhood. Literature gives more openness to my thinking, makes me more rational, gives me a voice to resist.

People give many metaphors to literature, for me literature is like a Hammer, it beats me, shows me the cruel reality of society.

Hester Prynne taught me to live with our individual choice without any shame in society and to face society

Dimmesdale taught me to not run away from my responsibilities

Harry Potter taught me that there is nothing outside in the world, it is we who help ourselves.

Hermione taught me that it doesn't matter where you born, you can achieve anything by your hard work

Tony Webster taught me to see my inner self. My memories can be wrong, my history can be an illusion. In my story I'm always a hero, he breaks my perceptions.

From the character of Dorothea I have learned that what I am is depend on what decision I have made in my past. She taught me that love is not so important, self depending is important (she is not following this, but it also gives me lessons)

From Balram Halwai I have learned how to come out from the Darkness, but never harm anyone for your benefits. It will make the society a Jungle. He taught me that my identity is more important than any other.

There is one text which I have studied in my MA studies, which has totally changed my mind set and perspective to look at the world and society. And the text is 'The Scarlet Letter - a dark romance' by Nathaniel Hawthorne. Before studying this I had a very different mental attitude towards some kinds of women. In this text the main character is a woman, named as Hester Prynne. Probably in society's perspective, whatever she has done is a sin or a crime, because she had a relationship with a man and she also had a daughter. Maybe her husband left her two years ago and then a priest came into her life approximately. But it seems without marriage they had a sexual relationship. Her husband was not her daughter's biological father, it could be the reason she was punished by society. Before studying this I thought if you could not accept your love in front of people then you should not love anyone, if your love gave you shame then you should not love anyone. But this text and especially the main character Hester Prynne taught me to live with individual choice, taught me to do as I like and as my choice. I thought these types of women who have sexual or physical relationships are not good, Perhaps I was from that society from where Hester Prynne came. For me these types of women were characterless, I was looking towards women from only one side and after studying this I found another perspective to look at women.