Dialogue of Nature and an Icelander Today I am a bit of the race to devote more bolg active, but I take this opportunity to post one of the works that have most influenced my training. I will never forget my Professor of Italian and Latin, his passion and that made me because Partaccia always distracted!
Dialogue of Nature and an Icelander
an Icelander, who had run for most of the world, and stayed in very different lands, going once to the interior of Africa, and passing under the equator in a place never before penetrated by any man, had a case similar to what happened to Vasco de Gama in passing the Cape of Good Hope, when the same head, guardian of the southern seas, he is fece incontro, sotto forma di gigante, per distorlo dal tentare quelle nuove acque. Vide da lontano un busto grandissimo; che da principio immaginò dovere essere di pietra, e a somiglianza degli ermi colossali veduti da lui, molti anni prima, nell’isola di Pasqua. Ma fattosi più da vicino, trovò che era una forma smisurata di donna seduta in terra, col busto ritto, appoggiato il dosso e il gomito a una montagna; e non finta ma viva; di volto mezzo tra bello e terribile, di occhi e di capelli nerissimi; la quale guardavalo fissamente; e stata così un buono spazio senza parlare, all’ultimo gli disse.
Natura. Chi sei? che cerchi in questi luoghi dove la tua specie era incognita?
Icelandic. I am a poor Icelander, who fled vo Nature, and fuggitala most of the time of my life for one hundred shares of land, run away now for this.
Nature. So the squirrel runs away from a rattle snake, until he falls into gorge by himself. I am the one you shun.
Icelandic. Nature?
Nature. Not others.
Icelandic. I am sorry to the soul, and I hold it for certain that most of this mishap I could not occur.
Nature. Well you could think that I attend especially those parts; not ignore where it is shown that more than anywhere else, for my power. But what was that you moved to shun me?
Icelandic. You must know that I am up in early youth, a few experiments, I was convinced of the vanity of life and light, and the foolishness of men who constantly fighting one with another for the purchase of pleasures that delight, and goods that are undesirable, bearing one another and causes endless worries , and countless evils, and that rush knuckle effect, the more you move away from happiness, the more trying.
For these reasons, placed every other desire, resolutions, giving no trouble to anyone do not provide any way to move forward in my state, not contending with others for no good in the world, living a dark and quiet; and desperate for pleasure, as something denied to our species, I suggested that other care to keep me away from suffering. By that I mean that I thought to abstain from the occupations and fatigues the body: that you know what a difference to the discomfort and fatigue, and live the quiet life idle. And in the very first to implement this resolution, he knew how to test and space to think, if you live among men of power, not offending anyone, to escape that others do not offend you, and giving more spontaneous and happy slightest in all things, you get whatever is left a place, and that these impairments do not be resisted. But the harassment of men freed myself easily detaches from their society, and reducing loneliness, something that you can bring my native island effect without difficulty. Without this, and living without verun'immagine almost of pleasure, but I could not maintain without suffering, because the length of winter, the intensity of the cold, extreme zeal of state, which are qualities of that place, I am troubled continuous and fire, at which I agreed to spend a great deal of time, m'inaridiva meat, and tore her eyes with smoke so that, either at home or in the open, I could save a perpetual discomfort. Nor could also preserve the tranquility of life, which were mainly directed my thoughts: Why the terrible storms of sea and land, the roars and threats of Mount Ecla, suspicion degl'incendi, frequent the hotels, such as ours, made of wood, do not ever bother me intermettevano .
All such inconvenience in a life that conforms to itself, and stripped of any other desire and hope, and almost every other concern, that of being quiet, just not able to moment, and much more serious elle wont appear when most of our minds is occupied by thoughts of civil life, and the hardships that come from men. For much more that I saw that I almost shrink shrank into myself, in order to prevent my being that did not give any trouble or damage to property in the world, I was not that other things do not m'inquietassero and troubles, I began to change his locations and climates, to see if any part of the earth could not offend not be offended, and not enjoying not suffer.
And this resolution was also moved by a thought that I was born, that maybe you had not intended to mankind if not only the climate of the earth (as you did to each of the other kinds of animals, and those of plants) and some such places, out of which men could not prosper or live without difficoltà e miseria; da dover essere imputate, non a te, ma solo a essi medesimi, quando eglino avessero disprezzati e trapassati i termini che fossero prescritti per le tue leggi alle abitazioni umane. Quasi tutto il mondo ho cercato, e fatta esperienza di quasi tutti i paesi; sempre osservando il mio proposito, di non dar molestia alle altre creature, se non il meno che io potessi, e di procurare la sola tranquillità della vita. Ma io sono stato arso dal caldo fra i tropici, rappreso dal freddo verso i poli, afflitto nei climi temperati dall’incostanza dell’aria, infestato dalle commozioni degli elementi in ogni dove.
Più luoghi ho veduto, nei which does not pass a day without timeline: that is to say that you give each day of an assault and a fight made to those people, not guilty of nessun'ingiuria to you. In other places the ordinary serenity of the sky is compensated by the frequency of earthquakes, from the multitude and the fury of the volcanoes, bubbling from the underground all over the country. Winds and whirlwinds unbridled reign in parts and in the other seasons quiet air rage. This time I've heard the collapse of the roof over his head for the great load of snow, at other times, the abundance of rain the same ground, cracking, I have dispersed under the foot, I sometimes feel is a need to escape all lena rivers, which followed me as if I were guilty of some injustice towards them. Many wild beasts, not caused by me with a slightest offense, I wanted to eat, many poison snakes, in different places is not just flying insects that I have consumed unto the bone. I leave the daily dangers, man always imminent, and infinite in number, so that an ancient philosopher is not against the fear, the most valuable consideration other remedy that everything is to be feared. Neither the illness I have forgiven him with everything I had, as yet, do not say temperate continent but the pleasures of the body. I wont take no small wonder considering that you Have we instilled and a lot of stops and insatiable greed for pleasure, which is inseparable from our lives as free of what she wants, of course, is something imperfect, and other party has ordered the use of it is almost like all things human the most harmful to the strength and health of the body, the most calamitous in its effects as to set each person, and more opposed to the durability of life itself. But in any way, and almost always totally abstaining from all pleasure, I could not do not run into many different diseases, some of which I have placed in danger of death, others to lose the use of any State, or to lead a life perpetually poor that the past, and all for several days or months, I have oppressed the body and soul with a thousand hardships and a thousand sorrows. And certainly, even though each of us to experience in time of illness, new evils for him or disuse, and greater unhappiness that he usually does not (as if human life is not sufficient for the ordinary miserable) you have not given to man , compensarnelo for some time soprabbondante Health and unusual, which is the cause of some pleasure extraordinary quality and size.
Ne 'countries covered mostly with snow, I was blinded for: as happens routinely in the Sami homeland. From the sun and air, things vital and necessary to our lives, and therefore they can not escape, we are insulted constantly and from this wet glue, glue stiffness, and other provisions, the one with the heat, and with the same light : so that man can never without some major or minor inconvenience or damage, to sit exposed to one or other of them.
In the end, I do not remember having spent a single day of life without some pain, if I can not enumerate the ones I've eaten without even a hint of enjoyment: I avveggo us so much that it is intended and must suffer the , because the did not enjoy, so impossible to live the quiet in what way it is, how to live without restless misery and I resolve to conclude that you are discovering the enemy's men and other animals, and all thy works, which now threatens c'insidii now we now we assaults hours spur us now we strike now we ragged, and always there or offend or persecute us, and that, and to institute suit, you're the executioner of your own family, thy sons' and, so to speak, of your blood and your bowels. Therefore I remain devoid of any hope that the men end up having understood to persecute anyone who flees or hides with real desire to flee or hide himself, but that you, on no occasion, never let go of pursue us, until we are oppressed. And now I see myself next time bitter and mournful of old age, true and manifest evil, rather a combination of very serious evils and misery, and however this is not accidental, but for you to read all kinds of 'living expected by each of us up in childhood, and he prepared all the time, the fifth its luster in there with a sad decline and lose without his fault, so that just one third of human life is assigned to flourish, a few moments to maturity and perfection, the remainder at the end, and agl'incomodi that follow.
Nature. Perhaps you imagined that the world was made because of you? We now know that the invoices, negli ordini e nelle operazioni mie, trattone pochissime, sempre ebbi ed ho l’intenzione a tutt’altro che alla felicità degli uomini o all’infelicità. Quando io vi offendo in qualunque modo e con qual si sia mezzo, io non me n’avveggo, se non rarissime volte: come, ordinariamente, se io vi diletto o vi benefico, io non lo so; e non ho fatto, come credete voi, quelle tali cose, o non fo quelle tali azioni, per dilettarvi o giovarvi. E finalmente, se anche mi avvenisse di estinguere tutta la vostra specie, io non me ne avvedrei.
Islandese. Ponghiamo caso che uno m’invitasse spontaneamente a una sua villa, con grande instanza; e io per compiacerlo vi andassi. Quivi mi fosse dato per dimorare all torn up and damaging a cell, where I was in constant danger of being crushed, wet, stinking, open to the wind and rain. He does not linger to take care of any pastime or give me any comfort, on the contrary, as I did give the bisognevole to sustain them, and leave me over this villaneggiare, taunt, threaten and beat from 'his sons, and by 'other family. If I suing him for this bad treatment, answer me: maybe I did this house for you? I keep these or my children and my people, for your service? and, well all I have to think of 'your amusements, and to get you the best costs, and to this reply: See, my friend, that because you did not build this house for my use, so it was not in your power to invitarmici. But since you wanted me to voluntarily staying there, they will not he belongs to make sure that I, as it is in your power, at least we live safely and without labor? So I say now. I know that you have not made the world in the service of men. Rather believe that I did and ordered specifically to haunt him.
Now I ask: have I prayed to myself maybe in this universe? or I will have interfered violently, and against your will? But if you will, and without my knowledge, and so that I could not sconsentirlo né ripugnarlo, tu stessa, colle tue mani, mi vi hai collocato; non è egli dunque ufficio tuo, se non tenermi lieto e contento in questo tuo regno, almeno vietare che io non vi sia tribolato e straziato, e che l’abitarvi non mi noccia? E questo che dico di me, dicolo di tutto il genere umano, dicolo degli altri animali e di ogni creatura.
Natura. Tu mostri non aver posto mente che la vita di quest’universo è un perpetuo circuito di produzione e distruzione, collegate ambedue tra sé di maniera, che ciascheduna serve continuamente all’altra, ed alla conservazione del mondo; il quale sempre che cessasse o l’una o l’altra di loro, verrebbe parimente in dissoluzione. Per tanto risulterebbe in its loss if it was in him anything free from suffering.
Icelandic. Cotesta hear the same reasoning to all philosophers. But since what is destroyed, suffering, and what destroys it, does not, and just go is likewise destroyed, tell me what no philosopher can tell me: who likes or who benefits Cotesta unhappy life of the universe, preserved with injury and with the death of all the things that make it up? While they were in these and similar arguments is known that arrived two lions, and so finished dall'inedia waste paper, which had just strength to eat quell'Islandese, as they did, and presone a little refreshment, he kept alive for that day. But are those who deny this caso, e narrano che un fierissimo vento, levatosi mentre che l’Islandese parlava, lo stese a terra, e sopra gli edificò un superbissimo mausoleo di sabbia: sotto il quale colui diseccato perfettamente, e divenuto una bella mummia, fu poi ritrovato da certi viaggiatori, e collocato nel museo di non so quale città di Europa.
G.LEOPARDI, Le operette morali
Il dialogo è un pò lungo, ma fate uno sforzo per coglierne l’attualità.
Quell’inquietudine esistenziale tipicamente romantica c’è ancora oggi negli uomini e riemerge ogni volta in cui la natura fa valere se stessa, distruggendo in un attimo l’operato umano.
Il mio pensiero va al terremoto dell’Irpinia di trent’anni fa, all’Aquila ancora da ricostruire, allo Strilanka, ad Haiti e ovunque le persone siano state toccate da eventi del genere.
Quanto siamo piccoli nell’universo.
