(Orianna Fallaci)
Finished a few months ago, Oriana Fallaci’s book “Un Homme” and just got around to writing. The book details the few years of Oriana’s relationship with Alexandros Panagoulis (Alekos), a deserter of the military in Greece during the time in which the Military Junta dominated politics. Alekos subsequently attempted to kill the then Prime Minister Georgios Papadopoulos on 13 August 1968, failed, was captured, tortured and liberated under an amnesty program in 1973.
The book, beyond being a typical biography, a description of a person, tis a descriptin of humanity incarnated. Perhaps in the way we all may wish to be remembered by another human. In this case, the role of remembrance fell to a woman. She wrote about a life, I wish I had met while living, about a life that in many ways one may aspire to live [setting idiosyncrasies of character aside (quoting Mao: when pointing to the moon don’t look at my finger)].
Many questions arise from his biography, mainly existential. The questioning is not unique. The deviation from norm is this person’s intense desire and pursuit, in his own way, of the answers. Is there a way to change life? To effect change the course of events for the better? Will people, the majority of people continue in their stupor forever? Is there room for individuals inside politics or do you have to attempt to change it from the outside? Is this loneliness curable? The feeling that the individual must exist outside the masses.. alone.
I have put some quotes below that in reality punctuate the main themes of the book: 1) futility of changing the masses, 2) yet the need for constant struggle to change which occurs inside an individual irregardless of the seemingly impossible upward climb, 3) with hope that the struggle causes a true revolution in people’s psyche, all enveloped in a wonderful sentiment of love (#4).
And so here they are the various quotes (all in my uncorrected French from my notes without accents - desole):
« Dans les puits ou sont systemathiquement jetes ceux qui veulent changer le monde, a battre la Montagne, donner la parole et rendre sa dignite au tropeau qui bele dans son fleuve de laine. Ceux qui desobeissent. Les solitaires incompris. Les poetes. Les heroes des fables insensees mais sans les quels vivre n’aurait aucun sens, sans lesquels se battre, meme en se sachant voue a l’echec, ne serait que pure folie »
I. The solitude and inutility of changing the world, aiding the mass, of reasoning with it. What folie, when tis the thoughts and actions of the mass that create the world as is. Yet, the need to struggle as a reason for living.
« Pourquoi soffrir alors, pourquoi se battre, pourquoi risquer de perdre la decharge qui s’abate sur toi de haut de la montaigne et se precipite au fonds des puits, au milieu des poissons? Mais porque c’est la seule facon d’exister quand tu es un homme, une femme, une personne et non pas un mouton de tropeau, nom de Dieu !
II. Even though it may seem useless, for certain people, going against, trying for change, tis the only way of existing. The above quote reaffirmed.
« C’est comme ca toujours, et ce sera touojurs comme ca, l’histoire de l’humanite est un interminable force sur les regimes que sont renverses mais restent les memes »
III. The perpetuity of a «system», the futility of change... at the same time, hope in the fact that there are regimes that are and can be «overthrown».. what if the definition of «regime» spanned people’s psyche and would leave the constraining box of the political? a mental revolution? Hope. Otherwise what is the use of overthrowing regimes if people don’t change ?
« Tu aimerais que nous restions ensemble un autre jour, je le sais. J’aimerais aussi, mais un jour de plus un de moins, un moi de plus un moi de moins, q’est-ce que ca change? Nos avons eux beaucoup tous les deux, et ce n’est pas grace a un jour de plus ou un moi de plus que nos avions ce que nous n’avions pas eu.
- Pourquoi tu dis ca ?
Parce que tu as ete une bonne compagne. La seule compagne possible. »
IV. Love at the end.
Beautiful summary.
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