Today, an imbecile feels his vanity scratched and, in revenge, sneaks in to harm another by waging a hate campaign against him—that is, by inciting others to hate him; by rallying a cowardly majority. A few centuries ago, the offended, the truly offended, could resort to defiance, refining it if he left the choice of weapon up to the challenged. If the offended refused, he assumed to be a coward, and the honor of the offended was automatically redeemed. The duel was an instrument that put offenders in a very bad situation: the offended had only to win. If he lost the duel, he emerged as a brave man; if he won, he had his moral damage repaid. How everything has changed! In this age of cowards, dueling on equal terms has become literature: there is no one who challenges, and no one that has the courage to accept a challenge. In those days, when the possibility of a duel was evident, people respected each other more.
Nostalgia of the Dueling Days
