The term “religions” is one of the most misleading, and makes those fanatics, who know only one of them and set out to proclaim their opinions, look ridiculously foolish. A little reading is enough to show that so-called religions have their own vocabulary and talk about different things. While translations may sometimes convey a different image, no translation can betray the ostensibly original whole. Hence, in order to see a direct conflict between them, it is almost always necessary to fabricate a straw man, something that can only reveal the ignorance of its maker. But it is useless: it takes a tremendous effort to prevent vanity from manifesting itself.
Category: Notes
Sometimes criticism is too obvious
Sometimes criticism is too obvious, and when it just points out what’s certain, it can give a false impression. An example is that little-known author, overlooked compared to other figures of his time, but whose pages clearly reveal his original effort. To convey a fair image of his work, critics must highlight this rare quality, which enhances the whole and overshadows the flaws. In such cases, if a few words are to be said, it is much better to limit them to what is unusual.
It Is a Shame That Brazil Has Such a Significant…
It is a shame that Brazil has such a significant number of talented poets who died prematurely. Some of them, had they lived another decade or two, would certainly have produced invaluable works. This is the case with Raul de Leoni. What stands out in his Luz mediterrânea is his sincere effort to express what moved him most deeply, despite the prevailing fashion: a demonstration of his awareness of his own individuality and of the path he should follow to greatest advantage. That is why his poetry was original. This clear notion of his own position, knowing how to choose the most appropriate themes and seeking to develop them in the form he deemed fair, ignoring what others were doing or what they would certainly say, is a quality that is difficult to find, most often achieved only after successive mistakes, very rarely present in early creations. Undoubtedly, this poet would have produced an exceptional work.
A Writer Will Never Go Wrong if…
A writer will never go wrong if he focuses on his own themes, even if he leaves aside many others that could make his work more comprehensive. This comprehensiveness sometimes comes at the price of dispersion. And since the passages in which the writer expresses himself with all the intensity he is capable of are so striking, it is good for him to concentrate on them, to build around them whatever he has to build. Working in this way, even excesses will be diminished by the sincerity that will naturally abound in a work that consciously aimed at the essential.