From an educational point of view, a bad example has the advantage of scandalizing. That is why it sticks in the memory more easily, and sometimes so strongly that remembering it causes immediate revulsion and eliminates the possibility of repeating it. Thus, there are cases in which it is much more effective in conveying a lesson that the best examples would only scratch at if they tried to do so. The scandal is not forgotten, nor is it immunized.
Category: Notes
It Is Very Difficult to Accustom the Mind…
It is very difficult to accustom the mind to the stoic precept of not worrying about the conditions about which nothing can be done, because these are often the most torturous and the ones that one would most like to overcome. However, it can be seen that the resulting tension is almost always due to the contrast between reality and a desired situation, the latter being the work of desire and this being the child of self-love. Thus, it is clear that to destroy self-love is to break down this whole chain of suffering, but how difficult it is to do so without slipping into unproductive inertia! It takes a long time for the mind to get used to acting without expectations, and when this beatific state is reached, one realizes that it is also unstable, and requires a lot of effort to make it last.
There Seems to Be a Series of Necessary…
There seems to be a series of necessary decisions in each individual life, which take place in the biography either for good or ill. In the first case, everything seems to flow so naturally that the decision sometimes goes unnoticed, as if it were an inevitable outcome and not really a decision. However, if neglected, life goes on carrying a pending issue, which gets progressively worse, gradually concentrating more and more tensions, until there comes a moment when it is impossible to hide it, impossible to bear it, and the whole of life seems to converge and press for that previous decision to be made, which now takes effect with a delay, and brings with it, along with great relief, the feeling that a lot of time has been lost.
In Literature, It Is After Having Invested…
In literature, it is after having invested hours and hours of effort over many years that one reaches the ideal level of commitment. Before that, one is driven more by a motivation that, however great or small, if it ceases, will interrupt the development of the vocation. After this stage, the writer is always faced with a monstrous work that has already been completed. There is no turning back, what is done is done, and what is needed is simply to carry on.