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If on a winter's night a traveler

Book by Italo Calvino · 6 quotes · Reading, Books, Writing

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If on a winter's night a traveler Quotes

“Ludmilla, now you are being read. Your body is being subjected to a systematic reading, through channels of tactile information, visual, olfactory, and not without some intervention of the taste buds. Hearing also has its role, alert to your gasps and your trills. It is not only the body that is, in you, the object of raeding: the body matters insofar as it is part of a complex of elaborate elements, not all visible and not all present, but manifested in visible and present events: the clouding of your eyes, your laughing, the words you speak, your way of gathering and spreading your hair, your initiatives and your reticences, and all the signs that are on the frontier between you and usage and habits and memory and prehistory and fashion, all codes, all the poor alphabets by which one human being believes at certain moments that he is reading another human being.”

“Du hast offenbar die Gewohnheit, mehrere Bücher gleichzeitig zu lesen, dir für die verschiedenen Stunden des Tages verschiedene Lektüren zu wählen. Auch für die verschiedenen Ecken deiner immerhin doch recht kleinen Wohnung: Es gibt Bücher für deinen Nachtisch, andere finden ihren Platz neben dem Sessel, in der Küche oder im Bad. Dies könnte ein wichtiger Zug sein zur Ergänzung deines Porträts: Dein Geist hat innere Wände, mit denen du verschiedene Zeiten voneinander abtrennen kannst, um darin je nachdem innezuhalten oder vorwärtszustürmen und dich abwechselnd auf verschiedene Kanäle zu konzentrieren. Genügt das bereits, um sagen zu können, daß du gern mehrere Leben gleichzeitig leben würdest? Oder sie gar schon lebst? Daß du dein Leben mit einer Person oder in einer bestimmten Umgebung abtrennst von deinem Leben mit anderen oder woanders? Daß du bei jeder neuen Erfahrung von vornherein eine Enttäuschung mit einkalkulierst, die nicht kompensiert werden kann, es sei denn durch die Summe aller Enttäuschungen?”

“Već u izlogu knjižare uočio si korice s naslovom koji tražiš. Slijedeći taj vidljivi trag, probio si se knjižarom kroz gustu baražnu vatru Knjiga Koje Nisi Pročitao, a koje su te namršteno gledale s pultova i polica nastojeći da te postide. Ali, ti znaš da ne smiješ dopustiti da te zbune i da se ondje hektarima i hektarima prostiru Knjige Koje Možeš I Ne Pročitati, Knjige Koje Služe Drugoj Svrsi, A Ne čitanju, Knjige Koje Si Pročitao A Da Ih Nisi Morao Ni Otvoriti Jer Pripadaju Kategoriji Onoga Što Je Pročitano Još Prije Nego Što Je Napisano. Tako prolaziš prvi pojas utvrda, i na tebe se sručuje pješadija Knjiga Koje Bi, Da Imaš Više Života, Također Rado Pročitao, Ali, Na Žalost, Dana Koje Ti Je Dano Proživjeti Ima Toliko Koliko Ih Ima. Brzo ih prelaziš i upadaš usred falange Knjiga Koje Namjeravaš Pročitati, Ali Prethodno Moraš Pročitati Druge, Knjige Koje Su Preskupe, Pa Se Nadaš Kupiti Ih Kad Se Budu Prodavale U Pola Cijene, Knjiga Idem Kao Gore, Kad Ih Tiskaju U Džepnom Izdanju, Knjiga Za Koje Bi Nekoga Morao Zamoliti Da Ti Ih Posudi, Knjiga Koje Su Svi Pročitali, Pa Je, Dakle, Gotovo Isto Kao Da Si Ih I Sam Pročitao. Izbjegavši tim nasrtajima, dolaziš u podnožje tvrđave, gdje se još upiru Knjige Koje Odavno Planiraš Pročitati, Knjige Koje Si Godinama Tražio A Nisi Ih Našao, Knjige Koje Govore o Nečemu Čime Se Trenutno Baviš, Knjige Koje Želiš Imati Da Bi Ti Bile Pri Ruci Za Svaki Slučaj, Knjige Koje Bi Mogao Staviti Na Stranu Da Ih Možda Pročitaš Na Ljeto, Knjige Koje Ti Nedostaju Da Bi Ih Stavio Do Drugih Knjiga Na Svojoj Polici, Knjige Koje Te Ispunjavaju Iznenadnom Pomamnom I Ne Sasvim Opravdanom Znatiželjom. Eto, uspio si neograničen broj snaga na bojnom polju svesti na količinu koja je, doduše velika, ali ipak prestavlja konačan broj, premda ti to relativno olakšanje kao zamku iz zasjede namještaju Knjige Koje Si Davno Pročitao, Pa Bi Bilo Vrijeme Da Ih Pročitaš Opet, i Knjige Za Koje Si Uvijek Tvrdio Da Si Ih Pročitao, Pa Bi Bilo Vrijeme Da Ih Pročitaš Doista. Oslobađaš se u hitroj cik-cak liniji i jednim skokom prodireš u tvrđavu Noviteta Kojima Te Privlači Autor Ili Tema. I u unutrašnjosti utvrde možeš praviti breše u redovima neprijatelja, dijeleći ih na Novitete Kojima Autori Ili Teme Nisu Novi (za tebe ili apsolutno), i Novitete Kojima Su Autori Ili Teme Potpuno Nepoznati (barem tebi)...”

“Sections in the bookstore - Books You Haven't Read - Books You Needn't Read - Books Made for Purposes Other Than Reading - Books Read Even Before You Open Them Since They Belong to the Category of Books Read Before Being Written - Books That If You Had More Than One Life You Would Certainly Also Read But Unfortunately Your Days Are Numbered - Books You Mean to Read But There Are Others You Must Read First - Books Too Expensive Now and You'll Wait 'Til They're Remaindered - Books ditto When They Come Out in Paperback - Books You Can Borrow from Somebody - Books That Everybody's Read So It's As If You Had Read Them, Too - Books You've Been Planning to Read for Ages - Books You've Been Hunting for Years Without Success - Books Dealing with Something You're Working on at the Moment - Books You Want to Own So They'll Be Handy Just in Case - Books You Could Put Aside Maybe to Read This Summer - Books You Need to Go with Other Books on Your Shelves - Books That Fill You with Sudden, Inexplicable Curiosity, Not Easily Justified - Books Read Long Ago Which It's Now Time to Re-read - Books You've Always Pretended to Have Read and Now It's Time to Sit Down and Really Read Them”

“Tomorrow, Reader and Other Reader, if you are together, if you lie down in the same bed like a settled couple, each will turn to the lamp at the side of the bed and sink into his or her book; two parallel readings will accompany the approach of sleep; first you, then you will turn out the light; returning from separated universes, you will find each other fleetingly in the darkness, where all separations are erased, before divergent dreams draw you again, one to one side, and one to the other. But do not wax ironic on this prospect of conjugal harmony: what happier image of a couple could you set against it?”