I fell behind and finally caught up! I am enjoying the book. Lampedusa’s writing is so rich and vivid and full of metaphor and satire. I am repeating myself here, but it continues to delight me. I also appreciate your weekly write ups and all the work and time you put into it. They are enlightening and helpful in having a greater understanding of the text.
Like Paula and Cindy, my grandfather immigrated to NYC from Bari in 1920. He then sent for a bride in 1922, my grandmother. I never met my maternal grandparents or heard any stories. I can only imagine. My grandfather went back to Italy in 1961 and my mom married my dad there and they came to America.
Outside of my own interests, with the upcoming elections in USA the wind is yelling about election tampering, it seems today, just sowing the seeds of contempt and distrust on people who are neither illiterate or very poor can throw democracy into the dung. I also thought of Puerto Rico which was recently called a floating island of garbage. It was colonized in the late 1800s and English was declared the language de jure - a language the people could neither speak nor write. Puerto Ricans fought hard for their rights and became US citizens and schools and courts are now in Spanish, but they are stuck in limbo on whether it would be better to become a state, keep the status quo, or fight for independence. Neither of the options seem to lead to positive results.
And I know I’ve already rambled on too long, but I wanted to touch on what you write about giving everyone the vote. In a way I do understand. I’m really pondering that question here in USA. However, the liberal, empath in me believes, unpopularly, everyone who is a resident of a place should have a say in its elections as it affects their lives. I used to work as an election poll officer before the pandemic, and I witnessed (in my district) that many people got the message to get out and vote, but once they got there many were ignorant of what they were voting for and who was on the ballot. People often say we need prayer back in the classroom, but that is not a very American ideal - we need civics in the classroom. We need real information disseminated to busy people who should know what they are voting for before they get to the polls and be able to make an educated decision on how they want to vote. This Saturday, where I live I saw representatives of both the Democratic Party and the Republican Party handing out flyers with a sample ballot filled out (blue paper for democrats and red paper for republicans) on how to vote. As I walked by, I loudly shouted on the wind: “or you could just decide for yourself!” So yes everyone should have the right to vote, but it needs to be an educated and informed vote.
Thank you so much for sharing Mixele, and yes, you highlight the exact issue I was looking at. I believe that it's so important to read books like this one and learning history in general because you gain a prospective that can be applied to the present, because people are people and have their patterns, and understanding what happened in Sicily helps to understand what happened in Puerto Rico, in Mexico, in Congo, you name it. A big issue we have today is how polarizing politics have become, and social media is only making it worse. Elections have become popularity contests and we're encouraged to call who disagrees with us stupid, or enemies, or even inhuman.
Going back to this book and Sicilian history, of course it was a good thing that, for example, children were sent to school. But it was an unilateral decision. They never sent over someone who spoke the language of the farmers to a) explain them why the government deems it necessary and b) let them explain why they need children as manual labor instead. They government thought them too stupid and savage to go to all that trouble. There was never any dialogue, and that's what democracy is in the end, I get a say and you get a say and then we reach a compromise. But you have to give people the means to do that. We have to strive to teach people civics like you said, and history, literature, empathy. Keeping them ignorant is the easiest way to win an election for sure, but we also have countless historical examples of where that leads.
I was a teacher in NYC 1999-2006 on the elementary level and there wasn’t any time for that - everyone had to learn reading, writing and arithmetic to pass the state exams! My son is in HS in VA and they don’t really read books - just online excerpts. I was an English as a Second Language Teacher and my students were treated like ignorant kids when really they just didn’t understand the language or the culture they were thrown into and most missed their grandparents or moms and little sisters who were back home. I can imagine what it must have been like in Sicily at the time of this book just like Ellie says above.
Similar to Paula, my maternal grandparents immigrated to the United States. They were from a small town outside of Lucca, and came to Chicago, then San Francisco where my mother and her sisters were born. And yes--I understand better why they left and the stories I heard growing up in the 60s and 70s.
Now I understand better why my great-grandmother immigrated to the United States in the late 1890’s. I also understand last week’s reading better. Thank you. Neither father is very likable. It is always greed, isn’t it? Not just for money, but power, also.
I'm sorry I had to leave last week on a cliffhanger, it was the only way I could find to split the chapter in two. Do you have anything from your great-grandmother left, letters, pictures? It's a pity so much is lost to time and we can only rely on oral history.
Unfortunately, no, only vague memories of her. She is listed in the Ellis Island logs of arrivals. My grand-daughter calls me Nonna, in honor of my great-grandmother. My great-grandfather, Antonio Aiello, arrived before her. But there were several listed in the Ellis Island logs so it was impossible to tell which one he was.
I fell behind and finally caught up! I am enjoying the book. Lampedusa’s writing is so rich and vivid and full of metaphor and satire. I am repeating myself here, but it continues to delight me. I also appreciate your weekly write ups and all the work and time you put into it. They are enlightening and helpful in having a greater understanding of the text.
Like Paula and Cindy, my grandfather immigrated to NYC from Bari in 1920. He then sent for a bride in 1922, my grandmother. I never met my maternal grandparents or heard any stories. I can only imagine. My grandfather went back to Italy in 1961 and my mom married my dad there and they came to America.
Outside of my own interests, with the upcoming elections in USA the wind is yelling about election tampering, it seems today, just sowing the seeds of contempt and distrust on people who are neither illiterate or very poor can throw democracy into the dung. I also thought of Puerto Rico which was recently called a floating island of garbage. It was colonized in the late 1800s and English was declared the language de jure - a language the people could neither speak nor write. Puerto Ricans fought hard for their rights and became US citizens and schools and courts are now in Spanish, but they are stuck in limbo on whether it would be better to become a state, keep the status quo, or fight for independence. Neither of the options seem to lead to positive results.
And I know I’ve already rambled on too long, but I wanted to touch on what you write about giving everyone the vote. In a way I do understand. I’m really pondering that question here in USA. However, the liberal, empath in me believes, unpopularly, everyone who is a resident of a place should have a say in its elections as it affects their lives. I used to work as an election poll officer before the pandemic, and I witnessed (in my district) that many people got the message to get out and vote, but once they got there many were ignorant of what they were voting for and who was on the ballot. People often say we need prayer back in the classroom, but that is not a very American ideal - we need civics in the classroom. We need real information disseminated to busy people who should know what they are voting for before they get to the polls and be able to make an educated decision on how they want to vote. This Saturday, where I live I saw representatives of both the Democratic Party and the Republican Party handing out flyers with a sample ballot filled out (blue paper for democrats and red paper for republicans) on how to vote. As I walked by, I loudly shouted on the wind: “or you could just decide for yourself!” So yes everyone should have the right to vote, but it needs to be an educated and informed vote.
Thank you so much for sharing Mixele, and yes, you highlight the exact issue I was looking at. I believe that it's so important to read books like this one and learning history in general because you gain a prospective that can be applied to the present, because people are people and have their patterns, and understanding what happened in Sicily helps to understand what happened in Puerto Rico, in Mexico, in Congo, you name it. A big issue we have today is how polarizing politics have become, and social media is only making it worse. Elections have become popularity contests and we're encouraged to call who disagrees with us stupid, or enemies, or even inhuman.
Going back to this book and Sicilian history, of course it was a good thing that, for example, children were sent to school. But it was an unilateral decision. They never sent over someone who spoke the language of the farmers to a) explain them why the government deems it necessary and b) let them explain why they need children as manual labor instead. They government thought them too stupid and savage to go to all that trouble. There was never any dialogue, and that's what democracy is in the end, I get a say and you get a say and then we reach a compromise. But you have to give people the means to do that. We have to strive to teach people civics like you said, and history, literature, empathy. Keeping them ignorant is the easiest way to win an election for sure, but we also have countless historical examples of where that leads.
Yes, democracy should be a dialogue, you are so right and a compromise.
When I was in 7th grade in the early 1960’s, Civics was a required class. It has served me well. Is Civics still taught in school districts?
I was a teacher in NYC 1999-2006 on the elementary level and there wasn’t any time for that - everyone had to learn reading, writing and arithmetic to pass the state exams! My son is in HS in VA and they don’t really read books - just online excerpts. I was an English as a Second Language Teacher and my students were treated like ignorant kids when really they just didn’t understand the language or the culture they were thrown into and most missed their grandparents or moms and little sisters who were back home. I can imagine what it must have been like in Sicily at the time of this book just like Ellie says above.
Similar to Paula, my maternal grandparents immigrated to the United States. They were from a small town outside of Lucca, and came to Chicago, then San Francisco where my mother and her sisters were born. And yes--I understand better why they left and the stories I heard growing up in the 60s and 70s.
You know my family is originally from that area too? My last name literally means "from Lucca", who knows, we might be distantly related 😊
Now I understand better why my great-grandmother immigrated to the United States in the late 1890’s. I also understand last week’s reading better. Thank you. Neither father is very likable. It is always greed, isn’t it? Not just for money, but power, also.
I'm sorry I had to leave last week on a cliffhanger, it was the only way I could find to split the chapter in two. Do you have anything from your great-grandmother left, letters, pictures? It's a pity so much is lost to time and we can only rely on oral history.
Unfortunately, no, only vague memories of her. She is listed in the Ellis Island logs of arrivals. My grand-daughter calls me Nonna, in honor of my great-grandmother. My great-grandfather, Antonio Aiello, arrived before her. But there were several listed in the Ellis Island logs so it was impossible to tell which one he was.