Hendrik Strauss’s Reviews > The Italians Before Italy: Conflict and Competition in the Mediterranean > Status Update

Ahhh man, that itinerary makes it more likely to get marooned on an uninhabited island in the Atlantic on your way to Latin America than ever reading the bible. Though I also have the intention to read the bible at some point lol

I am a somewhat erratic person when it comes to my study plans, so I will probably tangent from time to time, but you are right to point out that there are other things perhaps more pressing than embarking beyond the atlantic, and even then, I am not sure, latin america should be the first proper destination. I will try to restrict it to background colouring, tho I will say, that how the ideological conflicts of the late 19th and overall 20th century played out there, really entangles and brings forth my curiosity.

As goes the Bible, I don't see myself listening to it more than 20 minutes here and there as I have been doing then and there.

There are gems in it for sure,
and for them its worth waiding through the numberless accounts of conflicts(most often ending in genocides), prescriptions and lineage descriptions, but it feels totally dreary to me at almost ever junction.

That being said, I recommend it for a more thorough appreciation of all the innuendos made to the stories in so much of the art of this world as well as the more real politique notion of having a proper incling what to expect from this super powerful force in this world that are the ongoing interpretations and references to it.

It's a multi year project for sure if you do it as lethargically as I, so there are advantages in starting earlier. But on the other hand, while it's central to so much in this world, other things are too ofc.
Slowly I begin to wake up to the wisdom of the common sense notion of focusing on recent history, but seeing that we are dependent on current and recent interpretations of history when we do so exclusively, I fear that the slow and steady history investigation method might be indispensable still.
Wish there were more time, and more favorable market forces, and I would seriously consider staying marooned on an island for some years just to read everything flattering my fancy, and therefore avoid this dilemma of having to choose between proper understanding of the influences involved and a hands on grasp of what is being discussed right now.

I definitely agree that both subjects are highly interesting, but it is sort of an apples and oranges comparison and they cannot be directly compared, so one has to choose what one feels like choosing at the end I guess.

Latin American identity as a whole is very interesting, as they are the Esau to North America's Jacob (this must come across as me trying to sound clever, but it just struck me and actually sort of makes sense). They lie at an interesting intersection of European heritage and a colonial past.

The bible can get very boring, I agree. I was prescribing myself a chapter of the bible sometime past to help me fall asleep better, and granted that some of it was in German and I couldn't understand a lot of it, but it was more effective than the regular dose of sleeping pills I was taking at the time. Jokes aside, it is an enormously interesting book, but given the boredom of the long genealogies and the huge amount of context required, I intend to do my reading of it via Asimov's Guide to the Bible, because in my experience you can't fully appreciate religious books by reading through them like any other book.

Speaking of favorable market forces, who among us doesn't pray to the gods of the market every night so that we could afford to spend a long time at a retreat and read and contemplate to our heart's content? I tend to think you would come out of it either mad because of loneliness, or completely spiritually enlightened like sb like Zarathustra, but in reality you would most likely feel underwhelmed and unfulfilled, I guess.

Anyways, good luck man! And although I feel inclined to apologize for such a long and maybe boring reply, I refrain, because yours is at least as long also :D

Hey.

First of all. I am a bit ashamed for having kept you hanging so long.
And further also for having tested your patience and kindness with the lenghtitude(let's just pretend thats a word) and content of my first reply.
Thank you for not having embarrassed me in all this tho :)