Iggy Pop outlines the benefits of reading Edward Gibbon's
History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, from "Caesar Lives,"
Classics Ireland (Vol 2), 1995:
- I feel a great comfort and relief knowing that there were others who lived and died and thought and fought so long ago; I feel less tyrannized by the present day.
- I learn much about the way our society really works, because the system-origins — military, religious, political, colonial, agricultural, financial — are all there to be scrutinized in their infancy. I have gained perspective.
- The language in which the book is written is rich and complete, as the language of today is not.
- I find out how little I know.
- I am inspired by the will and erudition which enabled Gibbon to complete a work of twenty-odd years. The guy stuck with things.
"I urge anyone who wants life on earth to really come alive for them to enjoy the beautiful ancestral ancient world," concludes Iggy.
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| Joshua Reynolds, Portrait of Edward Gibbon (1779) |
