The genius of the Spanish people is exquisitely subtile, without being at all acute: hence there is so much humour and so little wit in their literature. The genius of the Italians, on the contrary, is acute, profound, and sensual, but not subtile: hence what they think to be humorous is merely witty.
The Truth Apparent, apparent to everyone's eyes how are not blinded by dogmatism, is that men are perhaps weary of Liberty. They have a surfeit of it. Liberty is no longer the virgin, chaste and severe, to be fought for... we have buried the putrid corpse of liberty... the Italian people are a race of sheep.
Our program is simple: we wish to govern Italy. They ask us for programs but there are already too many. It is not programs that are wanting for the salvation of Italy but men and will power.
They told me there's no more space for dreamers. I didn't want to believe it!
They told me a youth shouldn't wish to have a family. I didn't let myself be persuaded!
They told me that life isn't lived, today we survive. But I took no notice, I hate pessimists!
In the end they told me we live in Italy. So, in looking about myself I understood. It's all true.
Probably in Italy there isn't a landscape and view more beautiful than Maratea. Imagine dozens of miles of cliffs jagged with caves, stacks, precipices and soft beaches which look out over the most beautiful of seas, now wide open, now closed in sparse little docks.
We see Italy as it is, realistically: not a hive for poets, of saints and sailors, but an expensive maintained and coarse woman: but she is the only one who can warm our bed and make us feel like men, even if sinful.
One of the problems of Italy is maybe this, having for capital a city disproportionate for name and history, to the simplicity of community that when screams "Forza Roma" only alludes to a soccer team.
In Italy there is not civil coscience, there is not national integrity that holds togheter a federal government and guarantees civilness between parts. On the other hand I see some civilness glimmer and european calling only in Cisalpine Italy. Elsewhere, instead, is a difficult, if not impossible, disaster to fix. I hope I'm wrong.