More by Primo Levi
In countries and epochs in which communication is impeded, soon all other liberties wither; discussion dies by inanition, ignorance of the opinion of others becomes rampant, imposed opinions triumph.
The Drowned and the Saved (1986)
I read somewhere — and the person who wrote this was not a mountaineer but a sailor — that the sea’s only gifts are harsh blows and, occasionally, the chance to feel strong.
What to do now? How to detach yourself?
With every work that’s born you die a little.
Collected Poems (1984)
The aims of life are the best defense against death.
The Drowned and the Saved (1986)
Is anything sadder than a train
That leaves when it’s supposed to,
That has only one voice,
Only one route?
There’s nothing sadder. Except perhaps a cart horse,
Shut between two shafts
And unable even to look sideways.
Collected Poems (1984)
Sooner or later in life everyone discovers that perfect happiness is unrealizable, but there are few who pause to consider the antithesis: that perfect unhappiness is equally unattainable.
If This Is a Man (1947)
I am not even alive enough to know how to kill myself.
If This Is a Man (1947)
Consider whether this is a man,
Who labours in the mud
Who knows no peace
Who fights for a crust of bread
Who dies at a yes or a no.
Collected Poems (1984)
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