In defense of shock

I think the Easter message

of the vacant tent has the

suspense of expectation go-

ing for it without further

ado from here. Yet we tend

to dwell so much on the as-

pect of an evacuation that

we afford much less contem-

plation than is necessary,

to the discovery of a void.

Nor is this an occasion to 

dispute explanations. With

hope so high of occupancy,

why ignore its study, even

to invoke it as a standard

of amazement, as if aspir-

ations were only a mis-en-

scène? I'd prefer the real

weight to enjoy equal time

with sudden weightlessness.

Why deny a faith its roots

in a pile of human pulp at

the price of misconstruing

a dignity to exalt another?

Not that it matters, but I

do not see Homer, making a

mistake like that.

           

Adam Nicolson

The Mighty Dead

  Why Homer Matters

William Collins, 2014©