Quickness

Festina lente is Latin for “hurry slowly.” In Calvino’s lecture on quickness, he again employs opposites in order to express his thoughts. By presenting duel sides to an idea or concept, Calvino allows the reader to weigh the importance or value of both sides. Quickness has its qualities. Today’s American society wants everything done quickly. This attitude has led to thousands of fast food chains around the nation and around the globe. Instead of taking months to travel by ship across the Atlantic Ocean, planes carry passengers over in hours. Quickness in ingrained in our culture, and we have lost sight of the importance of lingering.

Two years ago I spent three months in Kenya as a school teacher. I learned that oftentimes slowness is more important than quickness. All laundry is done by hand and dries on a line. Food preparation often takes at least two hours. Rice must be picked through for rocks and chaff before it is boiled. Milk, fresh from the cow, must be boiled before it is drunk in order to prevent disease. Water is fetched from the river to use for washing, cooking, and drinking. In a dry, mountainous region some Kenyans spend four hours a day fetching water. Life is much slower, but it is no less significant. Because all of these tasks listed take much time, there is plenty of time for relationships while they are being accomplished. The hospitality that is shown to neighbors and the time spent talking with friends inspired me to slow down in my own life.

Returning to the United States was a bit of a culture shock, and once again I was thrown into the rush of life. My tasks took much less time thanks to machines and restaurants and even running water. However, I have not forgotten the time that these people took for others and the patience that they displayed in their lives. I still rush around while running errands and accomplishing my To Do List, but in that I try to remember to take time for people to make sure my tasks mean something in the end. I want to hurry slowly.

This concept of quickness is found in The Horse and His Boy when Shasta and Aravis are riding as fast as they can in order to escape a lion's claws:

"He [Shasta] looked over his shoulder. Everything was only too clear. A huge tawny creature, its body low to the ground, like a cat streaking across the lawn to a tree when a strange dog has got into the garden, was behind them. And it was nearer every second and half second.
"He looked forward again and saw something which he did not take in, or even think about. Their way was barred by a smooth green wall about ten feet high. In the middle of that wall there was a gate, open. In the middle of the gateway stood a tall man, dressed, down to his bare feet, in a robe colored like autumn leaves, leaning on a straight staff. His beard fell almost to his knees." (142-43)

In this scene everything is happening so quickly, yet the scene slows down almost to a stop in order for the narrator to describe the setting. This is festina lente. A great story is composed of different speeds. Action and suspense needs quickness and slowness combined. Lewis' writing uses the quickness that Calvino discusses in his book.

Examples of quickness in life and literature can be naturally applied in the classroom. While in Kenya, I learned about the importance that relationships with people takes precedence over simply completing a To Do List. This is the same within the classroom. Teachers should not be only concerned with agenda. The students' different learning styles and backgrounds must be considered. In taking time to really get to know the students, teachers will be more efficient in the classroom. In the same way, it takes time to learn and teach something new. E-Lit can be the media of literature that engages students. Teachers will benefit in incorporating E-Lit within the classroom curriculum. For an example of quickness in E-Lit, check out: http://collection.eliterature.org/1/works/beiguelman__code_movie_1/index.html. This piece of E-Lit is composed of letters and numbers moving at different speeds, giving the reader the illusion of festina lente.