I deeply admire the late Norwegian poet and philosopher Odd Børretzen.
His poem "Det er ikke sant", which means "It isn't true", is a masterpiece, and I think we need to repeat his message to us as often as possible:
***
It isn't true
It isn't true that we are like animals that howl at animals with fur in shades of gray other than our own.
It isn't true that we growl at shadows on the cave wall because we are afraid of strange shadows, for all animals are afraid of shadows.
It isn't true that we creep forward, alert, like cats ready to pounce on sudden dangers and sounds,
that we sleep on the run and wake up with open mouths,
that we gape at unfamiliar smells,
that human mothers hiss at other mothers' children...
It isn't true that we are led like predators, blindly, by urges and fears,
that we are driven forward by demons inside us,
that we are like wolves that hunt in packs,
that we must howl when the pack howls,
that we can't do anything else because we are animals...
It isn't true.
It isn't true that we are led by fear of everything that is unknown - that it's not evil - it's horror - because we are animals and burn books on bonfires and scream in chorus with red, gaping mouths at pale, frightened strangers,
and write PAKI with black paint in the subway stations,
and do our duty with white, closed faces,
and follow orders and pick up trembling victims and drive them away in trucks and haul them up in police stations and in sports halls and basements,
or that we run in herds with torches and stones through the streets and break windows in shops owned by Jews, and scream "JEW! JEW! JEW!",
because we are driven by urges - older than ourselves, urges that drive us, because that's how we are howling, scared animals in a herd...
It isn't true.
We are not ants or wolves.
We are people.
We want to whisper warm words to each other and look for each other and caress each other in the dark.
The wolves howl in the streets.
Afterwards they stand in the shards of glass and scream:
"YOU ARE LIKE US! WE ARE WOLVES!"
But that isn't true.
***
What do you think of this poem?
This was an unofficial translation that I made with a little help from google translate. If anyone has an official version - pls let me know.
