KNOWLEDGE OF SELF

Before the small village of Rome became "Rome" with a capital R A brilliant civilization once controlled almost the entire peninsula We now call Italy this was the Etruscan civilization A vanished culture whose achievements set the stage Not only for the development of ancient Roman art and culture But for the Italian Renaissance as well Optimism is discredited not so much And certainly not only because its tenets are shown to be implausible In the light of the evidence But essentially because it is a system As such it is as inhuman and as dangerous as all the other systems Which are ruthlessly satirized in history The military system The church system The educational system The colonial system The economic models Political establishments And indeed the system of logic itself Mr. Parker say it again? Mr Parker The man sitting over there is compiling many accusations You look me in the eye and on your life You answer me truthfully have you any other name? Solomon Northup is my name Sheriff what's all this? Its official business The picture is not unrelievedly bleak there may be some grounds for optimism First human beings may be admirable for their will to survive And their refusal to commit philosophical suicide Etruscan influence on ancient Roman culture was profound And it was from the Etruscans That the Romans inherited many of their own cultural and artistic traditions From the spectacle of gladiatorial combat To hydraulic engineering temple design and religious ritual Among many other things My nigga my business your business waits Tell me of your family I have a wife two children What the hell? What are your children's names? Margaret and Alonzo What's your wife's name before her marriage? Anne Hampton I am who I say Where you going? Didn't authorize you to invade my property You come back here you come back here boy Mundanes no longer listen to fairytales The cause is still the same an interfering church That thinks it has a monopoly on virtue and truth A breach in superterrestrial law People heard these marvelous tales They believed thrived and built dynasties on them You will unhand him that is my nigga He is Mr Solomon Northup You come here in front of me with claims Got no doubts the man is Solomon Northup The hell he is he is my nigga and I'll fight you for him As is your right as it will be my pleasure to bankrupt you in the courts Your decision? Unhand him I'm gonna get to the bottom of this I paid good money for this nigga Courthouse got papers to prove it And we got papers to prove that he's real I own you you belong to me do you hear me? Unhand him get you back by sundown