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INTERVIEWER
You [think] that not only should a writer have enemies but that he should actually cultivate them?
CELA
Yes, so that they help him move up the ladder. I would love to be able to say what a certain powerful Spanish general of the nineteenth century once said. He was regent, a captain general, and president of the government. When he was on his deathbed, the priest who served as his confessor said, “General, do you forgive your enemies?” And the general responded, “No, no, I don’t have any enemies.” “But General,” the priest exclaimed, “what do you mean you don’t have any enemies after holding the positions of power that you have held?” The general responded, “No, I don’t have any enemies because I’ve brought them all before the firing squad.” I would love to be able to say the same thing, but no, I haven’t had the strength to do so. I’m just a poor, simple man, no? |
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