In the Theogony, Hesiod calls the primordial divinity of the sea “Pontos”, a term reminiscent of the Italian “bridge”. For the Greeks, the sea was in fact an element of union, it was the area in front of the port from which to set sail to discover the world and then “rich” in money but above all in experience, to return home. As a victim of titaniumthe small submarine wrecked a few days ago at a depth of 3,800 meters near the wreck of the Titanic in the icy waters of Canada.
Many wondered about the reasons for the tragedy, delved into the adverse fate that befell these “discoverers” and remembered the curse of the Titanic. Days of controversy, to which more have been added The Delirium by Elly Schlein against the massive use of emergency vehicles. An effort that was unfortunately useless as the bathyscaphe would have imploded shortly after the dive and the entire crew would have been killed instantly.
The Scrooges writing six-figure checks to travel to outer space or the deepest abyss is seen as tourism’s latest downfall, but it would be wrong to read it all as the “freak” of those who have everything. Certainly logic dictates that it would be wise to venture to such depths using only remote-controlled robots, and it is certainly not the author who can offer any technical opinion on the mission or its scientific merit. However, one cannot ignore the fact that mankind’s urge to discover and experiment has never diminished. Otherwise the heroic figure of Odysseus, the only survivor among his companions, would still not be so full of charm more than 2,600 years after the first verses sung by the bards. Without the eternal thirst for knowledge, for progress, the message of the Argonauticas would not even be as topical: the poem by Apollonius of Rhodes, three centuries BC, actually tells of the fearless spirit with which a group of young people led by Jason set out in search of the Golden Fleece in Colchis. Myth has it that this ram’s coat possessed magical powers; For Jason, conquest means venturing into the unknownfind their own way to reclaim the throne from those who usurped it and discover the love of Medea together.
It is also a pioneering mission, because Argo is the first ship ever built by humans, so much so that Hera and Athena protect the keel and crew from the storms. Still, without the help of Medea’s magic, Jason would not have been able to complete the feat or find his way back if he and his companions had not repeatedly pushed themselves and pushed their limits. With him are 50 of the bravest, such as the Dioscuri Castor and Pollux, the wise Nestor, the poet Orpheus with his lyre, Heracles at least part of the time at the oars, and Tiphi at the helm, peerless in finding the way between the stars. However, even the Argonauts are shipwrecked before setting out and satisfying the desire to return home, just as the advance of science and its discoveries are fraught with failure.
Liability, technical failures and possible carelessness in the case of Titan will be determined without deduction. Each time the man goes to the limits of daring or worse, he violates it, However, he runs the risk of paying with his life or that of his closest relatives. So does Jason as he battles the monsters unleashed by King Eeta, although it will be Euripides who will dip the pages of the tragedy Medea in the blood of his descendants. Basically, the Greeks teach, no one can escape fate, not even the gods. Especially when, as might have been the case when he boarded little Titan, the man challenges him with a good deal of proud arrogance. What the ancients called hubris and followed by a final punishment like the sin of overestimating one’s own powers.
Massimo Di Guglielmo, June 26, 2023