[This is a cross-post from my data blog, Data-Literacy.com. Here's the link to the original entry there.]
Poet and Nobel Laureate Wisława Szymborska — that's her, right above — died last week at 88 years old. I have included this poem in my data analysis classes for a few years because: (a) I love poetry; (b) it has statistics; and (c) as a social psychologist, I believe it summarizes human nature wonderfully.
••
Out of a hundred people…
those who always know better:
fifty-two
doubting every step:
nearly all the rest
glad to lend a hand
if it doesn’t take too long:
as high as forty-nine
always good
because they can't be otherwise:
four, well maybe five
able to admire without envy:
eighteen
suffering illusions
induced by fleeting youth:
sixty, give or take a few
not to be taken lightly:
forty and four
living in constant fear
of someone or something:
seventy-seven
capable of happiness:
twenty-something tops
harmless singly, savage in crowds:
half at least
cruel
when forced by circumstances:
better not to know
even ballpark figures
wise after the fact:
just a couple more
than wise before it
taking only things from life:
thirty
(I wish I were wrong)
hunched in pain
no flashlight in the dark:
eighty-three
sooner or later
righteous:
thirty-five, which is a lot
righteous
and understanding:
three
worthy of compassion:
ninety-nine
mortal:
a hundred out of a hundred.
thus far this figure still remains unchanged.
Related articles
- Wisława Szymborska, 1923-2012 (sophiemalik.wordpress.com)
- Wislawa Szymborska - "The Mozart of poetry" - is dead at 88 (bookofjoe.com)
- "Life lasts but a few scratches of the claw in the sand." ~ Wislawa Szymborska, poet (poietes.wordpress.com)
- Wislawa Szymborska's Parable (cubiyanqui.com)
