If on a winter’s night a traveler

by

Italo Calvino

Arkadian Porphyrich Character Analysis

Arkadian Porphyrich is the director of the State Police Archives in Ircania. The Reader ends up having a discussion with him about censorship, in which Arkadian Porphyrich, who highly supports censorship, says that there is something called “the Spirit” that unites people around the world who believe in nationalism and repression.

Arkadian Porphyrich Quotes in If on a winter’s night a traveler

The If on a winter’s night a traveler quotes below are all either spoken by Arkadian Porphyrich or refer to Arkadian Porphyrich . For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
The Act of Reading Theme Icon
).
Chapter 10 Quotes

“I don’t know if you believe in the Spirit, sir. I believe in it. I believe in the dialogue that the Spirit conducts uninterruptedly with itself. And I feel that this dialogue is fulfilled as my gaze examines these forbidden pages. The Police is also Spirit, the State that I serve, the Censorship, like the texts on which our authority is exercised. The breath of the Spirit does not require a great audience to reveal itself; it flourishes in the shadow, in the obscure relationship perpetuated between the secrecy of the conspirators and the secrecy of the Police.”

Related Characters: Arkadian Porphyrich (speaker), You (The Reader)
Related Symbols: Books
Page Number: 237
Explanation and Analysis:
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Arkadian Porphyrich Quotes in If on a winter’s night a traveler

The If on a winter’s night a traveler quotes below are all either spoken by Arkadian Porphyrich or refer to Arkadian Porphyrich . For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
The Act of Reading Theme Icon
).
Chapter 10 Quotes

“I don’t know if you believe in the Spirit, sir. I believe in it. I believe in the dialogue that the Spirit conducts uninterruptedly with itself. And I feel that this dialogue is fulfilled as my gaze examines these forbidden pages. The Police is also Spirit, the State that I serve, the Censorship, like the texts on which our authority is exercised. The breath of the Spirit does not require a great audience to reveal itself; it flourishes in the shadow, in the obscure relationship perpetuated between the secrecy of the conspirators and the secrecy of the Police.”

Related Characters: Arkadian Porphyrich (speaker), You (The Reader)
Related Symbols: Books
Page Number: 237
Explanation and Analysis: