My Reflections on Invisible Cities

We read excerpts from Invisible Cities by Italo Calvino. The initial reaction I had was, Whoa, these cities are odd. They seem to be straight out of a Tim Burton movie. I'm usually intrigued by the oddities of life, but none of these really interested me.
Ironically, the only one I liked was the one coincidentally assigned to our group. Ersilia's citizens emphasized their relationships using strings in black and white and grays, hanging them from building to building. When the city would become SO overwhelmed with the strings that the inhabitants could not see nor even walk through, they would abandon the area and make a new Ersilia, continuing the string process. However, it'd be impossible for the weaving of strings to match the last one perfectly. The builidings in the abandoned Ersilias would collapse in time, but the evidence of their connections to others would remain.
When first reading the story, you find it ridiculous. You must read it again o capture its true meaning. The symbolism becomes obvious almost. It goes to show that a CITY is never defined by mere architectural structures. A city consists of people socializing and connecting with each other. It's much more than meets the eye, so the citizens of Ersilia tried to make it more visible.
The physical evidence of their emotional ties remained in tact. The homes and businesses did not. It makes me think of how material things do not last, feelings do.

How LOVE withstands the test of time; yet even stone gets weathered down.

Upon my third time reading, my analysis reached a deeper, more spiritual level. It made me think of life after death. How the physical part of humankind withers and dies but the soul lives on forever.
Interesting, don't you think? :)

♥