El Rol del Idiota en la Literatura Mundial (según aprendió Forrest Gump)

Tom Hanks en su rol de Forrest Gump. Foto bajada de Internet.

No necesito explicar quién es Forrest Gump, tal vez mencionar que el autor de la novela es Winston Groom. La primera edición del libro es de 1986.

Hay varias citas sugestivas, divertidas, conmovedoras, que se pueden tomar del libro, yo seleccioné un párrafo donde Forrest es invitado a presenciar una clase del Dr. Quackenbush acerca del rol del idiota en la literatura mundial. Con mucha gracia, Forrest piensa que el sólo título lo hace sentir importante. No me atrevo a traducir el texto y quitarle su esencia. Lo reproduzco según la versión original, en las palabras de Forrest:

¨The idiot, Dr. Quackenbush say, has played an important role in history an literature for many years. I suppose you has all heard of the village idiot, who was usually some retarded individual livin in a village someplace. He was often the object of scorn and mockery. Later, it become the costum of nobility to have in their presence a court jester, a sort of person that could do things to amuse the royalty. In many instances this individual was actually an idiot or a moron, in others he was merely a clown or jokester...¨

He go on like this for a while, an it begun to become apparent to me that idiots was not jus useless people, but was put here for a purpose , sort of like Dan had said, and the purpose is to make people laugh. At least that is somethin.

¨The object of having a fool for most writers ¨Dr. Quackenbush say, ¨is to employ the device of double entendre, permittin them to let the fool make a fool of hissef, and at the same time allow the reader the revelation of the greater meaning of the foolishness. Occasionally, a great writer like Shakespeare would let the fool make an ass out of one of his principal characters, thereby providing a twist for the readers´ enlightenment¨.

At this point, I am becomin somewhat confused. But that is normal.¨