Pasquino

The Pasquino is a well-known ancient statue in the area of Piazza Navona in Rome that at some point began to “speak”: since the early sixteenth century to the present day, people have been attaching anonymous poems of denunciation to the statue’s pedestal to express their dissatisfaction with the current rulers, their politics and their scandals. Several well-known intellectuals have adopted the identity of Pasquino over the centuries because they did not want to speak in their own names and risked being punished for their utterances.

Dirk also affirms his sonnet or poem at the feet of Pasquino. In fact, the sonnet is Pasquino’s favorite form of poetry and also his own. His ambition, therefore, is to be a Pasquino of our time.

By the way, Rome is also the city where, in the seventeenth century, the Spanish priest Miguel Molinos was detained by the Inquisition and subjected to a trial that caused controversy throughout Europe. That is what the historical novel, Miguel Molinos, The Last Heretic, is about.