A Happy Heart and One Slice Of Bread

Book excerpt: Sicilian proverbs are a pathway into the reality of Sicilian culture over the centuries. They are the voices of its people that ring true from generation to generation. The proverbs are an important sub-text of their conversation. Every segment of society is represented by the truth of the proverbs. The majority of the Sicilian proverbs in this collection were recorded by Dr. Giuseppe Pitrè (1841-1916) in four volumes of his twenty-five volume library of Sicilian folklore as he traveled the island tending to the sick in all walks of life. Tending the sick was Dr. Pitrè’s occupation, Sicilian folklore was Pitrè’s literary life. In his literary life he also edited The Archivio delle Tradition Popolari with his close friend and associate Salomone Marino. This English translation of his work makes the proverbs of the entire four volumes available to the English speaking world for the first time. The translation also includes about fifteen hundred Sicilian proverbs drawn from other collections.