Twilight in Italy(意大利的黄昏)
David Herbert Lawrence
Part 1 The Crucifix Across the Mountains
The imperial road to Italy goes from Munich across the Tyrol,
through Innsbruck and Bozen to Verona, over the mountains. Here the
great processions passed as the emperors went South, or came home
again from rosy Italy to their own Germany.
And how much has that old imperial vanity clung to the German
soul? Did not the German kings inherit the empire of bygone Rome?
It was not a very real empire, perhaps, but the sound was high and
splendid.
Maybe a certain Groessenwahn is inherent in the German nature.
If only nations would realize that they have certain natural
characteristics, if only they could understand and agree to each
other's particular nature, how much simpler it would all be.
The imperial procession no longer crosses the mountains, going…