Saint Emmanuel the Good, Martyr

“Becoming food for trout

is a bitter morsel, even dead.”

Unamuno’s poem employs vivid imagery and metaphor to confront themes of mortality and the natural cycle of life and death. This matter-of-fact depiction of the body’s fate serves as a reminder of human vulnerability and the inevitability of death, emphasizing the bitter acceptance of one’s fate within the broader ecosystem.

“And God be with you, reader, until we meet again, and may He grant that you meet yourself.”

The closing line of the Prologue utilizes direct address and a benediction to forge a personal connection with the reader, setting a reflective tone for the narrative. This invocation of God as a companion on the journey toward self-discovery underscores the existential themes of the novella, emphasizing the importance of introspection and the quest for personal truth.

“If for this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are of all people to be pitied.”

This biblical reference to St Paul, 1 Corinthians 15:19 underscores the existential dilemma faced by the characters—particularly the tension between earthly existence and eternal hopes. By integrating this scripture, Unamuno invites readers to contemplate the depth of their own faith and the ethical implications of believing in an afterlife at the expense of a temporal one.