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By Katherine Tedesco. Would You Like to Eat Now or Wait for the Cease-fire?. The title, explained.
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By Katherine Tedesco Would You Like to Eat Now or Wait for the Cease-fire?
The title, explained “On this particular Christmas Eve in 1983, despite the holiday, Rival Christian and Muslim militiamen were trading artillery salvos and machine-gun fire into the early evening, rocking the whole neighborhood. The hostess put off serving dinner, hoping things would settle down, but she could see that her friends were getting hungry, not to mention nervous. Finally, in an overture you won’t find in Emily Post’s book of etiquette, she turned to her guests and asked, ‘Would you like to eat now or wait for the cease-fire?’” (30) Picture: Google images
Title, Continued • “it required a thousand little changes in one’s daily habits and a thousand little mental games to avoid being overwhelmed by everything happening around you” (35) • Picture: Google images
Leaders of Beirut, and lines • Pierre Gemayel • Was adamant that the government remain the way it was. A Maronite, he was also anti-Arab and Palestinian. He created the Phalange. • KamalJumblatt • Druze leader who was pro-Arab and Palestinian. Wanted government reform. • The Green line • The line between East and West Beirut. Generally avoided by the public, it was only crossable with a press pass.
How did they cope? “The most popular means of coping I saw in Beirut was simply learning to play mind games—games that eased one’s anxiety without actually removing any danger” (35) “Another popular coping game the Lebanese played was called ‘Conspiracy.’…these conspiracies, as the Lebanese painted them, featured either the Israelis, the Syrians, the Americans, the Soviets, or Henry Kissinger—anyone but the Lebanese—in the most elaborate plots to disrupt Lebanon’s naturally tranquil state” (37) Picture: Wikipedia
Conclusion In such an instable country with its unclear leaders and constant threat of violence, the people of Beirut created a city and culture in which one had to adjust his daily life in order to survive.
