“So if I understand correctly, you talk to the client, get an idea of what their problem is and suggest a philosophical framework in which to fit it and rethink it.”

“To be precise, I suggest different ways of redefining the problem and together we choose the one that seems preferable. When I say different ways I mean different philosophical systems. The basic question is to give a shape to the suffering, to put it into words.”

“As Shakespeare says.”

“There you’ve got me. What does Shakespeare say?”

“If I remember correctly: ‘Give sorrow words; the grief that does not speak knits up the o’er-wrought heart and bids it break.’ Macbeth, I don’t remember where. Maybe Act Four.”

“Yes, of course, that’s exactly it.”

Some customers had come in, and Ottavio had to see 157to them. The professor and I continued our conversation, moving to the armchairs in the reading area.

“Are there philosophers you suggest most often to your clients?”

“Whenever I can, Montaigne. I also like Pyrrho and the other sceptics. That may seem strange, but it’s an approach that can yield excellent results. I recently suggested Gorgias to a client who has problems with an excess of rationality. With the illusion of objectivity, let’s put it that way.”

“Why Gorgias?”

“For various reasons that can be summed up in the phrase: ‘Tragedy is a deception that leaves the deceived wiser than the undeceived.’ Letting ourselves be deceived allows us to discover hidden resources, ideas, strengths and gifts that we didn’t know we had. That we didn’t know existed.”

“That’s really very interesting.”

The professor smiled.

“What about Aristotle?” I asked.

“Aristotle can be useful in many situations. A few months ago, I talked about him to a girl who’s tormented by a sense of guilt; among other things she can’t be faithful, and thinks – or thought – she was, so to speak, retarded from the ethical point of view. I tried to make her aware, using Aristotle, that our ethical qualities are like muscles: they atrophy if they’re not regularly exercised, and they get stronger with practice. We become just by performing acts of justice, we become courageous by performing acts of courage, we become altruistic by performing acts of altruism.”

We continued chatting about lots of things, some serious, some less so. When the customers had left Ottavio joined us again. It struck me that this was a night I would remember. That’s a nice feeling when it happens.158

“How’s Annapaola?” Ottavio asked after a while. “I haven’t seen the two of you together lately. Everything okay between you?”

“Yes, I think so.”

“Don’t let her go. She’s in a special category. Someone who’s incapable of cowardice – that’s rare.”