Calvino toes a delicate line, though, between making his point and almost seeming to contradict himself. He cites Giacomo Leopardi’s claim that vagueness and imprecision is what makes poetry beautiful – the more vague, the more beautiful.
Throughout the whole book, Calvino’s not afraid to present the “opposite value” as the one he is discussing, as he asserts that the negative terms can be just as enlightening.
What would you think if you came across the following image in your grocery store?
We know bananas when we see them. Really, when you think about it, isn’t it strange that such a thing is labeled at all? “Bananas” Oh, that’s what I was going to guess, the yellow curved fruit. So does this image show the beauty of vagueness or the laziness and danger of automation and imprecision.
I would argue that it’s brilliant, actually. It’s only an imprecise sign for someone who needs be told the fruit’s exact name. Anyone else would say, “that’s the most precise banana sign I’ve ever seen.” Yellow curved fruit – that’s banana’s alright, the essence of its exactitude.