The Incomplete Angler > IDEAS & IDEALS

• 목록

I took out a book from the bookshelf at my study the other day and fell into some nostalgic thoughts. It was a small, old paperback called "The Complete Angler" by Izaak Walton (1593-1683), an Englishman. I couldn't remember when and where I had bought this book. Happily and luckily this book has survived the massacre perpetrated by me against my cherished books when I retired from Chung-Ang University last spring. I felt a special kinship with this book.

     Although a classic in English literature, it is not such a great work or as famous one as "The Canterbury Tales" or "Paradise Lost". It is not known to many to begin with. It is, as the title of the book suggests, about the art of angling _ fishing with a rod, line and hook. When first published in 1653 as a guide to angling, the book was designed for the bulging pockets of the anglers. But readers of later generations, discounting its use as a practical handbook, continued to read it and delight in its quaint learning, country freshness, and perfect simplicity of style.

     I opened the book to read and, to my great surprise and delight, I found that I had already read it once before. I found so many underlined parts throughout the book that I could not believe my eyes. I could not remember when I had done them all. How could a man have finished reading a book and forgotten it so completely? I realized anew that our memory was anything but could be trusted at all.

    Underlining a book is one of my bad and incorrigible habits of reading books, especially books written in English. Once I borrowed a book from my friend and underlined so many  lines in red with my ballpoint pen without any conscience for the ownership of the book, and when the time came to return it, I had to buy him a new copy. For me, reading a book without underlining it is like walking a snow-covered road without leaving a footprint. This is why I rarely borrow any books of worth from the public library.

     Readers, forgive me for my unruly digression. I am an old man now, and I can't help it. Being in old aged I am all digression and forgetfulness. Now let me go back to "The Complete Angler" and to the topic of angling, which I have originally chosen for this essay.

     As a man who spent his boyhood in a country town by the river, I think I am partially, if not fully, qualified to talk about the virtue of angling, just as Mr. Walton is. As a boy in my hometown I saw and knew some anglers famous for their extraordinary ability and their skill of catching so many fish of all sorts. I envied them and secretly harbored an ambition to emulate and excel them some day. I myself practiced fishing and caught some, mostly minnows and small carps. Indeed It was a special pleasure and experience.

     Wistfully, sometimes, even now, I picture myself go fishing with a bamboo rod slung over my shoulder and a wicker basket in my hand, and sitting under a tree-shade by the riverside, looking at the little float bobbing in the calm water, as I often did as a boy. Truly, as Mr. Walton said in his ``Complete Angler,’’ angling has something very poetic about it. Like poetry it is a natural and instinctive inclination we are born with. Anyone can try it without any instructions from anybody. It is one of the simplest as well as the oldest methods of catching fish. In the oriental paintings anglers are depicted as symbol of peace of mind, contemplation, and simple life.

     However, the nature of angling has drastically changed as the timen has changed. It is no longer a simple art. It has become a highly advanced science with its own jargons. You have to study and learn much about it before you dare try it. It has also become much more athletic than poetic. From a solitary hobby or pastime it has progressed to a difficult, rigorous and adrenaline-pumping group sport like soccer.

     Anglers are no longer a little boy as Iwas once, nor a poor old man as we see in the old paintings. They look more like well-trained soldiers in uniform or warriors equipped with the most sophisticated weapons. Their sphere of activity is not limited to the river or the pond in their town. They go far and wide by car, by boat and by airplane. They are powerful and rich. They have their own TV channel, announcers, and experts. They hold various contests to improve their skill at angling or to promote the importance of anglers in our life. Amazing.

     What truly amazes me is the unbelievable act that some modern anglers catch a fish, usually a big one, and let it go. They struggle so much to land a huge fish, and after landing it, they measure the size, admire its beauty, show it to the world and let it return to the water again. I don't understand how could they be so unselfish, gentle-minded and merciful! We old primitive anglers, including me,  would and could never have done so.
When we caught some fish, big or small, we ate them all with relish.

     Yes, I know and understand the thrill of landing a big fish _ its weight, power, and kick conveyed to your entire body through the taut fishing line. What pleasure can excel it? But think of the fear, pain and panic on the part of the fish at the other end of the line. The struggle is an incomparable thrill for you, but, life or death for the fish trying to get away. The fish is not intelligent enough to understand the angler’s ultimate intention. What would it say, if it could speak, with its bruised or broken jaw when it was released into the water again, as if nothing had happened, after such a desperate fight?

     Despite all the modern gears, equipments, information and knowledge about angling, today’s anglers are, in fact, the incomplete ones, I think, so long as they catch fish only for fun without a strong desire or need to eat them. They should either eat them or sell them at least. If not, they should forgo the fun of catching them.
                                                                                                  (July, 21, 2006)