Risk, and the Comfort of a Good Story
The Eclipse and the Cloak Before setting sail on a naval expedition, Pericles, the Athenian statesman, found the helmsman in fear. The sky had darkened. It was an eclipse. It was taken as a bad omen. In an attempt to remedy the situation, Pericles took out his cloak and covered the man’s eyes. “Then what’s the difference between the two events?” Pericles replied. “Other than the sun being eclipsed by a larger cloak?” ...