Nugae for a New Generation

cui dono lepidum novum libellum
arida modo pumice expolitum?
Corneli tibi namque tu solebas
meas esse aliquid putare nugas.

To whom do I give this new volume, slim and refined,
Polished just now with a dry pumice stone?
To you, dear Cornelius, as it is you who has customarily
Considered my little nothings to be something.

These are the initial lines from the programmatic opening poem of Carmina, the collected poems of Gaius Valerius Catullus. You can read the whole poem here. Catullus refers to his opus diminutively, naming it a libellum--"little book," and lepidum--"slim" or "refined," a favorite buzzword. In the same spirit, he calls his subject matter nugas--"trifles." He treats life and love, the everyday concerns of humanity; this is in contrast with the esteemed gravitas innate to epics of war or lengthy treatises on history. These will be my objects of inquiry as well.

Life raises a lot of little questions. One can easily dismiss them as nugae, lacking in substance or value; it is faster, easier to take this approach. But I think it is more interesting to probe. Some, upon investigation, fit the bill. In that case, a question has been resolved, and we become better equipped for trivia bowls and idle bullshitting. Other small questions lead to deeper ones; these require serious consideration, and applying logical processes often reveals the necessity of fundamentally rethinking underlying positions--intellectually neglected and thus, malnourished. Part of the purpose of this blog is to declare war against the disinclination to dig deeper. Here, I will attempt to reach a well-defined conclusion of some nature. Whether you agree or disagree,your participation in the investigation, vocal or tacit, will be of value to me and hopefully, to you as well. 

These poetic lines form a dedication, and I will borrow them to a similar end. Indeed, this blog is for you, reader, who are interested in Nugatology--the study of trifles.

And as Catullus concludes, so do I:

plus uno maneat perenne saeclo.

May it endure continously for longer than a single generation.