Dodging Toward Survival
Another chapter in the lessons of diplomacy is what they call maneuvering. It is not cunning, deceit, or trickery. No — it is free of ill intent, fraud, and deception. It resembles, in some way, a form of mutual bewilderment: you hesitate, and in doing so, you leave your opponent hesitant as well. You read the palm of his hand while keeping your own tightly closed. You leave matters open, suspended. Closure is a kind of rupture, even a form of brutality. And maneuvering contains only a slight trace of falsehood — but it is far preferable to rigid finality. Judging by most analyses, maneuvering appears to be a legitimate mode of conduct, even a justified one, because it protects against error and grants adversaries the chance to reflect and reconsider before confrontation escalates.
In sports, maneuvering is not merely accepted; it is celebrated as skill and athletic artistry. It differs from cheating precisely because it is free of harm. The world’s most beloved sport is football. Its demands are severe: physical fitness, endurance, and stamina. Yet none of these matter without that final touch — the ability to maneuver.
I write all this in defense of the fox, to whom maneuvering has long been attributed, ever since the poet flatteringly wrote:
“He dodges you as the fox dodges.”
What do you expect from a creature that spends its life searching for a chicken it rarely finds? I know this well from a pack of foxes that howl near us every evening whenever they fail to find supper after roaming the surrounding fields. They wail sorrowfully and sleep hungry.
As for hungry people, they find their sustenance in garbage bags discarded at landfills by those whose meals overflow with leftovers.
That, it seems, is the harsh rule of life, just as Salah Jahin once wrote in one of his piercing quatrains:
“Some people throw away the trash, while others gather it.”
To maneuver in pursuit of a worthy and innocent goal is a legitimate right. And the fox, too, has every right to dodge out of fear. What else would you have it do? Become a wolf?
Originally published on Assharq Al Awsat
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