Dormir, Há 150 Anos …

Este livro é absolutamente delicioso. O autor, Paul Bogard, explora o impacto que a iluminação artificial tem nas nossas vidas, desde a perda da “experiência nocturna”, parte do quotidiano dos nossos antepassados até ao final do século XIX, até a estudos recentes que apontam para os seus efeitos profundamente negativos na nossa saúde. Deixo uma passagem que me surpreendeu e me fez, por momentos, desejar viver em eras passadas:

“[…] in western Europe and colonial North America before electric lighting, people went to bed when the day’s light ended and got up when it returned, but without expecting to sleep throughout the night. Instead, on most nights they experienced two major intervals of sleep, called “first sleep” and “second sleep”, with an hour or more of “quiet wakefulness” between. […] men and women referred to both intervals as if the prospect of awakening in the middle of the night was common knowledge and required no elaboration. Instead, people took advantage of these periods of “quiet wakefulness” to converse with their partner, make love, pursue hobbies, or even visit friends. For many, this time of waking offered freedom and opportunity the day did not allow, true especially for women who finally had time for themselves, free from the day’s toils and troubles, patriarchal hierarchies, and burdens.”