The City of Signs


                        Think of yourself walking through a living house that had bright yellow post-it labels sticking to every piece of furniture, necessity, luxury and every piece of item that were necessary in a successful living home. It sounds a bit more distracting rather than a helpful gesture. When I envisioned myself in Marco Polo's shoes walking through the city of Tamara, it seems like a city full of necessary signs that are placed for everybody's convenience to produce order. Without these signs available, the city would lack function and order. Also, Marco Polo explains how even without a signboard, certain figures or "things" would signify its importance by representing other "things". Therefore, every piece of landmark, place, figure or statue would have its own special meaning.
                       Formally speaking, when Calvino writes about Tamara and the "signs" used, I feel like he is communicating to the reader to have an opinion about people's daily social practices. We go about our daily lives seeing what we may believe should result in an automatic reaction, response or specific practice that we fulfill without question.
                       What I thought was ironic about what Calvino wrote in the last paragraph was "You leave Tamara without having discovered it" because Tamara is a city full of signs. I feel like the reader can easily relate because we have all had our fair share of "signs" we have encountered, yet we slip through the cracks of not really understanding or grasping what the root of a situation may be. That can also relate to going back to a house full of bright yellow post-it signs. The sign labeling the toaster, the microwave, the couch or the T.V. would be a huge distraction of the feeling and comfort of the house itself.