The tightrope walk and the terrorists
Sarfraz Manzoor talks to Philippe Petit, whose stunning walk between the Twin Towers in 1974 is the subject of a new film — and discovers the mirror image of the horrors of 9/11
The walk between the Twin Towers was literally the high point in a career that had begun at the age of 16. Petit the self-taught wire-walker had already walked between the steeples of Notre Dame and above the Sydney Harbour Bridge even as he was preparing for his walk above New York. ‘I didn’t choose New York, I chose the Twin Towers,’ he says, ‘or rather they chose me.’ I wondered if, stepping out on to a steel wire a quarter of a mile above the ground, he had death on his mind. ‘I was not thinking about death,’ he said, ‘I was thinking about life.’ And yet in the film he tells of how ‘death was very close’ as he began his wire walk, ‘but I was not gambling with my life, I was living it fully. You will never feel yourself living as intensely as on the limit of life.’
On the fifth anniversary of 9/11 the New Yorker magazine featured on its front cover a two-part illustration. On the first page was a drawing of Petit, balancing pole in hand, suspended in a sea of emptiness, walking across the blank page. On the second page was Petit again, with the streets of New York below him, but missing the Twin Towers, their only trace two square indents far in the distance. The cover brilliantly evoked what had been lost in the years between Petit’s walk and the terrorist attacks. Since his walk between the Towers Petit has lived in New York. He is an artist-in-residence at the Cathedral of St John the Divine and he still practises for three hours each day on the wire. He told me that a day doesn’t pass when he doesn’t think about the fate of the Twin Towers. ‘They were part of my life,’ he says. ‘To know that they are no longer there, it is like seeing a childhood home destroyed.’
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KindnessofWomen
July 31st, 2008 1:09pm'Ey up, Sarfraz lad. Is this article the reason you penned your "I'm friends with a Tory, me" article for the Grauniad the other week? You didn't mention you'd be taking the Spectator shilling to boot. Still, if you've chosen this moment to cross the floor, your timing can't be faulted. Cheers.
sarfraz
July 31st, 2008 3:30pmhello, no it wasn't the reason I penned the piece last week (I'm impressed that you recall it though) but the fact that I was writing for the Spectator did partly inspire the column. But in fairness to me, the piece wasn't quite as cynical as all that, and also bearing in mind what the Spectator pays shilling is pretty much the size of it. Cheers
KindnessofWomen
July 31st, 2008 5:58pmSorry, Sarfraz, I hadn't realised you'd written for the Speccie before (an archive search has just turned up your 2002 piece, 'England, my England'. I should add that I greatly enjoyed your book about growing up in Luton in the 80s. Between you and Nick Hornby, you've got me listening to a lot more Bruce Springsteen than I ever would have otherwise. It's a bit off-topic, I realise, but what's your take on the cover of Born in the USA? Is Bruce supposed to be urinating on the Stars and Stripes?
sarfraz
July 31st, 2008 6:20pmyes that was the rumour but I am sure its not true or even intended. springsteen is a patriot he's just not a 'my country right or wrong' sort of patriot. and also I think he is just more sophisticated than to be pissing on the flag, his take on America is there in "land of hope and dreams', 'American Skin', 'American Land' and 'Long Road Home'.
anyways thanks for nice words about my book! cheers
Diana Waldie
August 1st, 2008 10:57amExcellent article. I didn't think I would want to see the film, now I do!
sarfraz
August 1st, 2008 6:19pmthanks very much Diana- so sweet of someone to post just to say they like a piece. So thanks for bothering and I am glad you think my effort does not disgrace the standards of the Spectator.
Olive Weddell
August 3rd, 2008 1:12amWhat a beautifully written, inspirational article; and a brilliant illustration of the stark difference between the philosophies of the East and the West.
carpenter
August 3rd, 2008 7:43amI also found this article a beautiful introduction to a film which promises to live up to your prologue. But I didn't read in it anything resembling cynical orientalism; rather I found the power of dichotomy lying in the theme of past/present. Looking forward to it...