Aspettare, sperare

Aspettare, sperare is a refrain of waiting and hoping that gives verbal form to the uncertainty surrounding Lelia’s future. First voiced by Momi Camin after he has been forced to let her travel with Donna Fedele, it returns in Francesco Molesin’s more deliberate response to the same unsettled situation. The phrase links evasion and patience, while the story’s later practical arrangements show how much remains to be decided beneath that hopeful formula.

The refrain in Momi’s speech

Momi repeats aspettare — sperare after learning that Lelia has refused to see him and that Donna Fedele has persuaded him to allow her journey. Fedele had made clear that asserting his paternal right to take his daughter home would bring worse consequences. Momi, described as repeating the words in a foolish, affected voice, turns them into a refrain rather than answering the immediate problem. His repeated formulation suggests postponement: he must wait, but what he hopes for is left unstated.

Molesin’s deliberate patience

When Momi later recounts his encounter with Lelia, Molesin believes none of his account, yet takes up the paired infinitives and holds to them cheerfully. His version of waiting is more purposeful. He speaks reassuringly of matters being settled, discusses the funeral service, and persuades Momi to request that it be held as soon as possible. He also offers to remain in the area, saying that the place pleases him and that he needs rest. The phrase thus moves from Momi’s uncertain refrain into Molesin’s composed effort to keep events moving while presenting their outcome as something that can be awaited.

The uncertainty behind the words

That uncertainty has concrete legal and family stakes. After Marcello Trento’s will is opened, Lelia is declared the universal heir; a telegram from Girolamo da Camin identifies him as her father and announces his arrival. Lelia acknowledges that she is his daughter and says she is twenty years and a few months old, while the deceased had believed her older. Momi’s claim to paternal authority, Lelia’s inheritance, and her reluctance to return to her father’s home therefore remain entangled rather than settled by the refrain.

Later, in Valsolda, Donna Fedele and Massimo consider what can be done for Lelia. Fedele first expects a negative answer from her father, but, after hearing the tenor of Lelia’s letter, allows that his reply may not be negative. They agree on a conditional plan: Fedele will take Lelia toward Turin, with the possibility of leaving her with a cousin in Santhià if her father permits it. In this later episode, hope is no longer only a repeated formula; it is attached to a specific, contingent arrangement. Aspettare, sperare captures the interval before such outcomes are known, without promising that hope will prevail.