In political science, a relevant theory in terms of maintaining control is that of agenda setting through thought control. The colonizers in the subcontinent implemented (knowingly or unknowingly) this concept extremely effectively ,so much so that colonization’s affects are visible to date and the affects of imperialism have penetrated deeply into eastern culture and traditions. The colonizers managed to feed it into the minds of the people they ruled that there language, culture, dress, was way superior than the language, culture and dress of the East, so much so that regardless of how much use of the colonizer’s language, dress and mannerisms hurt their own national identity, they went on pursuing them for they were made to believe that success was inevitable without it.
The first two paragraphs of Ibn-ul-Vaqt, perhaps the most effective paragraphs of the entire piece; encapsulate this very dilemma which the Muslim man is engulfed in; he deems his culture superior in the private sphere but was made to believe that in the public sphere he had to implement the ways of colonizers .This is evident in the very first line in Deputy Nazir Ahmad’s piece when he says that the reason for Ibn-ul-Vaqt’s tasheer (popularity) is that he mastered the language of the colonizers at a time when interacting in that language was considered kufr (blasphemy). This statement although simply written shows the intensity of the importance of their language in the eyes of the protagonist that even though conversing in the language of foreigners was considered as blasphemous, he still deemed it as an absolutely imperative skill. This point is made visible in his piece by the those characters also who in trying to embody western mannerisms and style, smoke while travelling in trains, however because they themselves knew that it was just their attempt of fitting into the society of the colonizers, of showing them that they were as angraiz as the colonizers, thus they always blew it out at the mere sight of any acquaintance. Also, because they knew in trying to imitate the angraiz they were being disloyal to their distinct national identity.
Thus this book changes the very meaning of exile for me; it distances itself from its physical nature and takes form of a state of mind for the colonized are captives in their own land. They can’t live life celebrating their own identity rather are conditioned to become a race designed by the British. It shows that regardless of how useful the Hindustani leetray (shoes) are, the people of the subcontinent were made to believe that Angraizi boots(English boots) were superior!
The first two paragraphs of Ibn-ul-Vaqt, perhaps the most effective paragraphs of the entire piece; encapsulate this very dilemma which the Muslim man is engulfed in; he deems his culture superior in the private sphere but was made to believe that in the public sphere he had to implement the ways of colonizers .This is evident in the very first line in Deputy Nazir Ahmad’s piece when he says that the reason for Ibn-ul-Vaqt’s tasheer (popularity) is that he mastered the language of the colonizers at a time when interacting in that language was considered kufr (blasphemy). This statement although simply written shows the intensity of the importance of their language in the eyes of the protagonist that even though conversing in the language of foreigners was considered as blasphemous, he still deemed it as an absolutely imperative skill. This point is made visible in his piece by the those characters also who in trying to embody western mannerisms and style, smoke while travelling in trains, however because they themselves knew that it was just their attempt of fitting into the society of the colonizers, of showing them that they were as angraiz as the colonizers, thus they always blew it out at the mere sight of any acquaintance. Also, because they knew in trying to imitate the angraiz they were being disloyal to their distinct national identity.
Thus this book changes the very meaning of exile for me; it distances itself from its physical nature and takes form of a state of mind for the colonized are captives in their own land. They can’t live life celebrating their own identity rather are conditioned to become a race designed by the British. It shows that regardless of how useful the Hindustani leetray (shoes) are, the people of the subcontinent were made to believe that Angraizi boots(English boots) were superior!
No comments:
Post a Comment