Reading culture through newspapers

Assignment Paper 8

Cultural Studies

Ajit A. Kaliya

M.A. Sem 2

Roll No. 1

Enrollment No. 2069108420170013

Batch: 2016-18

Email- kaliyaajitbhai@gmail.com
Department Of English, MKBU

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Reading culture through newspaper

Culture is a very wide area to study and it can be study in various ways. Through T.V. serials, add, movies, clothing habits, sports, newspapers etc. Here I'm trying to study Indian culture taking reference of one Gujarati newspaper. Every newspaper gives reality of society. It is proof of real culture. It shows what really happen around us? In this post truth era if we do not be aware of real truth, then fake things can be intrude easily. Newspapers are more neutral than any other media. By reading what has written, and by it reading what has not written, we can see real picture of the world. And that is real picture of culture, not that which we have been told.

Here I have taken one Gujarati newspaper for reference. Every newspaper gives proof of reality and one can take any paper to study culture.

Now let us see current news and also very interesting and significant to read culture. It is news about Uttar Pradesh's new chief minister Yogi Aadityanath. In recent election of UP, BJP won and they selected this man for the post of CM. Now political leader is very important in democracy. State's progress, brotherhood between religions all depends on leader. So political leader must be educated, rational, and aware of politics, should have knowledge of economics and should not lean towards any religion.

Now when this Yogi becomes CM, first question arises is that what is Yogi doing in politics? Not only doing something but even becomes CM of big state. Now cultural study begins. First thing comes out from this is party's political profit. If leaders make this type of person CM, who is staunchly Hindu, who hate other religions, who have no experience, who stats controversial sentences then party sees only their profit of how to get votes by playing politics of religion. It can agitate people of other religions.

Second thing comes upon people. In democracy it is people's choice to select someone as their leader. Now if they choose some kind of Yogi as their leader, or without knowing who will be their leader if they vote then it suggests that either people have no political awareness, or they vote then who favor their religion, they vote them who talk about their religion, protect their religion, they give importance to their religion, not progress of nation. They cannot think rationally, they can be fooled easily. In news it is written, 'Hindutvavadi agenda’. It is very dangerous thing. Actually people do not hate other religions, but some political leaders give fire to this problem.

Here is the example,   

This clearly reflects how religious matters have been using in Indian political culture. This type of things can lead towards riots also, and we see also conflict between religions.

In recent Indian politics another big matter happened that of demonetization and cashless economy. It is known by all what happened by this decision. Nothing. But after that another decision taken is that of cashless system which can be discussed here. PM wants to make Indian economy cashless without thinking anything. It shows power of politics also. When politician takes any decision, if is it right or wrong, people have to follow. People cannot even resist. Someone we feel that actually we do not live in democracy. It also shows poor condition of villages. Politics wants to make nation developed but do not provide necessities. People are forced to do things in which poor village people suffers lot. This shows material culture also. Leaders want to show material progress, do not think of people's real needs, especially of poor. They ignore villages because there live poor people and politicians do not care for them. Their real concern is businessmen and rich people and material progress is their agenda.

So by these news we can see Indian political culture, how it works, how people take it, politics of religion, how religious matters work in politics and many things. Thus was just an example, this way we can study political culture of any region with proof.

Another thing we found daily in any newspaper is this matter.

Everyday even in district newspapers also we find three to five news of suicide. It seems very normal to us. Most of the time we skip this type of news because it comes everyday and we do not think about it. And so newspapers also do not give importance to these news. Most of suicide news comes in very small area, but by seen and analyzing many news of suicides, I have found couple of points.

The first thing is most of the suicides have been done by youngsters. Second thing is numbers of men are more than women. Third thing is most of the suicides committed because of poverty and unemployment. And last thing is most of the suicides does in villages and in backward areas of cities.

This information leads to other information. If young people commit suicide because of unemployment, it suggests that possibilities of employments are dying. Because of unemployment poverty comes and people commit suicides. Sometime it is called that India is a nation of young, but what if young generation also commit suicide most. Politicians say that possibilities for jobs are increasing, but it can be falsified when everyday large numbers of people commit suicide because of unemployment. More number of suicides in rural areas suggests that progress of villages does not happen. It also suggests that villages are becoming poor and poor and cities are becoming rich.

So, by analyzing this type of news we can find some important factors and can analyze them and can get the idea about what does really happen around us.

Feminism also is a study of cultural study. What types of news comes in newspaper about women it shows condition of women in culture.

Position and situation of women in Indian society have been always bad and cases of dowry, annoying, rapes, suicide because of annoyance from husband and family and those types of news come in news. Today also women have no freedom and some people beloved women their slave. Even today also we find that girls marry where there parent want, especially in villages. Cases of dowry and annoyance because of that are come often in news. Many time girls suicide because of it. Today laws are made strict but most of the cases do not come out. Thus also shows women are taught to bear instead of raising voice against inequality. In education also girl’s condition is not very good. Twenty eight percents of girls do not get even primary education. Living in cities and getting everything e cannot see reality. Condition of villages is totally different.

And in this news cutting it shows very well. Gujarat considers as developed state. If here condition is this, what would be condition of poor states? So we can say that condition of women is not good yet.

And see how in small space and In small letters news has written. It also suggests something. It suggests less importance of women.

By newspapers we also find that how some matters are only for formality, just for saying. Like prohibition act of alcohol.

These type of news also come every day in each and every newspaper. In every corner, from biggest city to smallest village, liquor is available. As a proof we read every day about smuggling of it, huge amount of liquor captured and other things. It has also become very common matter. So this type of formality culture happens in India.

When people talk about Indian culture they say that it is culture of brotherhood, we respect all the people who are elder than us, but it is not true. History shows that it has always been happening. Nowadays which type of news comes in newspapers reflects that thing.

It shows that things are going on as it was. But the thing to be noticed is that how people try to glorify their culture. But newspapers give us proof that real culture is different than what we think. This type of things has been happening since ancient times and still we try to glorify our culture that our culture is this and that.

By advertisements also we can study culture. In newspapers ads of tantric comes daily saying that they will solve all problems. If this type of ads daily comes then it shows that people would believe in that and that types of things happen in society. Thus shows how superstitions are exist very much in our culture. It also shows that at last newspapers also is business. Take money and print what they want. This way some news never comes to know.

By focusing on size of letters in newspapers and in which area they published also we can study it. Most of the time on front page, in large size news of politics comes and suicides, harassment of women and that type of news comes in very small size that we cannot even notice them. It shows that politics is most important thing in country.

These were only just for example of how newspapers reflect culture. Each news reflects hidden thing. Newspapers are more faithful than news channels and it gives more real news. So by newspapers we can see real world. It gives us written proof. It says what has happened. Though it has also limitations and some kind of reality never comes to know. But still we can see in what world are we living and what is reality and what our culture is.

 Reference: Gujarat Samachar newspaper

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Threefold significance of tradition by T.S. Eliot

Assignment Paper 7

Literary theory and criticism- 2

Ajit A. Kaliya

M.A. Sem 2

Roll No. 1

Enrollment No. 2069108420170013

Batch: 2016-18

Email- kaliyaajitbhai@gmail.com
Department Of English, MKBU

To evaluate this assignment, please click here

Threefold significance of tradition by T.S. Eliot

T. S. Eliot is an English essayist, publisher, playwright, critic and one of the twentieth century's major poets. His essay "Tradition and individual talent" was published first in 'The Egoist' in 1919 and later in Eliot's first book of Criticism "The sacred wood' in 1920. In this essay he gave concept of tradition, its importance in writing, depersonalization of poet, where here I'm going to talk about three major significance of tradition given by Eliot. But before understanding that; it is necessary to understand meaning of tradition given by Eliot. So let us see first meaning of tradition.

Meaning of tradition

Eliot defines tradition as living part of the past. It is living culture inherited from the past and functioning in the formation of the present. Past is not which is dead, but it shakes present. To Eliot, tradition is connected with historical sense of poet or writer. Poet must have that historical sense. It influences our ideas and thoughts. It is historical sense; it is an awareness not only of the pastness of the past but the presence of the past. Eliot said that by losing tradition we lose our hold on the present. Hence, a writer should be aware of the importance of tradition. Eliot believed that author must have aware of his nation's tradition.

Thus, for Eliot importance of tradition, its awareness is so important and so he gives threefold significance of tradition.

1) Tradition cannot be inherited and involves a great deal of labor and erudition.

2) It involves the historical sense which involves apperception not only of the pastness of the past, but also its presence.

3) The historical sense enables a writer to write not only with his own generation in mind, but with a feeling that the whole of the literature from Homer down to the literature of his own country forms a continuous literary tradition.

Now let us discuss about these three points one by one.

1] First Eliot says that tradition cannot be inherited and involves a great deal of labor and erudition. Eliot says, “Tradition is a matter of much wider significance. It cannot be inherited and if you want it you must obtain it by great labor. It involves the historical sense””

Eliot believed that tradition is not the thing which comes with birth. It is not the thing which can inherit. According to Eliot tradition and indigo talent go together. So it is important to know tradition. He says that poet has alone no identity. But question is that how can one obtain tradition? Eliot answers that tradition can be obtain only by great labor and your intelligence; there is no other way, any simple way. If we think about inheritance, what do we inherit? We do not inherit anything. We learn the things by seeing world. To get knowledge of tradition one must read a lot. Eliot demands wide reading to bring a writer. Writer's duty is to contribute in the stream of tradition. So writers must have read lot, getting knowledge and receive tradition.

Eliot says, 'consequently, we must believe that "emotion recollected in tranquility" is an inexact formula. For it is neither emotion, nor recollection, nor, without distortion of meaning, tranquility. It is a concentration, and a new thing resulting from the concentration, of a very great number of experiences which to the practical and active person would not seem to be experiences at all; it is a concentration which does not happen consciously or of deliberation.' So actually he is attacking on romantics and favored university wits. Because romantics believed in freedom and connected poetry with emotions but Eliot says first poet must read lot, achieve knowledge and then should write. The tradition includes historical sense and if do not have that you cannot contribute in tradition.

But there are some writers who are not very educated and even then are very popular and contributed in English tradition. The best example is William Shakespeare.  Now someone can argue, so in defense he says, some can absorb knowledge, the more tardy must sweat for it. Shakespeare acquire more essential histories from Plutarch than most men could from the whole British Museum. What is to be insisted upon is that the poet must develop or procure the consciousness of the past and that he should continue to develop this consciousness throughout his career.

Gujarati writer Pannalal Patel also have little education, but by experiencing tradition surrounded him, he wrote and contributed lot.

These writers absorbed tradition, but if one do not have this power then one must do hard work to get it.

So this was about Eliot's first idea of tradition.

2] Secondly he says that tradition involves the historical sense which involves apperception not only of the pastness of the past, but also its presence.

Eliot says, "A creative artist, though he lives in a particular milieu, does not work merely with his own generation in view. He does not take his own age, or the literature of that period only as a separate identity, but acts with the conviction that in general the whole literature of the continent from the classical age of the Greeks onwards and in particular the literature of his own country, is to be take as a harmonious whole."

In simple language he wanted to say that writer should be aware about the history. And history means not only past, but what can be found in present of that past that is history. For example, colonialism. The nations which had been colonized and what happened to them, hour they suffer, it is history. But, even today after freed from them effects of colonialism can be seen. So when writer write about this thing he or she must be aware of history and it’s present. Without awareness of both the things writer cannot write true things.

One good example for importance of having historical sense is Indian freedom struggle against rule of East India Company in 1857. It was first freedom struggle, but Britishers called it revolt and they wrote in history as revolt, not as freedom struggle. Now if Indians have historical sense, they can correct that it was not revolt but it was freedom fighting. So it is necessary to have historical sense otherwise history can be changed. If people have historical sense they can compare present things with history and can get idea about what had happened in same circumstances in past so what can happened in present. So in this way history does not remain only past, but becomes present also.

So Eliot believed that for understanding tradition, historical sense also requires and for writers, it is necessary to have historical sense so that they can contribute important work in tradition.

3] In third significance of tradition Eliot moves his idea of historical sense further. He explains importance of historical sense in this point.

He says," the historical sense involves a perception, not only of the pastness of the past, but of its presence; the historical sense compels a man to write not merely with his own generation in his bones, but with a feeling that the whole of the literature of Europe from Homer and within it the whole of the literature of his own country has a simultaneous existence and composes a simultaneous order. This historical sense, which is a sense of the timeless as well as of the temporal and of the timeless and of the temporal together, is what makes a writer traditional. And it is at the same time what makes a writer most acutely conscious of his place in time, of his contemporaneity."

By this idea Eliot wants to say that writer should know that what he or she is doing. They are contributing in long literary history from Homer to present time. Maybe he suggests authors to write valuable things. For the relationship of a poets work to the great works of the past he says, “In a peculiar sense he will be aware also that he must inevitably be judged by the standards of the past. I say judged, not amputated, by them; not judged to be as good as, or worse or better than, the dead; and certainly not judged by the canons of dead critics. It is a judgment, a comparison, in which two things are measured by each other. To conform merely would be for the new work not really to conform at all; it would not be new, and would therefore not be a work of art. And we do not quite say that the new is more valuable because it fits in; but it’s fitting in is a test of its value test; it is true, which can only be slowly and cautiously applied, for we are none of us infallible judges of conformity. We say: it appears to conform, and is perhaps individual, or it appears individual, and may conform; but we are hardly likely to find that it is one and not the other."

Further he says, "The poet must be very conscious of the main current, which does not at all flow invariably through the most distinguished reputations. He must be quite aware of the obvious fact that art never improves, but that the material of art is never quite the same. He writes:  The difference between the present and the past is that the conscious present is an awareness of the past in a way and to an extent which the past's awareness of itself cannot show."

So, in third point he says about relationship between past and present and writer's duty when he or contributes in literary tradition.

Conclusion

So by studying these three significance of tradition, we learn about what tradition is? How can it obtain? What is important of knowing tradition, also importance of historical sense. How it can be useful. Relations between past and present and about writer’s duty of contribute in literary tradition.

Reference

www.wikipedia.com

Tradition and individual talent (1919) T.S. Eliot

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