Frenzy of the cultured

Few years ago, one learned professor, the vice-chancellor & the registrar in the Punjab University had serious issues with the word ‘rape’ used in the title of the epic poem ‘The Rape of the Lock.’ They said it was an indecent word & this book shouldn’t be a part of the curriculum. These cultured fellas regarded the word ‘rape’ as having an indecent connotation. But we all know that over-enthusiastic people never embark upon the venture of cleansing the society from the real act; so they find faults with words & call them dirty, indecent & judgmental.

Anyway, ‘The Rape of the Lock’ is one of the finest mock epic poems that relates a trivial incident & describes the theft of the heroine’s hair. It makes a good commentary on the upper-class English society of that time, which was infested with numerous follies & vices. Hence the word ‘rape’ in the title is the most appropriate one, because it depicts the emptiness of life & Alexander Pope ridicules it by choosing this particular word.

Literature offers new & creative ways to interpret the world. Different writers look at events or happenings from totally different angles, which enable them to assign different meanings to what they see or experience; as a result, they produce different descriptions of them. Those who think that Literature is just about playing with words & talking about sex need to hold their sacred views to themselves. When we need their opinions, we’ll ask for them.

Anyway, it’s just not the word ‘rape.’ People have problems with innumerable words. Lechery, desperate, sex slaves, human trafficking, incest, fuck, bastard etc etc are some of the words that can drive people nuts. I have witnessed that madness, but I don’t feel sorry for such people. Those who regard particular words as dirty, judgmental, indecent, inappropriate are most welcome not to use these words, but what’s the point of imposing their rotten views on others? We all have the right to learn things on our own. We don’t need this kind of madness; it is not just madness but it is also corrupt on the part of anyone who forces others to do what they want to do. You don’t want to use a word. Don’t use it. Why do you want others not to use it or to use it?

In fact such acts remind me of one of the slogans of the party in 1984 that says: “Ignorance is strength.” Maybe these people are inspired by the Big Brother & his lousy principles. Maybe even here the main aim is to narrow down the range of thought. When words won’t be there, people won’t be able to think.

“It’s a beautiful thing, the destruction of words…After all, what justification is there for a word which is simply the opposite of some other word? A word contains its opposite in itself.”

George Orwell

“In the end we shall make thoughtcrime literally impossible, because there will be no words in which to express it. Every concept that can ever be needed, will be expressed by exactly one word, with its meaning rigidly defined & all its subsidiary meanings rubbed out & forgotten.”

George Orwell

You know nothing is too coarse for my chaste pen. I often use the word fuck & it is considered unethical by many but quite frankly, I don’t give a flying fuck to it. Come to think of it, if we don’t use the word lechery, lecherous people will not be wiped out from the planet & neither would lechery. People may stop using terms such as human trafficking, but sex slaves will not disappear in thin air. Yes you can close your eyes but you can’t change the reality. By putting emphases on words like bastard or harami, you’re not contributing anything. The plight of illegitimate children wouldn’t reduce by even an inch.

I had the misfortune to work with this dysfunctional lady & she used to say that we must always use Mister & Miss when we talk to people. We shouldn’t use he/she or him/her as that is disrespectful. There are too many mad people out there & we don’t have time to know how fucked up are they anyway.

We need words to think. We need words to express ourselves. Shakespeare once said, ‘Nothing is good or bad, but thinking makes it so.’

Since I’m not a psychiatrist or a psychologist, I don’t know what’s wrong with people who have problem with words. Either they have experienced something so bad that they can’t help being what they are. They don’t even want people to use such words that remind them of such incidents. It is some sort of disorder. I don’t think it’s a normal behaviour to impose such views on others.

If freedom is our birthright, then we can use any word we like whether the world approves of it or not. Of course there are man-made chains every where…this is a fact we can’t run away from. But to put boundaries on your thinking is I guess the worst crime a human can do to himself.

Sluts & Eunuchs

In my write-up “You are not my judges,” I said, “I think men, women, old people, children, eunuchs, sluts, animals – they all have genuine problems.” I don’t know how could I forget teenagers. They have some serious issues & those issues if not tackled properly may acquire the shape of demons later on & fighting your demons is always a big problem. However, I shouldn’t be forgiven for one thing – I didn’t mention that feminists & chauvinist too have problems. In fact, their problem should be everyone’s problem; that is the problem.

I was accused of using the judgmental word slut in my writing. Although the word eunuch too was there in that sentence, but how can any feminist notice that? First of all, relevance is the main thing. At least to me, it is. My topic had nothing to do with sluts. But on my note, I was painted as someone who doesn’t feel sorry for prostitutes. Isn’t it strange people who advocate about judgmental words can be so judgmental themselves! But that’s okay.

“The prostitute has the advantage, not only that she is available at a moment's notice, but that, having no life outside her profession, she can remain hidden without difficulty, and the man who has been with her can return to his wife, his family, and his church with unimpaired dignity. She, however, poor woman, in spite of the undoubted service she performs, in spite of the fact that she safeguards the virtues of wives and daughters and the apparent virtue of church-wardens, is universally despised, thought to be an outcast, and not allowed to associate with ordinary people except in the way of business.”

Bertrand Russell

I mentioned this passage in one of writings a couple of months ago. Now even if I use the word prostitute or whore, would that change the meaning? It’s the business of flesh. Women are available in the market as commodities & they are being used & then nobody gives a damn. Most importantly, by talking shit & dancing on irrelevant stuff, can we provide respect to these women in the society? The answer is pretty obvious. Still if some people want to bang their heads against the wall, they are most welcome.

Anyway I have been thinking about eunuchs. They too are being forced to lead the same sort of life as sluts. When they are little, some elder eunuch castrates them & so they become a part of the clan. Yeah some are also born that way. They too are humans. They too are suffering. Just like sluts, we can’t feel sorry for each & every eunuch though. But everyone has a story. If we take interviews of say 100 prostitutes & 100 eunuchs & they give honest answers, are we going to feel the same way about them? It’s just a question, but I think it’s a pertinent one.

Yesterday I was talking to my friend on the phone & I mentioned that almost 10 years ago, some of my friends went to Heera Mandi (Diamond Market). I too wanted to go there, but my mom didn’t allow me. My friends saw that even 14 year old were in this business, which is quite depressing, to say the least. We all know that many are forced into this profession & we do feel sorry for them. Again some are born there but some choose it.

However, we are also aware of these high-class prostitutes. In rich families too there are characters who charge men & they have it for fun…I think I should use the word lust here. Even if it sounds judgmental, this is the only word I could think of. Nobody calls it judgmental when we use it for men. Anyway, some practice this profession for good money. I do feel sorry for a lot of things, but I don’t feel sorry for such women. And I have been thinking that we may feel sorry for every calamity & misfortune, but are we going to change anything by feeling sorry? Again the answer is no. So I really don’t see the point as to why people want everyone to feel sorry for a situation that we can’t even alter.

I have also met people who say that prostitution is the oldest institution. Why do people want to put an end to it? Everyone is entitled to their views. There are some who say that sluts are sexually liberated women, but when they hear of any woman who sleeps with men, they can’t help calling her a slut. We also know that people sleep to go ahead (it happens everywhere, not just the film industry), now some feminist would also want us to feel sorry for these women. According to them, men are responsible for all the badness in this world.

I really don’t have time to fix the blame on anyone. I have seen that people just want to confuse others. I don’t even think the plight of sluts or eunuchs even matters to them, it’s just that they want to act weird or something. The thing is…I don’t see any solution at all. And all I know is that different people suffer in different ways in different places. Everyone has a story & that story could be tragic. How can you tell that the misery of one is greater than that of another?