LITERATURE-LIGHT AND DELIGHT .SOME RECENT TRENDS

LITERATURE-LIGHT AND DELIGHT

SOME RECENT TRENDS

Poetry has been the prime form of literature from ancient times, in all cultures. It is only in modern times, ironically with the  spread in so called education and literacy, that poetry has largely disappeared from the literary scene- both in the universities and in public domain. There are still good poets with us, but much smaller in number and influence, fame and fortune, compared to other writers. Over two hundred years ago, Oliver Goldsmith wrote about the decline in the appreciation of poetry: "My shame in crowds, my solitary pride",he said of the state of poetry then!

 As if to belie his words rose a giant wave of great Romantic poets in England, just after him. Just look at the names of the most prominent ones: Blake, Coleridge, Wordsworth, Keats, Shelley, Byron! (Alexander Pope was a contemporary of Goldsmith and did not belong to this school.) This was followed by another great wave of Victorian poets: Tennyson, Robert Browning, Elizabeth Barrett Browning,Matthew Arnold, Robert Bridges,Thomas Hardy,G.M.Hopkins, Rossetti, Oscar Wilde! (I am giving only the most prominent names; there are at least 50 others who are great.) Napoleon is supposed to have called England a nation of shopkeepers. Well, if shopkeepers could produce such poets, I would surely like to take birth there! England is not credited with intellectual vigour, like Germany or artistic finesse like France.The Romantic poets share much in common with the German Idealists (even if they did not directly or consciously borrow- it was just the spirit of the age), while the Victorians were inspired by the ideals of expansion, empire and progress (all leading in the end to some discord and disillusion) But it was an age of vigorous intellectual activity, based on science and its consequent positivism.)

Even so, their readers will constitute a small minority, compared to the vast readership commanded by the novelists and story writers! Books of poetry are expensive, even in the so called 'paperbacks' ( a name I hate like poison) compared to the novels and stories. And hard to get. (The situation is changing due to on-line shopping.)

What is the position in Tamil Nad during the 200 years covered by Romantic and Victorian sagas in England? Or even in India? For the last 500 years or so, there has been no great literary work, except religious or metaphysical poetry. Though there was not much literary creation in Tamil, the greatest achievement was the discovery and publication of Sangam poetry by Dr.U.Ve.Swaminatha Iyer. This is akin to the rediscovery of the Europeans of their ancient roots in Greece and Rome- recovery of their classical patrimony. In Europe, it led to a tremendous revival of classical learning; in Tamil Nad, it has led to mere chauvinism, while the actual study is sorely neglected.This is also roughly the period when Indians rediscovered some of their own Sanskrit treasures in translations, but the translations were distorted and this led to some undesirable consequences from which we still suffer. European discovery of their classical connections cemented their intellectual heritage, but in our case, it has only led to further discord and dissension!

The state of poetry in Tamil  Nad is dismal-in quality at any rate. No one has yet risen after Bharati of equal calibre; but on a lesser scale Namakkal Ramalingam Pillai and Kavimani Desika Vinayakam Pillai have regenerated Tamil poetry. However all these are neglected and obscured by  the current dispensation and academia (which lacks not only autonomy but also vigour.) Rasikamani T.K.C. taught us the nuances of appreciating poetry, taking his stand mainly on Kamba Ramayana. ( He gave us the word "pannpaadu" as the Tamil equivalent of "Culture"!) How brilliant! He left us a few able disciples. Thiru.Vi.Ka revived the art of prose writing, and literary discourse; he advocated Gandhian values and was strongly rooted in religious morality and ethics; but the rising tide of secular Tamil chauvinism and Dravidianism swept him away. In fact, pained by the vulgar Tamil speeches made by these political figures, he once said that a new, fourth strand of Tamil had been born "Vasaitthamiz" - The language of abuse (in addition to the three old ones: iyiyal, isai, natakam or koothu)!

Indeed, platform oratory has become a form of literary activity in Tamil Nad, but most speakers can not even follow the rules of grammar, and cannot cover serious academic subjects or ideas.These often degenerate into a form of hate campaign. Only some of the Communist leaders can articulate their ideas well; even if we may not agree with those ideas, we must appreciate them for their clarity.)

 Lectures are a learned form of literary pursuit and in the West this is highly valued and largely attended. Many lecture series are sponsored in the Universities and the lectures get wide circulation through publication. Even in the class rooms in universities such as Harvard, some Professors command huge audiences (eg ones by Noam Chomsky or by Michael Sandel on ethics (Yes, ethics and justice, available online)  The lectures are invariably followed by question-answer session.This is unthinkable in India. And in the class room if you raise a question, the lecturer "will see you" at the time of the exam!

Where does this all leave us? Well, with the novel, short story, political coverage and cine stuff. Most of the books written on other subjects are either translations, adaptations or imitations. Our current Tamil writers labour under serious limitations, imposed by the political dispensation, but also self-imposed. This is how and where the  state of society and its intellectual climate affect genuine literary creativity. A society gets the literary figures it deserves, not only politicians!