Literature : Week 3 - "The Fascination with the abomination"
tribe;
-noun
1. any aggregate of people united by ties of descent from a common ancestor, community of customs and traditions, adherence to the same leaders, etc.
8. a class or set of persons, esp. one with strong common traits or interests.
9. a large family.
civilisation;
-noun
1. the social process whereby societies achieve an advanced stage of development and organization [syn: civilization]
2. a particular society at a particular time and place; "early Mayan civilization" [syn: culture]
3. a society in an advanced state of social development (e.g., with complex legal and political and religious organizations); "the people slowly progressed from barbarism to civilization" [syn: civilization]
4. the quality of excellence in thought and manners and taste; "a man of intellectual refinement"; "he is remembered for his generosity and civilization" [syn: refinement]
What distinguishes an "advanced state of social development?" How can we, as citizens of a modern, "highly civilized" society determine that our way of life is more sophisticated that the groups of people who live in remote, almost untouched (non-westernised) areas in the globe? And why the self-imposed right to alter the ways of life of others who may be a little different?
These are the questions which I have come to raise as we progress with examining "The Heart of Darkness."
The black and white picture (above)is an encyclopedic attempt to record the indigenous people of the Phillipines prior to the Spanish Colonisation in 1521. Prior to the Spanish settlement, Islam was the country's major religion (brought by people of the then Muslim-India). Philippines was an ancient trade centre of people from Ancient China, Japan, India, Malaysia and Indonesia. Upon the arrival of the Spanish Conquestadors, the islands were scoured for gold, silver, silks, spices, ivory etc. A lot of lives (on every side) were lost, many people suffered, but with Spanish settlement my people inherited aspects of the western civilisation such as the "code of law" (goodness, how did the tribesmen manage without any laws of their own to abide by? I suppose it's part of the "unification" of the people- standardised laws), we also inherited printing, the Gregorian calendar and of course Christianity. I know my tone seems to be that of a cynic, i don't mean to be, but I do see the parallels between Conrad's exploration of the Congo (through Marlow's experiences) to that of my own ancestors.
As we spoke about the "germs of empires" in our tute, I thought about the prospect of experiencing purity, unadulterated goodness and utopian ideals which may perhaps be experienced by groups of people who are not necessarily controlled by the western frame of mind. What a hypocrite am I to bash the western ideals against the wall, when I'm clearly reaping its benefits e.g. the internet (the internet-spawned me is not very impressed right now). But that's just it, I get a little confused.
Having lived half my life in a moderately westernised country (the Philippines) and growing up here in Australia for the latter part of my life, in a way, I am endlessly thankful to be given the opportunity to be a part of another reality vastly diverse from the one I was used to. We are all moulded by our experiences and by the souls we encounter; the more diversity we come to realise, I guess gets us closer to that ideal person we all endeavour to be.
This was a view from my provincial town back home, Mayon Volcano (ain't she pretty?)
Below is my old primary school:
And to feed my penchant for reminiscing, below is a oldie but a goodie (an old photo of my "folk dancing" era), exactly how pink vests and fru-fru frills equate to "folk" i shall never understand; but I hope that the blue eye shadow and the burgundy red lipstick didn't scar any of us for life...
So in essence, I guess the point I tried to make is that everyone has their own "tribal" or primitive beginnings. Days when you know of nothing else but what you have, and somehow it sits fine with you; but once you get a taste for what the world out there has to offer you feel the need to conquer what you can.
In our conquest to reach any ideal whether it be personal or otherwise, we need to be aware that at the end of it all we cannot change anyone else but ourselves...So in the wisdom of my ancestors, I carry these words with me wherever I go in life;
"Ang tao'ng hindi marunong lumingon sa pinang-galingan ay hindi makakarating sa paroroonan." (in English please :) "A person who does not learn to look back at their past cannot reach their future destination."
Let's be proud of our own history's whatever they may be...Let's embrace our presence wherever we are; and let us look forward to a future of indefinite changes and endless conquests... otherwise, what else do we have?
-noun
1. any aggregate of people united by ties of descent from a common ancestor, community of customs and traditions, adherence to the same leaders, etc.
8. a class or set of persons, esp. one with strong common traits or interests.
9. a large family.
civilisation;
-noun
1. the social process whereby societies achieve an advanced stage of development and organization [syn: civilization]
2. a particular society at a particular time and place; "early Mayan civilization" [syn: culture]
3. a society in an advanced state of social development (e.g., with complex legal and political and religious organizations); "the people slowly progressed from barbarism to civilization" [syn: civilization]
4. the quality of excellence in thought and manners and taste; "a man of intellectual refinement"; "he is remembered for his generosity and civilization" [syn: refinement]
What distinguishes an "advanced state of social development?" How can we, as citizens of a modern, "highly civilized" society determine that our way of life is more sophisticated that the groups of people who live in remote, almost untouched (non-westernised) areas in the globe? And why the self-imposed right to alter the ways of life of others who may be a little different?
These are the questions which I have come to raise as we progress with examining "The Heart of Darkness."
The black and white picture (above)is an encyclopedic attempt to record the indigenous people of the Phillipines prior to the Spanish Colonisation in 1521. Prior to the Spanish settlement, Islam was the country's major religion (brought by people of the then Muslim-India). Philippines was an ancient trade centre of people from Ancient China, Japan, India, Malaysia and Indonesia. Upon the arrival of the Spanish Conquestadors, the islands were scoured for gold, silver, silks, spices, ivory etc. A lot of lives (on every side) were lost, many people suffered, but with Spanish settlement my people inherited aspects of the western civilisation such as the "code of law" (goodness, how did the tribesmen manage without any laws of their own to abide by? I suppose it's part of the "unification" of the people- standardised laws), we also inherited printing, the Gregorian calendar and of course Christianity. I know my tone seems to be that of a cynic, i don't mean to be, but I do see the parallels between Conrad's exploration of the Congo (through Marlow's experiences) to that of my own ancestors.
As we spoke about the "germs of empires" in our tute, I thought about the prospect of experiencing purity, unadulterated goodness and utopian ideals which may perhaps be experienced by groups of people who are not necessarily controlled by the western frame of mind. What a hypocrite am I to bash the western ideals against the wall, when I'm clearly reaping its benefits e.g. the internet (the internet-spawned me is not very impressed right now). But that's just it, I get a little confused.
Having lived half my life in a moderately westernised country (the Philippines) and growing up here in Australia for the latter part of my life, in a way, I am endlessly thankful to be given the opportunity to be a part of another reality vastly diverse from the one I was used to. We are all moulded by our experiences and by the souls we encounter; the more diversity we come to realise, I guess gets us closer to that ideal person we all endeavour to be.
This was a view from my provincial town back home, Mayon Volcano (ain't she pretty?)
Below is my old primary school:
And to feed my penchant for reminiscing, below is a oldie but a goodie (an old photo of my "folk dancing" era), exactly how pink vests and fru-fru frills equate to "folk" i shall never understand; but I hope that the blue eye shadow and the burgundy red lipstick didn't scar any of us for life...
So in essence, I guess the point I tried to make is that everyone has their own "tribal" or primitive beginnings. Days when you know of nothing else but what you have, and somehow it sits fine with you; but once you get a taste for what the world out there has to offer you feel the need to conquer what you can.
In our conquest to reach any ideal whether it be personal or otherwise, we need to be aware that at the end of it all we cannot change anyone else but ourselves...So in the wisdom of my ancestors, I carry these words with me wherever I go in life;
"Ang tao'ng hindi marunong lumingon sa pinang-galingan ay hindi makakarating sa paroroonan." (in English please :) "A person who does not learn to look back at their past cannot reach their future destination."
Let's be proud of our own history's whatever they may be...Let's embrace our presence wherever we are; and let us look forward to a future of indefinite changes and endless conquests... otherwise, what else do we have?