05-13-2005, 01:29 AM
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->One world, two realities
Vinayshil Gautam
There is something strange about the churning taking place around us. It is not as if change has overtaken human civilisation for the first time. It is also not as if the restlessness of the younger generation is unprecedented. But there is certainly something quite strange about the high-pitched and shrill - one could almost say, hysterical - reaction of many of the young. When much of the intergenerational conversations are ensconced in the all-pervasive presence of the media and stereo-types, many individual lives take on the dimensions of a soap opera.
A society in which fundamentals have not changed, a very superficial intellectualism can generate a major crisis for the uninitiated and the ill-equipped. The Eastern values are being constantly juxtaposed with Western ones and somewhere the underlying assumption is that the Western ethos is many times more rational and probably superior to the Eastern norms.
It's difficult to change fanciful perceptions, especially of the uninformed - even if agile minds. Analogies are seen where none exist and logic of a very superficial variety subsumes the more substantive issues. It is difficult for the semi-educated to comprehend a simple truth: No value is superior or inferior when it is non-banal. All values of this genre have a place, and these survive on prerequisites of conditioning and infrastructural support.
The reality is that the conditioning of the early childhood and the period of the youth are very rarely reversible. There is always a possibility of the individuals opting out but the full dangers, consequent upon opting out, in terms of backups available, are seldom, if ever, clear. This becomes all the more complex when life issues are concerned.
It is not possible for everyone to easily foresee, in their early 20s, what that person's requirements would be at the age of 41 or, say, even 61. His own conditioning (which is by and large frozen by the time one is 18-20) may cope with the exposures to another culture fairly well in an age when energies run high but the same may not be true once the energies begin to ebb, typically in the post-60s or 70s. Illustrations may help to clarify the point.
In the post-industrial West, it is not uncommon to drift away from the environment of one's birth around the age of 15-16 and carve an independent identity for oneself. The social infrastructure takes care of the medical requirements and the societal environment does not complicate matters for the individual boy or girl living alone or in a shared set up. In the Indian environment, this is a relative rarity and family bonds are much more intense. It is not uncommon for the growing generation to stay in the environment where one is born, till one acquires some type of financial viability.
The post-industrial West is geared up for individual identity at a much younger age and often believes in learning the hard experiential way. Theirs is not an environment where graduation or post-graduation is considered a basic qualification for employment. The societal cleavages between the rich and the poor are not so sharp, so the relative social insecurities and dangers in the post-industrial society are of a different order. Gender relationships are of an order where any girl is exposed to several opposite gender interaction situations and vice-versa.
As a result, their ability to cope with emotional experiences is much higher. In the Indian environment, even in metropolises like Mumbai or Delhi, the social possibilities of New York, London, Montreal, Zurich, Paris, Frankfurt and more are unlikely to be replicated. The kind of protection and response which the police would show in the cities listed above is unique. In these cities, the living spaces are not so endemically short as in the urban Indian environment. The breed which grows there is obviously and understandably of a particular order. The breed which grows in India is conditioned, in the absence of social infrastructure, to fall back on family resources in matters of health, security, networking and even social life. The differences are large.
Under these circumstances, when somebody from the Indian environment pitches for the Western lifestyle, the risks and the dangers become manifold. One has to be equipped for it and in many cases the loop never closes. The social fabric in India, especially in the cities, is full of people who live uncomfortably between the two worlds.
To continue the detailing further, in the post-industrial ethos, as outlined above, many concurrent concepts grow up. This includes special notions of privacy, individual spaces and, indeed, autonomy of choices. Several ethnic Indians brought up in the post-industrial ethos, having been unable to settle with any success in a foreign environment, grudgingly stay in India and then try to replicate what they believe is the Western oriented conduct here.
In a set up where anything Western is suo motu admired and looked up to, such individuals, wherever they be, invite easy attention. They can be seen in schools and colleges, they exist in the media, in business and, indeed, could exist anywhere. The role model effect which they have on impressionable minds is phenomenal. Compared to this, the conventional Indian social patterns are clearly a matter of regret to them. To debunk Indianness becomes, then, fashionable and ridiculing it is the way to move forward.
There is no point trying to explain that there is no such thing as cultural superiority or inferiority. The lifestyles of the successful and the rich in all communities are found worthy of imitation. Large numbers of the ruling elite in the country are today intellectually rooted in the West and have very little understanding of or information on the roots of Indian thought, philosophy or the rationale of traditional patterns of behaviour. It is not surprising, therefore, that a large number of the young experience severe identity crisis and not many elders have a clue to handling it. The elders demand obedience, compliance and conformity, the youngsters search for experience, exploration and spaces. Guides who can take the individual from one universe to another are relatively few and even when they try, they lack the communication skills to make it work.
These and related questions stare at many families in the face. Tensions are running high and the disappointments are large. Many do not know how to cope with these tensions and confusions. A beginning has to be made to identify these issues and develop a response. The cost of such confusion to individuals and families is heavy. This is especially so as they are largely unavoidable. For this to happen the "myths of reality" have to be broken and a sincere attempt has to be made to come to terms with the new, without wholly abandoning the legacy component of one's being.
(The writer is the Founder Director of IIM-K and Professor of Management at IIT Delhi) <!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Vinayshil Gautam
There is something strange about the churning taking place around us. It is not as if change has overtaken human civilisation for the first time. It is also not as if the restlessness of the younger generation is unprecedented. But there is certainly something quite strange about the high-pitched and shrill - one could almost say, hysterical - reaction of many of the young. When much of the intergenerational conversations are ensconced in the all-pervasive presence of the media and stereo-types, many individual lives take on the dimensions of a soap opera.
A society in which fundamentals have not changed, a very superficial intellectualism can generate a major crisis for the uninitiated and the ill-equipped. The Eastern values are being constantly juxtaposed with Western ones and somewhere the underlying assumption is that the Western ethos is many times more rational and probably superior to the Eastern norms.
It's difficult to change fanciful perceptions, especially of the uninformed - even if agile minds. Analogies are seen where none exist and logic of a very superficial variety subsumes the more substantive issues. It is difficult for the semi-educated to comprehend a simple truth: No value is superior or inferior when it is non-banal. All values of this genre have a place, and these survive on prerequisites of conditioning and infrastructural support.
The reality is that the conditioning of the early childhood and the period of the youth are very rarely reversible. There is always a possibility of the individuals opting out but the full dangers, consequent upon opting out, in terms of backups available, are seldom, if ever, clear. This becomes all the more complex when life issues are concerned.
It is not possible for everyone to easily foresee, in their early 20s, what that person's requirements would be at the age of 41 or, say, even 61. His own conditioning (which is by and large frozen by the time one is 18-20) may cope with the exposures to another culture fairly well in an age when energies run high but the same may not be true once the energies begin to ebb, typically in the post-60s or 70s. Illustrations may help to clarify the point.
In the post-industrial West, it is not uncommon to drift away from the environment of one's birth around the age of 15-16 and carve an independent identity for oneself. The social infrastructure takes care of the medical requirements and the societal environment does not complicate matters for the individual boy or girl living alone or in a shared set up. In the Indian environment, this is a relative rarity and family bonds are much more intense. It is not uncommon for the growing generation to stay in the environment where one is born, till one acquires some type of financial viability.
The post-industrial West is geared up for individual identity at a much younger age and often believes in learning the hard experiential way. Theirs is not an environment where graduation or post-graduation is considered a basic qualification for employment. The societal cleavages between the rich and the poor are not so sharp, so the relative social insecurities and dangers in the post-industrial society are of a different order. Gender relationships are of an order where any girl is exposed to several opposite gender interaction situations and vice-versa.
As a result, their ability to cope with emotional experiences is much higher. In the Indian environment, even in metropolises like Mumbai or Delhi, the social possibilities of New York, London, Montreal, Zurich, Paris, Frankfurt and more are unlikely to be replicated. The kind of protection and response which the police would show in the cities listed above is unique. In these cities, the living spaces are not so endemically short as in the urban Indian environment. The breed which grows there is obviously and understandably of a particular order. The breed which grows in India is conditioned, in the absence of social infrastructure, to fall back on family resources in matters of health, security, networking and even social life. The differences are large.
Under these circumstances, when somebody from the Indian environment pitches for the Western lifestyle, the risks and the dangers become manifold. One has to be equipped for it and in many cases the loop never closes. The social fabric in India, especially in the cities, is full of people who live uncomfortably between the two worlds.
To continue the detailing further, in the post-industrial ethos, as outlined above, many concurrent concepts grow up. This includes special notions of privacy, individual spaces and, indeed, autonomy of choices. Several ethnic Indians brought up in the post-industrial ethos, having been unable to settle with any success in a foreign environment, grudgingly stay in India and then try to replicate what they believe is the Western oriented conduct here.
In a set up where anything Western is suo motu admired and looked up to, such individuals, wherever they be, invite easy attention. They can be seen in schools and colleges, they exist in the media, in business and, indeed, could exist anywhere. The role model effect which they have on impressionable minds is phenomenal. Compared to this, the conventional Indian social patterns are clearly a matter of regret to them. To debunk Indianness becomes, then, fashionable and ridiculing it is the way to move forward.
There is no point trying to explain that there is no such thing as cultural superiority or inferiority. The lifestyles of the successful and the rich in all communities are found worthy of imitation. Large numbers of the ruling elite in the country are today intellectually rooted in the West and have very little understanding of or information on the roots of Indian thought, philosophy or the rationale of traditional patterns of behaviour. It is not surprising, therefore, that a large number of the young experience severe identity crisis and not many elders have a clue to handling it. The elders demand obedience, compliance and conformity, the youngsters search for experience, exploration and spaces. Guides who can take the individual from one universe to another are relatively few and even when they try, they lack the communication skills to make it work.
These and related questions stare at many families in the face. Tensions are running high and the disappointments are large. Many do not know how to cope with these tensions and confusions. A beginning has to be made to identify these issues and develop a response. The cost of such confusion to individuals and families is heavy. This is especially so as they are largely unavoidable. For this to happen the "myths of reality" have to be broken and a sincere attempt has to be made to come to terms with the new, without wholly abandoning the legacy component of one's being.
(The writer is the Founder Director of IIM-K and Professor of Management at IIT Delhi) <!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->