‘There's
another aspect, regarding English which was brought home to me with a bang.
This was during my years as a Technician in the airport and Dayanthe
Athulathmudali was our Exec Director. It was our AGM and my name was proposed
as Hony. Secretary and as is usual, I tried every excuse in the book to squirm
out of it. But the guys insisted cajoled me with such statements like
"oka ganin bung, api full support
eka denawa" etc. I succumbed to this carrot and my predecessor
was relieved: both physically and mentally.
‘During the post-AGM get-together
where the usual free-flow of liquor loosened tongues, a colleague came up to me
and said, "machan, umbata secretary
post eka dunnay, apita weday beri nisa nemei. Oka
dunnay apey ingreesi durwala nisath nemei. Dekak dammata passay umbata wada
hondin katha karanna puluwan. Namuth umbata thanathura dunnay (here comes
the punch line), apita ingreesiyen vihilu
karanna beri nisai.
‘I was enlightened and lights
flashed in the old grey matter: English speaking not only entails proper use of
the language but encompasses also its humor.
Are you similarly enlightened?’
Here’s the translation: ‘We didn’t give you the Secretary’s
post because we were not suitable. Nor
was it that our English was poor. In
fact after two shots we would talk much better than you ever could. We gave you this post because we are unable
to joke in English.’
This threw me. I
never thought of English in this way. I
am not sure if those who use English as a kaduwa
(sword) or a token of elite positioning wave the ‘humour-flag’ as those
they want to put down or say to themselves, ‘well, he can’t joke in English, so
there!’ to feel better. I don’t think
the views of those who see English as a class marker are that important as long
as the corresponding ‘lack’ on the part of those for whom English is a
unshackling instrument do not see it as such.
Chances are that the Anglicized for whom ‘Enlished’ humour is a fall
back dignity-salvaging devise are pretty much out of the relevant equation pertaining
to cultural and ‘cultured’ positioning.
In a sense, our Englished lot as they lose ground and
political and economic clout to the so-called yakkos can be expected to throw at them one efficiency-bar after
another. It would go this way, I
believe. First the question, ‘can you
understand English?’ When that e-bar has
been surmounted, they will ask ‘can you speak English?’ And then, ‘ok, so you can understand and
talk, but can you read and write?’ Once
those degrees have been secured, they throw the p-bar, the ‘pronunciation-bar’.
Supposing even this passed, i.e. you no longer confuse the ‘pa’ sound with the
‘fa’ and can figure the correct vowel sound when the letter ‘o’ appears
whatever the word. That’s when the final
test is given: ‘go ahead, joke in English!’
How should we respond to such e-bars? One way would be to say ‘go to hell’. Or, as I used to advise my ‘yakko’ friends
who would be stumped by the snooty Englished, ask them to spell ‘bourgeoisie’
or ‘lingerie’. I know, I know, these are
not strictly English words, but the ‘Englished’ would be sufficiently chastened
to know that a yakko can spell their
condition and wardrobe when they cannot.
It cures some, not all and some, we must understand are incurable.
And also, what is ‘strictly English’? There are no true ‘language standards’ except
the privileging that is part and parcel of a pernicious kind of cultural
politics. The only e-bars in these
things that anyone should face are those set by self. But for this to work there are
conditions. First of all,
self-esteem. One has to be comfortable
with overall body-shape of mind and heart.
There has to be humility. One has
to understand that not all things are knowable, not all skills are learnable in
a single lifetime. One has to reconcile
to the fact that in acquiring a basket of skills in varying degrees one has to
forego other things. The Englished may
have the accent and the humour, but they might have character flaws that make
these ‘endowments’ seem ridiculous.
Does it mean that we should not learn to pun in English? Of
course not. It is not a ‘must’, but most
certainly a useful appendage to have. It
is not, however, a ‘core’ attribute for decent living or principled engagement
in society. Good to joke around, but
this is no laughing matter. In the end, it
is not the garments and accessories that define us, but our actions and the
values and principles that guide them.
English? Nice
language. Good to learn. The journey
through sansara is not necessarily shorter for the ‘Englished’. The ‘Englished’, to put it another way, are
not judged more generously by their ‘Maker’ in the hereafter. But, to the extent that life on earth should
be as free of hassle and anxiety as possible, there are certain skills that are
useful. English is not No. 1 in the
list. Neither is it No. 10393472. It’s
up to the individual in the end.
My late mother used to tell me that when someone jokes
around, the world laughs with
him/her, but if that’s all you do, the world laughs at him/her. The last laugh
will reside with the person who can see and be beyond language and language
politics, I think.
This article was first published in the 'Daily News,' April 21, 2010.
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