Cultural fundamentalism

We must accept the fact that there will always be some people who are incapable of speaking in the so-called “perfect Bangla” and we must gracefully respect this difference

We often use the phrase “religious fundamentalism” to define people who are characterized by religious bigotry. Apparently, these people endeavour to forcefully impose their values and outlooks on others. However, it’s evident that bigotry is not only restricted within the field of religion. Unfortunately, there are people in this world who often try to impede individual liberty of others by imposing their own cultural norms on others. As a country, Bangladesh has an affluent culture and it’s obvious that our culture deeply influences our lifestyle. As a race, we profoundly respect our culture, our language and our rich heritage.  However, there is a group of people in our country who can be regarded as “cultural bigots”, as they often fervently criticize cultural differences and the way others choose to live their own life. They often even try to modify the way people speak in their personal life. Apparently, the language we use in our personal life is solely a matter of our individual choice. My way of speaking is an integral part of my individuality. It’s essentially a product of my education and my unique life experiences. Any attempt to alter that is nothing but a breach of a person’s individual right.
I think here I must illustrate a real-life example in order to clarify my arguments. Few days back I went to attend a Bengali radio programme (as the winner of a contest). During the interval of the show as I was speaking with the other guests about some trivial issues, the programme host and the other guests attacked me verbally for using English words in my Bengali communication. I was taken aback by surprise. I simply told them that’s how I usually talk in my personal life and it’s generally not possible for a person to modify the way he talks. Moreover, I argued that my speaking style is completely a matter of my individual liberty and no one has the right to dictate me about that. If I spoke in “immaculate Bengali”, I wouldn’t be honest to my own personality. They were behaving as if it was a major transgression to use even a single English word in our conversation. As if they were expecting me to speak in “impeccable Bengali”. I was really upset by their blatantly rude behaviour. I silently thought why these people were so intolerant towards something that they don’t approve of. I didn’t debate much and as I was leaving I recalled the name of the radio channel, which consisted of the first three letters of the English alphabet! Just think about it. Although they chiefly broadcast Bengali programmes and criticize people who can’t speak “pure Bengali”, they themselves didn’t hesitate to adopt an English name for their radio channel. Isn’t it hypocritical?  
I really don’t know why some people cannot tolerate differences. The world is characterized by magnificent diversity. Why do some people want to change others and establish a uniform society? If they have some strong convictions about something they can pursue it in their own lives. They don’t have the right to modify others. Only fundamentalists engage in such malicious activities. Fundamentalists endeavour to change others for the sake of their own beliefs and values. For me it was ironic to see people, who claim to be the representatives of individualism, behaving like some cheap bigots. We all love our language and it’s obviously important to encourage others to use good Bengali. However, we must accept the fact that there will always be some people who are incapable of speaking in the so-called “perfect Bangla” and we must gracefully respect this difference.       
Nowadays we witness many debates about the language used in creative works and the way our youngsters speak. We watch countless media talk-shows where participants argue about the significance of spreading “unblemished Bengali” throughout the country. However, most of the TV channels that broadcast these talk-shows invariably carry English names (ETV, Channel I, NTV, ATN, RTV, Channel One, etc.). Moreover, most of the intellectuals, who attend these talk shows and vehemently criticize our youngsters’ way of speaking, do not send their children to Bengali medium schools. Isn’t it hypocritical?  
It’s undeniable that we all deeply respect our native language and culture. But the language we use in our personal conversation is essentially a matter of habit of many years and it’s also an evident byproduct of the type of education we receive and our socio-cultural atmosphere.
If today our youngsters use a hybrid (mixed) language in their personal communication, it won’t be wise to create “autocratic rules” to modify their style. Instead, we must try to incorporate cultural values into their learning process, so that they can properly learn and understand the history and significance of their own language. Apart from that, the mode of speaking we choose is purely a matter of our individual choice.
It’s regrettable that, in our country we still haven’t been able to create universal respect for individualism and freedom of choice. There are promising debates in the media everyday about what must be the proper mode of speaking of common people.
But is it really possible to change the way in which general people choose to speak in their personal life? And why mustn’t a creative individual have the right to use his chosen language in his creative works? Can we really make a law that will legally oblige everyone to speak in flawless Bengali?
Then why do some people incessantly criticize the way our youngsters speak and penalize those who are incapable of speaking immaculate Bengali? Youths all around the world use their own style of verbal communication and this style is unique in every country. I think we must be more tolerant towards cultural differences and diversities in our society. We can have our constructive personal opinions. But like inflexible fundamentalists, we cannot adopt a narrow tyrannical approach. We cannot hurt people’s sentiment in the process. I really don’t understand why some people can’t mind their own business! My words to these people are: “Please don’t make simple things complicated, enjoy and let others enjoy”!

The writer is a freelancer

 

Cultural fundamentalism

We must accept the fact that there will always be some people who are incapable of speaking in the so-called “perfect Bangla” and we must gracefully respect this difference

We often use the phrase religious fundamentalism to define people who are characterized by religious bigotry. Apparently, these people endeavour to forcefully impose their values and outlooks on others. However, its evident that bigotry is not only restricted within the field of religion. Unfortunately, there are people in this world who often try to impede individual liberty of others by imposing their own cultural norms on others. As a country, Bangladesh has an affluent culture and its obvious that our culture deeply influences our lifestyle. As a race, we profoundly respect our culture, our language and our rich heritage. However, there is a group of people in our country who can be regarded as cultural bigots, as they often fervently criticize cultural differences and the way others choose to live their own life. They often even try to modify the way people speak in their personal life. Apparently, the language we use in our personal life is solely a matter of our individual choice. My way of speaking is an integral part of my individuality. Its essentially a product of my education and my unique life experiences. Any attempt to alter that is nothing but a breach of a persons individual right. I think here I must illustrate a real-life example in order to clarify my arguments. Few days back I went to attend a Bengali radio programme (as the winner of a contest). During the interval of the show as I was speaking with the other guests about some trivial issues, the programme host and the other guests attacked me verbally for using English words in my Bengali communication. I was taken aback by surprise. I simply told them thats how I usually talk in my personal life and its generally not possible for a person to modify the way he talks. Moreover, I argued that my speaking style is completely a matter of my individual liberty and no one has the right to dictate me about that. If I spoke in immaculate Bengali, I wouldnt be honest to my own personality. They were behaving as if it was a major transgression to use even a single English word in our conversation. As if they were expecting me to speak in impeccable Bengali. I was really upset by their blatantly rude behaviour. I silently thought why these people were so intolerant towards something that they dont approve of. I didnt debate much and as I was leaving I recalled the name of the radio channel, which consisted of the first three letters of the English alphabet! Just think about it. Although they chiefly broadcast Bengali programmes and criticize people who cant speak pure Bengali, they themselves didnt hesitate to adopt an English name for their radio channel. Isnt it hypocritical? I really dont know why some people cannot tolerate differences. The world is characterized by magnificent diversity. Why do some people want to change others and establish a uniform society? If they have some strong convictions about something they can pursue it in their own lives. They dont have the right to modify others. Only fundamentalists engage in such malicious activities. Fundamentalists endeavour to change others for the sake of their own beliefs and values. For me it was ironic to see people, who claim to be the representatives of individualism, behaving like some cheap bigots. We all love our language and its obviously important to encourage others to use good Bengali. However, we must accept the fact that there will always be some people who are incapable of speaking in the so-called perfect Bangla and we must gracefully respect this difference. Nowadays we witness many debates about the language used in creative works and the way our youngsters speak. We watch countless media talk-shows where participants argue about the significance of spreading unblemished Bengali throughout the country. However, most of the TV channels that broadcast these talk-shows invariably carry English names (ETV, Channel I, NTV, ATN, RTV, Channel One, etc.). Moreover, most of the intellectuals, who attend these talk shows and vehemently criticize our youngsters way of speaking, do not send their children to Bengali medium schools. Isnt it hypocritical? Its undeniable that we all deeply respect our native language and culture. But the language we use in our personal conversation is essentially a matter of habit of many years and its also an evident byproduct of the type of education we receive and our socio-cultural atmosphere. If today our youngsters use a hybrid (mixed) language in their personal communication, it wont be wise to create autocratic rules to modify their style. Instead, we must try to incorporate cultural values into their learning process, so that they can properly learn and understand the history and significance of their own language. Apart from that, the mode of speaking we choose is purely a matter of our individual choice. Its regrettable that, in our country we still havent been able to create universal respect for individualism and freedom of choice. There are promising debates in the media everyday about what must be the proper mode of speaking of common people. But is it really possible to change the way in which general people choose to speak in their personal life? And why mustnt a creative individual have the right to use his chosen language in his creative works? Can we really make a law that will legally oblige everyone to speak in flawless Bengali? Then why do some people incessantly criticize the way our youngsters speak and penalize those who are incapable of speaking immaculate Bengali? Youths all around the world use their own style of verbal communication and this style is unique in every country. I think we must be more tolerant towards cultural differences and diversities in our society. We can have our constructive personal opinions. But like inflexible fundamentalists, we cannot adopt a narrow tyrannical approach. We cannot hurt peoples sentiment in the process. I really dont understand why some people cant mind their own business! My words to these people are: Please dont make simple things complicated, enjoy and let others enjoy! The writer is a freelancer