POTENCY OF LIFE

Having been an avid fan of literature, I cannot resist the urge to talk about this most wonderful form of expression. It is needless to say that time and again this form of expression has proved beyond doubt, that it is one of the most effective tools in bringing about social change. Besides being a popular art form, literature has always been a mirror to society, often standing up for what is right and criticizing what is wrong. One of my personal favorites amongst such insightful literature is perhaps George Orwell’s ‘Animal Farm’, where the author humanizes the animals in the farm and depicts the farm itself as a microcosm of humanity. The book depicts a wonderful bouquet of characters, each signifying a particular segment of society and presents them in an engaging parody of life as he sees it. In doing so the author gives his reader much to mull over and makes reading fiction a stimulating and thought provoking exercise. Many such examples exist, of which this book is but one. Literature has also often been more than thought provoking. There have been instances in history when literature has spoken out to defend itself . One of the most eloquent of these is probably the ‘Areopagiticia’, a speech by John Milton, arguing against the Licensing Order of 1643,which instituted pre-publication censorship and was seen by many as a curtailment of the freedom of speech . Milton a known supporter of the parliament made a forceful argument against the order which has since been considered and quoted as a classical text in defense of the freedom of speech. In his arguments, Milton notes that censorship has never been a part of Greek and Roman society and uses a number of biblical and classical references to further strengthen his stand. Even though Milton’s arguments were made in an entirely different context in comparison with our own modern notions of the freedom of speech, one cannot help but marvel at the ingenuity of his expression. To quote an oft quoted extract, “For books are not absolutely dead things, but do contain a potency of life in them to be as active as that soul whose progeny they are; nay, they do preserve as in a vial the purest efficacy and extraction of that living intellect that bred them.” As we begin this small endeavor to nurture our thoughts and express them in the way we best know how, we can only hope that what we write contains even a little ‘potency of life’ in them to make a difference, if not to society, at least to ourselves.

Sreenidhi. K.R
skr.advitam@gmail.com