"Final thoughts on narratives"

Final thoughts on narratives of hope and despair

So here we are, with summer just around the corner and only one more week left with this semester. I am excited to be finally walking and starting my internship next month. With that said this will also be my last blog (for my Multicultural literature class that is). I still hope to be blogging into the summer if time permits me. During the course of this semester we have covered works of 5 authors including the book by our very own professor, Rob Burton, titled ‘Artists of the Floating World’. Among the other authors are Kazuo Ishiguro, Bessie Head, Bharati Mukherjee and Salman Rushdie.

Looking back on all the stories we’ve covered, the question arises as to how one chooses to be a responsible citizen of the floating world? What does being a responsible citizen of the floating world constitute of, in the first place? According to Burton in Artists of the Floating World, “Firstly, to be a citizen of the floating world is to recognize and acknowledge the narratives that constitute our identity….” (p. 131) Burton also goes on to say that these narratives are constantly being altered and changed. Looking back at the story of Masuji Ono in “An Artist of the Floating World” by Kazuo Ishiguro one can understand this.

Masuji Ono, an upper middle class retired artist and teacher living in post-war Japan, was highly regarded by his pupils. “His reputation will become all the greater, and in years to come, our proudest honor will be to tell others that we were once the pupils of Masuji Ono” (Ishiguro p.25). However, Ono was caught in between various worlds, such as that of pre-war and post-war Japan. In pre-war Japan, he was a very well reputed artist and highly regarded person. However, during post-war Japan, things changed with the war ending unfavorably for Japan and Ono’s reputation being questionable. This was primarily due to the fact that Ono shifted from being an artist of the floating world to creating art for propaganda, specifically in support of the war. Although reputed for his patriotism toward his country during the war, Ono’s choices were now being criticized and blamed for causing the death of many soldiers. Ono does not accept this and escapes reality by ‘reliving’ his past with a sense of nostalgia. However, he finally realizes that his choices were wrong and accepts his mistake. “All I can say is that at the time I acted in good faith. I believed in all sincerity I was achieving good for my fellow countrymen. But, as you see, I am not now afraid to admit I was mistaken” (p. 123).

I think we can learn 2 important lessons from Ono. Firstly, one should not just analyze his/her actions from their point of view and justify them, but rather view themselves from an outsider’s point of view. As Burton puts it, “… it is only when we learn how to stand outside ourselves, literally seeing ourselves as a character in a novel, that we come to realize the extent to which our choices are compromised both by values consciously or unconsciously adopted by ourselves and by the communities to which we belong” (p.131). Secondly, we learn that it is harmful to be stuck in the past and let it take over us. Rather, we should move on into the future by accepting any of the mistakes we have made and enjoying any nostalgic moments we remember.

Secondly, to be a citizen of the floating world is to make ethical choices when framing our understanding of the world…” (Burton p. 131) In “A Question of Power” by Bessie Head, we see how living a life without a set frame of reference or structure can be like. Unlike in the case of Masuji Ono where we see him experiencing a gradual disruption of his frame of reference, Elizabeth, the main character (who also represents Bessie Head ) in “A Question of Power” lives a completely ‘frameless’ life. Elizabeth, born in a mental hospital in South Africa, was placed in foster care and separated from her natural mother because of a then-illicit union between her biological parents. She was rejected because she was an interracial child and thus did not have any sense of belonging. She only found out that her foster mother was not her real mother at the age of thirteen. Later on she moved from South Africa to Botswana on a ‘one-way’ exit permit. Here, she lived as a refugee; an outsider; a stranger; a ‘stateless’ person. In one of her writings, Bessie Head says “I have not a single known relative on earth … I have always been just me, with no frame of reference to anything beyond myself” (Burton p.64). The circumstances of Elizabeth’s ‘frameless life’, of her not having a sense of identify and connectivity to her parents and anything beyond herself, led to her breaking down and becoming mentally ill.

What we learn from this narrative is that it is dangerous for one to live without any frame of reference. A frame of reference is important to prevent being plunged into chaos and anarchy, deprived of bearings and compass points. However, on the other side of the argument, living with a ‘fixed’ or ‘static’ frame can also be unproductive, in that it restricts and limit one’s exposure to the world. Thus, what we can take from this narrative is to have a frame of reference, but one that is ‘fluid’ and ‘flexible’. A perfect example would be when I came to the United States. The culture shock I experienced was because things did not fit into my frame of reference. However, because of my willingness to adapt by adjusting my frame of reference I no longer experience the culture shock I used to. Had I a ‘fixed’ or ‘static’ frame of reference, I would not have learnt to embrace this new culture.