A banner reading 'Not afraid' is seen as people gather around the Monument a la Republique, at the Place de la Republique in Paris, on Sunday. AFPThe IS' propaganda machinery used to spread images of a masked, armed militant standing next to a kneeling hostage awaiting brutal death. The organisation used that image not to intimidate, but to attract. That is because the prehistoric human in all of us enjoyed inflicting brutality or at least seeing it being inflicted.
Culture seeks to subdue such basic urges, which unfortunately cannot be obliterated from each one of us. The French media showed that rare restraint and culture when the nation was recently attacked by terrorists.
The images that the media streamed or printed did not figure dismembered bodies or wailing faces, in spite of the fact that they are good business material to promote the prospects of a media house. Even the most stone-willed person might look at them a second time were they published. The media however, showed the restraint and maturity to desist from monetising the tragedy that befell the nation. They also prevented themselves from intruding into the privacy of those unfortunate victims who had to bear the tragedy in full. Perhaps, some would remember how the American media displayed the same restraint during the 9/11 incident.
The Indian media, in contrast, would have sought to assuage and even fuel the primitive urges in its readers. While there is nothing like the Indian urge or the foreign urge to revel in macabre imagery, not being party to fuelling that urge is a commendable gesture.
If the same situation had happened in India, the media would have revelled in misplaced patriotism and splashed livid images of the mishap. Politicians would have followed suit to use the misfortune to trade emotions for patriotism. Similarly, Cricket matches are venues where ridiculous patriotism is displayed.
Such events in India serve as a level playing field for the government and the opposition to trade charges. In contrast, in France, the opposition used the occasion to stand by the government in the combined fight against terrorism. In India, the situation and its consequences could even take a communal tone and serve to polarise the society.
What we see here is the unfortunate absence of definition, valuation and delimitation of culture. While we are proud of our culture, we give it a miss in real lives, when we are expected to act genially.
How can one be surprised by a society whose morality is limited to sex and where blood and gore is shown, uninhibited, to young children who could be influenced by it? How can one be surprised that disasters are used for political manipulation in a nation where patriotism is measured by the runs scored in a cricket match? All talk of culture is reflected in our past and in the present, we are forced to step back and search for cues at the mere mention of culture.
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