the perils of reading 1984 in Singapore
errr... hello. Yes this is a sheepish me, it seems I haven't blogged in weeks and not once since coming to s'pore/m'sia. So very lazy... bad lx, bad bad lx.Well, instead of recounting the many things that have happened since arriving in s'pore/m'sia, instead I'd like to talk about my recent blogging inspiration...
I'm reading George Orwell's nineteen eighty four at the moment, which is not a good idea for a book to read in Singapore, let me tell you. Imagine reading about a dystopian society where everyone is a drone slave to the Party and is under constant surveillance 24 hours a day... in Singapore. Imagine reading about Party members, all with the same look on their face, filing into work or to lunch... and then seeing rows upon rows of Singaporeans going up and down escalators into malls on Orchard Rd. Imagine reading that "BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING YOU" in the novel and looking up to read a sign at the very place you stand that reads "this MRT station is monitored by over 40 CCTV cameras for your protection"... yes, thanks Big Brother... or Big Lee Kwan Yew or whoever you are.
Also, it should be noted, that this is not a particularly good book to reading when going through any sort of personal hardship, because it offers a rather bleak world view.
Overall, I struggle to think of a good time and/or place to read this novel without depressing or frightening oneself. Perhaps in a field full of flowers with green as far as the eye can see, and the sun shining bright... so we can marvel and be grateful at the freedoms of our existence...
Well, this is impossible in the perpetually rain-sodden concrete jungle that is Singapore... so I shall have to stick with crammed MRT trains/stations and cafe chains in gleaming malls full of the salivating masses...
Until next time, gentle reader....
posted by LX @ 3:27 AM
Comments: 3
