I'll start with some excerpts from a book I'm reading atm, "Heart of Darkness" by Joseph Conrad that got me thinking. Conrad is a fantastic writer, despite this book being heavily criticised by Chinua Achebe for what's perceived as a racist slant (which it certainly does have but not necessarily because Conrad himself was a racist, either way he's a great writer) and the biased picture it paints of Africa.
"... No, it is impossible; it is impossible to convey the life-sensation of any given epoch of one's existence, - that which makes its truth, its meaning - its subtle and penetrating essence. It is impossible. We live, we dream - alone..."
Here the book's narrator, Marlow, who is attempting to tell a story, is lamenting at the fact that it's impossible to express one's own experience in words. This is because of the limitations of language and verbal expression. The frustratinly limited scope of language has always been something I've struggled with and disliked about communicating. How is it possible to communicate a feeling? An emotion? When it's all inside your head (and heart?) and language is so one-dimensional, how can you possibly find "the right words" to express it?
The bit I find most interesting in the above excerpt though is "We live, we dream - alone..." Such a depressing thought but it does make sense. If we are unable to properly express our experiences, feelings and thoughts then how can we properly share them with other people? How can we properly let other people play an active role in our lives? It's like human interaction is a fumbling mess, or some uncontrollable current pulling us all along... Interesting.
"The point was in his being a gifted creature, and that of all his gifts the one that stood out pre-eminently, that carried with it a sense of real presence, was his ability to talk, his words - the gift of expression, the bewildering, the illuminating, the most exalted and the most contemptible, the pulsating stream of light, or the deceitful flow from the heart of an impenetrable darkness"
Here Marlow is describing his impending meeting with the mercurial Kurz, a foreigner who has gained unprecedented power and control over the local population. How interesting, considering the previous excerpt, to see Marlow now exalting someone for their gift of expression. I also find interesting "the deceitful flow from the heart of an impenetrable darkness", Kurz is evidently a man who uses expression to disguise his dark and selfish motives. I wonder how many other people in the world there are like Kurz. And I wonder how easy it is to fall into the trap of using the ability to influence people for evil, rather than good.
To cap off this musing, here is a pic of a chilled out moment. Layali Zaman is a coffee shop here in Bahrain that is right by the water. Smoking shisha and sipping coffee/juice by the water on a nice night, staring out at the full moon and the lights in the distance, is really one of those moments to savour.
Labels: bahrain, literature, philosophy
posted by LX @ 8:53 PM
Comments: 5
