Villain in the jungle

Jayantha Senevirathna

Sorry, I swear it's not 'Village in the Jungle', but the 'villain' poaching on Sir Ivor Jennings's turf.

It's sickening even to bring the legendary Leonard Woolf into the bizarre scene, and, thousands apologies for bestowing the knighthood on Ivor Dennis. Please be kind enough to the inferior, vulgar, sadistic (add more to the list till several self-complacent citizens get themselves contented) villain humming 'Lanka, Lanka....' Oddly, an eager time-traveller, addicted to the luxuries of slavish obedience commanded in the colonial era, may still day dream of songs styled on to the tunes of 'Bianca Castafiore,' the famed singer in Adventures of Tintin.

But people say that they have steadily been becoming outdated acolytes on the verge of extinction. And, worst, such isolated leftovers still belittle the villain as a gatecrasher crudely making inroads into the much hallowed vistas down the valleys of panoramic Hanthana mountain range. Is the villain really a trespasser?

Had Sir Ivor secretly bestowed the timeless beauty to his self-proclaimed darlings by way of a sworn statement? Villain sometimes wonders why all this fuss is? Villain is not there to learn English and technology. English is a medium of communication and technology is a tool.

Sir Ivor would never have dreamt of English speaking graduates selling soap, fizzy drinks, chocolates or cigarettes, and insipid technocrats who touch buttons to make use of application software. And, even though tempting in a market economy, villain does not much fancy selling in broad day light. He is the forgotten intellectual superior continuously abused by inferiors.

Sir Ivor, the luminary from Cambridge University, might have dreamt of a process of social change and scholars who can add fodder for thought to get rich socially. And, peculiarly, Leonard Woolf, another luminary from Cambridge University, also adds some thought.

'Village in the Jungle' not only offers a unique perspective of nature and habits of wild animals, but also of rural folk living in the densest of jungles. What a perspective the author offers with an artist's eye for precise detail.

He loved animals, people and, most of all, the forest. He never disparaged or abused them. He never used vicious adjectives to describe the wildest of animals, and it was a tale of admiration and harmony. It enriched the souls and minds of the local readership. He hadn't found villains even in the most rustic and remotest places. What a loving tribute to people in an adopted country.

Of course, there's a communication gap. A gap widening day by day, and should be filled as soon as possible. But if we see inferiority, vandalism and prejudice in undergraduates everyday, it become second nature to us, and our naivety and insensitivity only add to our own ignorance.

If we are not convinced that we are a part of something we wish, it's easy for an outsider to convince us to be a part in some other cause. We are social animals and we have to be a part of a certain segment. That's where the politics come in.

We never hang on to dead weights going down to depths in deep waters, but to objects that already float. Who cares for political deadweights? If the route cause stems from personnel who fish on muddy waters for political mileage, then the lackadaisical political figures who fail to counterbalance are responsible.

If Sir Ivor Jennings is to live today to witness the unrest, rebellion and murder taken place at Peradeniya University, a brainchild of his, he would never have come out with such vicious words.

The political and social scene of Ceylon changed significantly due to social influences affected by educated young graduates the universities produced, and it would invariably have shifted power to the interests of the broadest population rather than remaining faithful to the old aristocratic rulers. At the outset, it was a perfect mechanism.

For instance, the most popular mode of transport from Colombo to Kandy is by train these days. It's quick, cheap and leisurely. But the service has been degenerating since colonists left it to the local hands. And, one commonplace that passengers are fond of uttering while venting their anger is the curse 'Sudda giyata pass, mokuth karala ne.' So are universities.

In Peradeniya University, the right to investigate fields of knowledge and freedom of expression was highly valued from the outset. It not only inculcated established views, but also enlarged existing bodies of academic disciplines.

Accordingly, there had been a revival of culture, art and science. But this trend hadn't persisted for long. It's not relevant to discuss it in the debate, but we must remember that there were times when our universities were benevolent institutions towards the betterment of the nation.

Therefore, it's really unfair to put the blame on students who have nothing to do with it. Just remember that "Google" is a university project carried out by two teenage students at Stanford University nearly a decade ago. Many global enterprises are started off as projects by teenage students at university level.

"Wherever an inferiority complex exists, there is a good reason for it, "observed Carl Jung, not the half-baked pundits preaching censure everywhere. It's true that there is a crippling sense of inferiority prevailing, and it manifests itself in aggressive behaviour.

Inferiority suggests lack of confidence, and lack of confidence reflects lack of perspective. Just go to a remote school and ask the principal to assemble the most gifted students following GCE O/L examination.

Ask them what subjects they would do if they wish to be doctors, engineers, lawyers, teachers, and so on. You will be surprised to find that they all are searching through the darkness.

Before advocating censure at the university, it's advisable to look into route causes also. But there are souls driven by a single consuming passion for excellence, and they reach their goals even in dire circumstances. They are the real go-getters. Sir Ivor Jennings might have dreamt of them honing their skills in the institution he gifted to the nation.

Like it or not, patients consult doctors who call a strike at the drop of a hat.

The executive is full of administrators who don't care, and lawyers exploit poor villagers at the judiciary, let alone the politicians negotiating the legislature. It's sickening to think that most of them are graduates benefited by poor taxpayer's money. They are cursed by the public.

How did they become so selfish and ignorant? And, for one, it's not news now. We all know that another person under Hippocratic Oath is under police arrest for alleged molesting of an innocent garment worker.

The weakness in all those people is their desire for respectability, a difficult ambition and for some it is impossible. Maltreated patients, exploited plaintiffs and the harassed public know that they are not respectable, even though their costumes seem opulent.

In fact, increasing levels of violence, vandalism and assaults inside universities are really malevolent in nature. And, it paved the way for two rebellions against democratically elected governments in 1971 and 1989. Student protest movements escalated into massive strikes paralysing countries in many occasions.

These students wanted to be men of honour, not men of means. Youth are driven by ideals. But as intellectuals, they learn how to separate wheat from the chaff in quick succession. And, we shouldn't forget the fact that most of the revolutionary leaders of the 1971 rebellion practice mainstream politics, and they don't believe in rebellions now. So are today's revolutionaries.