lecture circuits and the continuing relevance of oscar wilde

oscar wilde wrote about the complex web of relations in victorian england the best. the social circle was select and one had to gain approval from one of the reigning deities of the constellation of divas to be able to penetrate the higher echelons of this society. once entering the select circle you had to don the garb and speak the language of the society or were ostracized. its not easy and many have fallen by the wayside in their attempts.

we were at the mumbai university today-all day- for a symposium on globalization and the dispossessions occurring in the city. the world of khadi kurta clad lecture ciruit intellectuals over there also seemed to follow much the same rules that wilde so precisely described in his stories. the same chemistry between individuals and rules that appear different but really only replicate similar formations from ages ago.

the classic tale is always the one about innocence lost and the corruption within the machinations of sophisticated society. many a poor damsel has been giggled at for wearing her lipstick all wrong or wearing a totally mismatched pairs of shoes much to her and our embarrassment. somehow her gawkiness reflects on the entire social structure and it builds in systems to weed such brazen behaviour out.

when a debutante is trying to find her place in the finely attuned structure of this world she must first of all deny that she ever existed in a space outside it. her mentor whom she probably does favors for helps her in that. the transformation has to leave no trace of her background or her alliances outside the approved circle. in public any older or unacceptable alliances are to be denied. instead, one has to hobnob with the powerful, rub shoulders with the gatekeepers- as it were- of this domain.

the unfortunate thing is that somewhere and somehow the transformation is never complete. she is always anxious about the facade cracking and her real self being seen. this leaves her perpetually insecure searching for constant approval and the operations by which she begins to deny her true self become even more violent.

this alienation from her own being keeps her in a constant circle of self justifying arguments from where there is no way out but through a rigorous and traumatic self examination. a purging.

well, it was interesting watching the space of the khadi clad social circuit play itself out today. anger dissipates easily into the ironical eye, giving perspective offering detachment. from this detached place, it is somewhat sad to see a space for the struggle for individual freedom and fulfillment replicate the patterns of all the totalising and normalising systems it is trying to resist.

still, david harvey was the man of the moment. he spoke beautifully, clearly and seemed truly engaged with political activism and theory. the grand narrative he sketched out was fascinating. saskia sassen was the other star and neil smith tomorrow.