I - the first person
Hi my friends,
'I' am not going to write the review about the Tamil movie 'I' six months after its release. In these days of instant communication, a cat is not killed due to curiosity as it does not have to wait for a long time to know how the just released movie is faring in the box office. On the day of the release itself, a movie is celebrated or obituarised through the social media. If a matrimonial alliance of our friends or relatives is fixed, we do not need to wait till the day of the wedding to see how a groom/bride looks like. I have seen many a prospective boy/girl's in the facebook's friends' list before seeing them on the D-day. The social media and the likes have killed the natural 'curiosity' in us if not the cat. So much for the boon and bane of the current technology. Now, I wanted to write about 'I', but seemed to have deviated a little bit and touched curiosity!
The 9th letter I is the first person singular in grammar, you (or 'u' as 'v r so used to writing these days!) being the second person, him/her being the third person. I is the shortest word, 'a' being the indefinite article which is used before the common noun. Though 'a' comes first in the alphabetical order of 'a, I, u(you)', I always comes first and the last in our minds and stands tall. It is always the heaviest in our minds and one of the dirtiest words in our vocabulary. Dirty because it is mostly clouded with ego and arrogance. The 'I' dies with the body, but sometimes it may shout loud from the grave! When an 'i'nfant (infant) is born, he/she is not devoid of mind, but is clearly devoid of 'I'. The infant becomes a toddler, then a talkative child, a rebellious/moody teenager, and then an adult. The 'I' in the toddler's and then a child's dictionary stands for innocence. The child's vocabulary does not include 'I', he/she always includes her/his name while talking. As the child reaches a certain age, 'I' starts creeping in his/her conversations. The innocence is slowly lost and ego starts building up.We listen with delight and interest when a toddler or a child talking, but with less interest when adults (include friends/acquaintances, relatives) talk only about themselves. The 'innocence' sheds its skin and is replaced by the wings of 'I' which only keeps increasing with age. The other person is willing to talk forever about their achievements, but does not have the patience to listen to the first few sentences of your talking. If they happen to be your close relatives, you cannot avoid them, but grin and bear when you meet, but you can easily shun people who are mere acquaintances.
'I'am not against this first person 'I'. As human beings, we cannot eliminate 'I' from our lives. 'I' needs to be used at all the times. If we meet new people, go for job interviews, join new institutions, or if we meet our bosom friends after a long time, it is natural that we talk about ourselves. 'I' is not a dirty word here. But if we go overboard, it will start to look ugly. 'I' will look like a monster. This shortest word always carries some weight. But it should be seen that this should include the weight of you, him/her, we, they. 'I' cannot be a standalone one. Because every 'I' is a part of the family, society. This first person should be used judiciously.
By the way, 'I' was wondering why the Tamil film directed by Shankar was named 'I' before watching the movie. Aah, 'I' in this movie is the virus which disfigured the hero. Similarly, the 'I' in real life disfigures our thinking and limits us!!
Deepa.
'I' am not going to write the review about the Tamil movie 'I' six months after its release. In these days of instant communication, a cat is not killed due to curiosity as it does not have to wait for a long time to know how the just released movie is faring in the box office. On the day of the release itself, a movie is celebrated or obituarised through the social media. If a matrimonial alliance of our friends or relatives is fixed, we do not need to wait till the day of the wedding to see how a groom/bride looks like. I have seen many a prospective boy/girl's in the facebook's friends' list before seeing them on the D-day. The social media and the likes have killed the natural 'curiosity' in us if not the cat. So much for the boon and bane of the current technology. Now, I wanted to write about 'I', but seemed to have deviated a little bit and touched curiosity!
The 9th letter I is the first person singular in grammar, you (or 'u' as 'v r so used to writing these days!) being the second person, him/her being the third person. I is the shortest word, 'a' being the indefinite article which is used before the common noun. Though 'a' comes first in the alphabetical order of 'a, I, u(you)', I always comes first and the last in our minds and stands tall. It is always the heaviest in our minds and one of the dirtiest words in our vocabulary. Dirty because it is mostly clouded with ego and arrogance. The 'I' dies with the body, but sometimes it may shout loud from the grave! When an 'i'nfant (infant) is born, he/she is not devoid of mind, but is clearly devoid of 'I'. The infant becomes a toddler, then a talkative child, a rebellious/moody teenager, and then an adult. The 'I' in the toddler's and then a child's dictionary stands for innocence. The child's vocabulary does not include 'I', he/she always includes her/his name while talking. As the child reaches a certain age, 'I' starts creeping in his/her conversations. The innocence is slowly lost and ego starts building up.We listen with delight and interest when a toddler or a child talking, but with less interest when adults (include friends/acquaintances, relatives) talk only about themselves. The 'innocence' sheds its skin and is replaced by the wings of 'I' which only keeps increasing with age. The other person is willing to talk forever about their achievements, but does not have the patience to listen to the first few sentences of your talking. If they happen to be your close relatives, you cannot avoid them, but grin and bear when you meet, but you can easily shun people who are mere acquaintances.
'I'am not against this first person 'I'. As human beings, we cannot eliminate 'I' from our lives. 'I' needs to be used at all the times. If we meet new people, go for job interviews, join new institutions, or if we meet our bosom friends after a long time, it is natural that we talk about ourselves. 'I' is not a dirty word here. But if we go overboard, it will start to look ugly. 'I' will look like a monster. This shortest word always carries some weight. But it should be seen that this should include the weight of you, him/her, we, they. 'I' cannot be a standalone one. Because every 'I' is a part of the family, society. This first person should be used judiciously.
By the way, 'I' was wondering why the Tamil film directed by Shankar was named 'I' before watching the movie. Aah, 'I' in this movie is the virus which disfigured the hero. Similarly, the 'I' in real life disfigures our thinking and limits us!!
Deepa.
Very well written article Deepa!
ReplyDeleteThanks Kiran...
ReplyDelete