Benjamin’s thesis on art and fascism

‎”’Fascism sees its salvation in giving the masses not their right, but instead a chance to express themselves.’ –Walter Benjamin (Illuminations, 241; Gesammelte Schriften, I: 506}

In his seminal essay ”work of art in the age of technical reproducibility”, Benjamin argued that under capitalism people’s solidarity is broken into individual alienation. In this chance, Fascism advocates false political ideology by representing collective identity before the alienated masses. Thus fascism diverts the people’s attention from growing economic inequality and deprivation resulted from capitalism and give them a false impression that they are part of something bigger than themselves(nation, religion etc). By re-individualizing collective identity fascism aestheticizes politics.In other words, Fascism puts anesthesia on people’s democratic development.

Due to mechanical reproducibility art is gradually losing its aura. Benjamin says ”withering away of aura” borrowing from Marx’s ”withering away of state”. Thus art is becoming more and more democratic. Fascism uses this (democratic aspect of art) in its anti-democratic means. To say in Benjamin’s own words, fascism uses latest hardware(film for example) and archaic software (national/religious myth, symbol for example).On the contrary, Benjamin says, communism replies by democratizing (politicizing) art.

Reference:
http://www.marxists.org/reference/subject/philosophy/works/ge/benjamin.htm

 

Relocating Michael Moore as a liberal political commentator

Michel Moore is one of the most influential figures in America now-a-days. He is the director and producer of Bowling for Columbine, Fahrenheit 9/11, Sicko, & Capitalism: A love story four of the top nine highest-grossing documentaries of all time.

I’ve seen Moore’s documentary ‘’ Capitalism: a love story’’ recently. It seems to me that though Michel Moore is critical about globalization, large corporations, assault weapon ownership, the Iraq War, U.S. President George W. Bush and the American health care system, I think he push the limit up to the right based movement. Thus his works might give false impression to the audiences that re-shaping the liberal welfare state is enough to solve the socio-economic problems of the working class. His style of negation (of capitalism, globalization, large corporations, monopoly capital) is not revolutionary per se capable of posing a real threat against the American Imperialism.

 

Response to “Feminisation of work in the era of globalisation: a process of undermining workers’ rights”; A critique from below

Civil society won’t fuel the garment’s movement. Because they are engineering the neo-liberal regime in this region. The changing face of the role of women in production and labor markets is indeed a noticeable issue. It is interesting to note that, Neoliberalism is increasingly incorporating the semi-feudal remnants to maintain its own hegemony. Indeed it is a symptom of a failure of progressive bourgeoisie/capitalist rationality which has its root in the enlightenment project. This revival parallels the enhanced capacity of multinational capital to take Fordist mass-production systems abroad (which I would call peripheral fordism), and there to exploit extremely vulnerable women’s labour power under conditions of extremely low pay and negligible job security. The strong trade union based revolutionary worker’s movement (allied with impoverished peasants) could emancipate women workers from the chain of trans-national capital.

Main Article :
http://opinion.bdnews24.com/2011/05/08/feminisation-of-work-in-the-era-of-globalisation-a-process-of-undermining-workers%E2%80%99-rights/#comment-17640

 

Narineeti: two sides of perversion

Narineeti is an integral part of capitalist modernization project. NGO-shushil Samaj-state trio is propagating Narineeti on behalf of their Imperialist masters. In fact, there is little possibility to af…firm the dignity of women (as well as equal access to land and resource) if the system (mastanocracy in the name of democracy) pertains. As Allain Badiou argued, we need to fight against democracy which is the political manifestation of neoliberal capitalism. Imperial masters and their representatives (state-military-corporate trio, the NGOs, mainstream media) often propagate the human rights to distract people’s attention from political struggle for changing the existing mode of production as well as social relations which creates the condition of inequality between haves/have nots, men/women, majorities/minorities etc. On the other hand, Amini is a backward political Islamist who gained reputation for opposing Narineeti (National Women Development Policy 2011) approved by Hasina government. In fact, Amini strengthened Hasina’s position being the major opponent of Hasina. It is easier to fight against backward political Islamists than encountering radical revolutionary force. Once again, the absence of strong radical revolutionary force is acutely felt.

 

Saibaba discourse

The spiritualism propagad by Sai Baba is not inextricably linked with typical/traditional Hinduism. He is a new age spiritualist (essentially capitalist–liberal–autistic hedonist). Now-a-days Indian spiritual Gurus have become the new Padres of neoliberal capitalism. They often fatishizes/fantasizes/misinterprets the different philosophical schools (for example: Vaisnava-Sahajiya- tantric school) of Hinduism and the symbols/ icons/signifiers associated to it (which reduces the socio-political/ spatio-temporal significance of the religious movements )

 

Modernity Discuss : Jibonananda Das and Nazrul Islam

(Draft. to be continued….)
Part 1

I think, the modernism represented by Jibonananda Das is Heideggerian in essence. Though, time-space formulation (as well as formulation of modernity) by Yeatsian-Poundian-Eliotesque school (Jibonananda Das included) is quite different from that of Heideggerian formulation. I’ll try later to specify the two different school. But one thing is common among all of them, that is, they tried to glorify space over time, being over becoming, permanence over temporality. Specially, Jibonananda’s  aspiration for memory/past/ myth can be identified as a tendency to posit space against time (temporal tyranny/turmoil of capitalism/colonialism). We can term it reactionary modernism.
Let me quote from the Poems:

”তবুও তো প্যাঁচা জাগে;
গলিত স্থবির ব্যাং আরো দুই মুহূর্তের ভিক্ষা মাগে
আরেকটি প্রভাতের ইশারায় – অনুমেয় উষ্ণ অনুরাগে।

টের পাই যূথচারী আঁধারের গাঢ় নিরুদ্দেশে
চারিদিকে মশারির ক্ষমাহীন বিরুদ্ধতা;
মশা তার অন্ধকার সঙ্ঘারামে জেগে থেকে জীবনের স্রোত ভালোবাসে।

রক্ত ক্লেদ বসা থেকে রৌদ্রে ফের উড়ে যায় মাছি;
সোনালি রোদের ঢেউয়ে উড়ন্ত কীটের খেলা কতো দেখিয়াছি।

ঘনিষ্ঠ আকাশ যেন – যেন কোন বিকীর্ণ জীবন
অধিকার করে আছে ইহাদের মন;
দূরন্ত শিশুর হাতে ফড়িঙের ঘন শিহরণ
মরণের সাথে লড়িয়াছে;”
[আট বছর আগের একদিন, জীবনানন্দ দাশ]

”জমি উপড়ায়ে ফেলে চ’লে গেছে চাষা
নতুন লাঙল তার পড়ে আছে, — পুরানো পিপাসা
জেগে আছে মাঠের উপরে :
সময় হাঁকিয়া যায় পেঁচা ওই আমাদের তরে!
হেমন্তের ধান ওঠে ফ’লে –
দুই পা ছড়ায়ে বস এইখানে পৃথিবীর কোলে”

”অলস মাছির শব্দে ভ’রে থাকে সকালের বিষণ্ন সময়,
পৃথিবীরে মায়াবীর নদীর পারের দেশ বলে মনে হয়;
সকল পড়ন্ত রোদ চারিদিকে ছুটি পেয়ে জমিতেছে এইখানে এসে,
গ্রীষ্মের সমুদ্র থেকে চোখের ঘুমের গান আসিতেছে ভেসে,
এখানে পালঙ্কে শুয়ে কাটিবে অনেক দিন জেগে থেকে ঘুমাবার
সাধ ভালোবেসে!”
[অবসরের গান, জীবনানন্দ দাশ]

”I do not want to go anywhere so fast.
Whatever my life wants I have time to reach
there walking”
[Of 1934 - a poem on Motor Car, Jibonanda Das ]

Jibonananda Das suffused the present with the fetischized/fantasized schizophrenic imaginary of the past. I can’t see any consistent idea of time (whether circular or linear) in his poetry which is symptomatically schizophrenic I think. Though, I wouldn’t categorize Jibonanda Das as a postmodern poet. Many modern poets expressed their distrust towards meta narrative, linear motion of time.

On the contrary, Nazrul’s modernism is relatively progressive as it emphasizes on the emancipation of human subjectivity, ultimate triumph of labour over capital etc. His ‘Bidroho’ was the process of creative destruction in aesthetic field.
I think, Nazrul realized what Marx wrote in The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte –

‘’The social revolution of the nineteenth century can ony create its poetry from the future, not the past.’’
Nazrul conceived an alternative future in the midst of chaos/ephemerality/despair. I think, his originality lies there.

 

Cricket has become the battle ground of politics

Over the next fortnight, cricket fever sweeps across the country. For the first time, Bangladesh has become the host country of World Cup Cricket Tournament. Moreover, Bangladesh got a chance to organize the opening ceremony. Government budgeted around 50 million dollar to organize the event. No one raise the question that is it just for a poverty ridden county to spend so much money in organizing a tournament ?? No wonder, our people are cricket crazy. The ruling political party (awami-league) as well as other nationalist bourgeois parties are fueling the craziness as it diverts the people’s attention from the major socio-political problems. In the opening ceremony, speakers from Bangladesh were trying to uphold the image of prime minister. Govt. tried the best to project a developed image of our country to foreign guests as well as country people. Actually the entire opening ceremony was excluded from the have-nots. I’ve watched the ceremony on TV. The ceremony gave the false impression as if we were living in a rich country. How ridiculous !! Moreover, the multi-national companies captured the tournament. They are multiplying their profits. Now ” Drink Pepsi and enjoy Cricket” has become the slogan. Cricket has become the new opium for the masses. Even the rickshaw pullers are excited for the tournament.

But like football, Cricket has its revolutionary potentials. In Latin America, Maradona has become a hero against imperialist power just after Hugo Chavez and Fidel Castro. The Latin American people assert that Maradona took revenge against imperialist countries for century long oppression by  defeating them in the battle ground of football. When subalterns are unable to defeat their oppressors politically, they try to take revenge in the battle ground of culture. I believe, Cricket is a great means to unite people and to form a collective consensus.  But what it is needed is to reveal its revolutionary potentials to the masses.

 

There is a great chaos under the heaven

”There is a great chaos under the heaven, the situation is excellent”__Mao Tse Tung

We are seeing a great political upheaval across the Arab world. Arabs are breaking their stereotypes (often propagated by western corporate media) as politically-inactive, superstitious, fanatic people. World is witnessing that Arabs can rage against the autocracy tyranny and oppression . There are thousands of Arab women protesting for freedom, justice and dignity. The presence of young people in demonstrations is mentionable. The Internet have played a crucial role in spreading revolution from Tunisia to Egypt, Libya, Bahrain, Yemen. Face book, twitter and You tube have offered a way to organize and mobilize masses.  Al Zazeera is playing a very important role in broadcasting the updated news of the demonstrations.

In Egypt, the revolution is leaderless which is worth mentionable indeed. In fact, there are a number of hidden leaders who are mainly educated, technologically skilled youth. They spread the message of revolution via face book, twitter and you tube. In Egypt, Muslims and Christians fought side by side against the Mubarak regime and compelled Mubarak to flee away from the country. At the very last movement of the demonstration, armed force gave their support to masses. Now the military took the power promising that they will handle power to the elected government. Though the situation is open and unpredictable, we hope that Arabs will establish true democracy rejecting the US prescribed liberal democracy. We are looking forward to seeing  how Arabs are going to solve land, environment and women questions in future.

 

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