‘The best distinction between modern and traditional world is the way we think’-Max Weber
Modernity, a historical period can be defined as the modern way of living accepting industrialisation, rejecting and questioning tradition, promoting individualism, rise of the humanism and formal equality, and preferring the instrumental rationalisation over believes and norms.It supported liberalism, private property, free market and capitalism, enhanced the forms of surveillance.
Tradition on the other hand is inherent system of customs and believes which have specific symbolic meanings and social significance.
History is considered a linear phenomenon by European thinkers as chain of events that followed one after another without any possibility of things beings different. In a linear way such as this happened and then that happened and so on. This linear form of history convinces that the time is progressive which suggests that modernization is progressives, modernisation which inhibited man with idea of rigid identity, ultra-nationalism and alienation.
On the other hand, the concept of time being cyclic is given in ancient philosophy of Hinduism and Greeks. In Hindu philosophy, it is called kalchakara(cycle of time) which says that there is a cycle in nature. Every physical phenomenon is repetitive, cyclic and predictive so is time. The idea of time being cyclic is also debated by post-modern thinkers as well like Nietzsche. He states that things repeat in the same pattern again and again.
Time has been made into a linear form of history by modern historian to make it look more progressive. To establish the idea that the past as savage, ignorant, brutish. So, they can justify themselves as the saviours who bring progress it is not more than very famous concept of civilizing other.
The illusion of freedom was also the product of modernity
Thus, tradition is also something from the past so it should be abandoned and the new ways of looking at the life should be accepted and permitted which are more modern.
Process of modernity was exceeded after WWI and WWII. Human condition was devastating there was no hope for man who has seen the massive destruction of time. In the time of despair modernity gave men the different kinds of illusions.
In pre modern times, people were satisfied and compliant with their fate and what they had was sufficient for them because they considered it given by divinity. But modernity gave men the false hope that man is able to reach to any position with the help of his hard work. He can do anything this illusion is the very foundation of capitalism that you can reach to any position anything can happen with continuous struggle and hard work.
The illusion of freedom was also the product of modernity. In romantic literature,there is a rebellion individualistic behaviour exists. To relentlessly undermine the social norms and modernity folds this effort of individual liberty which give us modern attitudes of selfishness. Societies which were formed by the pre-modern concepts of selflessness and devotion are now infected by this modern notion of having a freedom to choose and do anything without conforming to any communal rules. This again is the degradation of tradition which left the man alone because now he is self-accountable now his fall will not be consider as a fall of one of community member who can be consoled be collective sympathies rather he will be pushed into the depth of deep depression for failing because he would not have anyone around to look at to share his burden with, this is how the illusion of the freedom works to isolate man from clan so he could became more productive for capitalism.
These are illusions because they promised man to be more of what he is. These illusions have caused him Destruction and intolerance. Modern man has reduced into a machine for industrialization.
T. S Eliot was a modernist, a literary movement which was a reaction to modernity.
In his essay “tradition and individual talent” he argues that modern man cannot make his individual existence separate from his tradition. He critiques the way by which tradition was demeaned by modernity. He rejected the static label which is often given to tradition. According to Eliot, tradition is a living experience which can only be attained by hard labour and it functions even in present, exert influence on our ideas, perceptions and consciousness. He believes that tradition is not linear but spatial because not only past influence the present but present also influence the past.
In his play The Rock written and performed in 1934, the following selected lines show his pro-religious, anti-fascist views in reaction to prevailing modernity
O weariness of man who turned from God
To the grandeur of your mind and glory of your action,
To arts and inventions and daring enterprises
To the schemes of human greatness thoroughly discredited.
Binding the earth and water to your service,
Exploiting the seas and developing the mountains,
Dividing the stars into common and preferred
Engaged in devising the perfect refrigerator,
Engaged in working out rational morality,
Turning from your vacancy to fevered enthusiasm
For nation or race or what you call humanity;
Though you forget the way to temple,
Moving towards the consequences of modernity it can be observed that it bereft man alone.
It caused unhappiness and despair in societies. In pre modern, traditional societies people belonged to a clan or tribe or a class. An individual did not make decision for themselves they became part of the existing fabric of society without questioning. But modernity gives individual to step out of that fabric which is set by family and make decision for himself.
Modernity end up bringing a society without any meta-narrative and metaphysical believe.Thus, render man alone, snatching his faith and trust on something beyond himself.
Modernity does not have any moral authority to guide them. Morality itself has become a relative term. Man has left with no moral constrains because modernity only focused on the materiality. Men lost the shared deeper meaning of life. Depth of meanings tends to be lacking in modernist societies.
The sense of community and consolation that religion offers is highly important. The instrumental rationality and modernity do not offer any opportunity for profound shared experience.
So, the modern-day man has left with no choice, family as well as state both have failed to give him the larger sense of meaning and belonging, providing him the sense that heare part of something more valuable than himself. Modernity bereft man dangerously from communal solace.
Meanwhile tradition gives this sense of belonging and offers a collective communal experience. To conclude it could be said that for Eliot tradition and individual talent both are interdependent for their excellence. Modern man has no identity for his/her own alone.
This identity needs its evaluation from a definite source and that source is tradition.
The writer is doing masters in English Literature at GCU who has a delicate interest in postmodern theory and subaltern studies
Published in Daily Times, March 24th 2019.