Yesterday I had the privilege of speaking in a panel organised by the Select Centre. The first of 3 panels exploring the influence of Singapore's changing society on Literature and how it is taught and learnt, I was joined by fellow panellists Tan Tarn How and Prof. Tan Chee Lay, moderated by Prof. Philip Holden. The venue was packed thanks to fortuitous timing (it was the March school holidays), excellent coordinating by William Phuan and his team, not to mention the relevancy of the topic at hand.
Our topic for the evening was on why study Literature. As the first speaker, I pointed out that we are dealing with vanishing things, be it interest in English Literature, reading, or the state of Chinese Literature. My opening remark was met with slight dismay from Prof. Tan, but the fact remains that regardless of language, literary appreciation in Singapore is in dire straits. Tan Tarn How, in positing reading as a protest against power structures and a general deficit in the soul, admitted his remarks were akin to selling ice to Eskimos—a concerned crowd was in attendance tonight, and what we had to say was perhaps nothing new to them. That said, much was (un)covered over the course of 2 hours. The speakers, moderator and audience contributed various perspectives, which made for stimulating discussion. Among the points covered—and there were plenty—Prof. Tan's observation that literary writing holds a cracked mirror to ourselves, revealing our flaws and frailties, resonated with me. Science often speaks from a position of strength; new breakthroughs are couched in terms denoting power (even the term "breakthrough" suggests forceful action). However, Literature doesn't do that. Literature, while inaccurate at times, seeks to illuminate the human condition like a lone star streaking across the sky. Tongues and backgrounds may divide us, but when we read, when we look up in the night and name the stars in our own language, we call out to a shared humanity, a commonality of experience beyond words. I left the panel pondering about Singapore's education system and its proclamations of world-class firsts in Math, Science and so on. Mastery of facts and function par excellence, in other words. But where Literature was concerned, Tan Tarn How was right: the ones who should be listening were not there.
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