Oct 25, 2013

GRANDPA MACAULAY

GRANDPA MACAULAY
Khaliqur Rahman

Why do semi-literate people in the sub-continent still prefer to puff up the balloons of their being in English rather than assert their bona fide existence in the pride of their mother tongue? 
Why does a village boy insist on wearing a suit and tie for his wedding ceremony even if he doesn't know how to tie a knot and even if he knows he's not going to feel the need to put on this fancy dress even one more time in his life time, unless of course, he needs to get married a second time, fortunately or unfortunately.
Why do illiterate, semi-literate and sensibly literate families in India and Pakistan still go for invitation cards for weddings and other social events printed in English, notwithstanding spelling-grammar-syntax goof-ups.
 Long live Grandpa
Even village market shops have their signboards in funny-to-not-so-funny audacities of language (ab)use of Queen's English.
Grandpa Macaulay must feel extremely happy in his grave to realise that his children and grandchildren still look up to British culture as something to feel more proud of than any of the local cultures.