When the British colonial officials and other Britons were living in British India, they were more or less forced to live among this highly devilish-quality social system. It was a system that would gnaw at the very refinement of human beings. For, in this scheme of things, there was no premium for honourable behaviour, standing in a queue, acceding to precedence, being honest, being fair, being sociable, interacting in a pleasing manner etc.
What was required incessantly was the devilish attitude to bring down others, by means of words, selective leak of information, lies, alluding to lower connections etc. Money, feudal social power etc. was all that was craved for. No other human noble quality was given any value. You can be good, honourable, honest, incorruptible and such. You will not get higher word. You be a liar, dishonest, corrupt, a person who would not stand in a queue, and such, but you have been able to make money by corrupt means, you have amassed money through bribes, you do have the evil disposition to use lower words about others, you are rough and crude, well, you will get the higher words.
It was naturally not possible to mingle freely with the differing levels of Indian crowd. For, very fast, the words of respect could go down. And you will end up with lower words attached to you. Any British person who comes to India for a short visit would be overwhelmed by the luscious showering of respect and love, that the local Indians would show.
It is a very powerful experience. Yet, that is not the full truth. In each word that she says, she would be monitored, measured, evaluated and made to occupy a particular social position.
As soon as it is understood that this new person is only so and so, the words of respect would go down. However, since she is from Britain, a particular level of respect would remain unassailable. For, the British nativity still has its aura of impregnable respect.
To explain this experience, let me tell of one incident.
A few years back, when I was taking a training programme in a North Kerala town, I came upon a White lady of around 35 from USA. She had come for a visit, and was moving around the social system like a loose bullet. I use this term, because no one, neither male nor female in India society would move around thus, without taking into cognizance the affect it is having on the word codes. For, in India, one has to take care of whom one is interacting with, and take appropriate action to see that the correct indicant words are enforced, by the differing levels of people, age-wise, profession-wise, social status-wise, financial acumen-wise, social connection-wise and such other things. Here, this lady, being an outsider could move with absolute unconcern for all these things. For one thing, she did not understand the language, and to that level was protected from being perturbed by the affect of the varying levels of words. The ennobling words would bring in stiffening of features, to accommodate the social elevation. A lowering of words would fritter away the refinements.
She was giving out certain information which was quite fast frittering her elevation. First, she said that she was employed as an English home-teacher for immigrant doctors. The hearers understood this as equalising her with the innumerable low-standard Spoken English teachers who donned the local social horizon.
Very fast, she had metamorphosed from Avar to Aval. From height to the depths of the social status.
Another thing she spoke with innocent idiotism was this: My ancestry is not from Britain. We were under the British, but later we got freedom from Britain. We are Irish. My family immigrated to the US, when we were under the British.
She was erasing the idea that she was not British, but from some other nation which like India had been ruled by the British. This also was making her a laughing stock. However, she was quite unaware of what was happening. Her pet subject was India was better than the US. The US was waging war in Iraq, which was idiotic. Well, maybe she hoped to garner sympathy from the local Muslim population, and also from the rest of the society. For, the local newspapers usually take a very opposite stand to all US and UK endeavours.
The situation was quite funny, for she was propounding that India was better than the US. And at the same time, the local Indians were quite coyly bringing her down to the levels of social despoilment in the verbal codes. One of the local benevolent persons did tell her that there were bad words in Malayalam, in an attempt to make her aware of what was happening. Yet, again, she couldnt understand what was being attempted. She declared, I have been told that there are bad words in Malayalam. I must tell you that there are bad words in English also. She was trying to appear learned, but was being actually foolish. What was happening in Malayalam had nothing to do with what was there in English.
It may be mentioned here that a persons individuality changes sharply as per the words of address or referring that he has been made subject to.
The same person when differently addressed by another by a Nee, Ningal, and Thangal (Sar) or referred to with an Avan, Ayaal, and Adheham (Avar) changes in personality, mental features and social standing. His mental reaction, reflexes, allowable intelligence and efficiency, and many other so-believed innate features do change. Mental composure can very well change to panic attack, with a slight change in word.
However, it should be understood that the exact impact of these words depend on the level of the person who uses them and on whom it is used. If the user is a lowly man, and the other person of refinement, the effect is quite terrible.
The British citizens who lived in India, in the British rule period had to face this terrible social system, if they were to mingle with the locals. Security was there only in having higher words. That was the main reason that they went in for exquisite pomp & pageantry in all British-Indian official functions. Such things, when seen or heard of, immediately elevate the verbal codes.
It is in this context that the British education policy has to be adjudged. Here again, one may say that it was Macaulays idea to bring in English education, and that it was not a general British policy. Moreover, it may be noted that it was not the British government that strove to educate the locals, but the British East India Company, which was really a private commercial establishment.
It should be noted that in current-day India, every political and social entity strives hard to see that the children of the common man does not learn English. For, it is giving a tool of equality to the lower classes, who they know, the moment they learn equality would fight for more rights. If they stay in their local vernacular, they stay respectful to the little crumbs that are thrown to them.
In this context, it may be mentioned that the demands of the Blacks in the English nations and in South Africa for more equality is just because they had learned English, and had close social proximity to the White English speaking folks. If they had been under the Indians, they wouldnt dare to propose claim to such a right, for they would be naturally inclined to view their master with reverence and respect, for the small mercies that are lend to them.
