I had breakfast with a dear friend of mine, the other week we did not see each other for quite a long time so lost to talk about, but one part of the conversation stood out and made me think “ he mentioned he wants to be part of the Elite Club here” asked him what he mend with this statement? He refers to Elite as “those who have the money, so free to do what every they want to do”.
So I told with him why you are already in a Elite position, maybe not regarding the money part but, you are a writer and belong to the press, so you have a unique position here in this society, so in the eyes of some people you are a Elite person.
As the Oxford dictionary describes it “a group of people regarded as the best in a particular society or organization” and Wikipedia describes it as “In sociology as in general usage, the elite is a relatively small dominant group within a large society, having a privileged status perceived as being envied by others of a lower line of order”
Thinking about this a bit further regarding the word Elite and it use. I came to discovery that the word Elite is used and many times misused by people as a way to differentiate and even alienate people in a society actually placing people in a particular box so there (little) minds can deal with things.
Let’s put it like this, when I am flying for business or pleasure I fly business class does that make me a Elite, having a good command English and love to read English Literature does that make u a Elite, going to a particular club/gym as there are people you want to mingle with and be around with does this make you a Elite or sending your kids to a school abroad for their education does that make you a Elite or be on twitter does this make you a Elite…… and the list is endless
Honestly is it that easy to give people the Elite Stamp, actually it is that easy. Like what I mention above it is a easy way to differentiate and put people in a particular box and furthermore Elitism is in the eye of the beholder. It is like this I can not have it and/or afford or you can not do it, it is easy to point finger to some one and say you are a Elite. While for that apparently Elite person it is the normal thing to do it is who they are.
It makes people feel better I guess to point fingers and say do not worry they are the Elite (meaning different than us) they can do whatever they want while we people can not…. STOP RIGHT HERE - REALLY just think about it if you live in a nice house /apartment with running water, ac/fan and electricity you are also a Elite, as many people still live in huts with no running water, ac/fan and electricity…
So everybody could be a Elitist it is how you look at it...
Keep well...
2 comments:
Now I know I'm right when I think we should leave our concrete jungles and go back to our natural habitat with vegetation. Now I know the source of my depression: Male' is not green at all. I will spend the rest of my life as a Forest Ranger at Yellow Stone National Park.
maybe he used the wrong word. though it may seem so, maldives is not a classless society. and money, lineage, education etc does have a role in this to some extent. this aint really a country with equal opportunities for everyone. and everyone is clearly not equal before law. so he wasnt totally wrong dat. cant blame him for wanting to be part of whatever that is. and as a journalist he would have interacted with a lot of em, and he would also have reported the situation of people who aint among them.
but i can see your point when u say it is in the eyes of the beholder. there are some misunderstandings, generalizations and stereotyping goin on between the classes. as a person who hang out with all sorts of people i have noticed that too. for instance if someone comes from a rich family her/his achievements gets no credit, it is all lost in where s/he came from. or sometimes people assume a families with high social status will be 'foni'. others think every rich man must have 'stolen' it from somewhere. similarly some people assume people from lower classes have no manners, or values. that they are inferior to other in thinking or 'galhi'.they sometimes use 'uneducated','ignorant' and 'barbaric' interchangeably, when speaking about these people.
btw, first time on ur blog i think. interesting!
and hilath; how about an intentional island community with sustainable communal lifestyles?
Post a Comment