Eh…who’s that guy again?
I think it’s quite true what a lecturer of mine mentioned today in class when he spoke about our attitutes towards literature. In general, we’re brought up on mostly Western works to the point that works by our local writers are forgotten, ignored, or have possibily negative connotations associated with them, for example being viewed as second rate literature and so on. In fact, if you ask me to name any one single local writer that I know, I probably couldn’t answer you at all.
I guess this has repercussions on not only Literature, but other art forms as well, for example theatre or the music industry even. We’re quick to embrace what’s Western and quick to compare our local talents with those from the other side of the world, ignoring the fact that we all come from different upbringings, cultures and backgrounds, which inevitibly affects our style of portrayal of a certain art form. Im not an expert, or am attempting to sound like one, so I’ll leave it as that, with a little suggession that perhaps it’s time to accept the arts scene for what it is : expression.
As a lover of books and former literature teacher, here are some thoughts on this post.
We could certainly use more exposure to local literature in our education system and in our society at large. At the same time, I would not introduce a local writer just for the sake of it. There must be some merit to what has been written, or there must be some interesting point of discussion that springs from it. I’m not going to read someone just because s/he is a Singaporean writer.
And I wouldn’t expect less of local writers when I pick up their books, either. In terms of quality (and I recognise that is a highly subjective term), I’d expect the same of them as I do of any non-Singaporean writer if I’m going to finish reading the book and/or recommend it to someone else.
As to the question of recognition for Singaporeans who are working in the arts, I think that is a larger question than merely a preference for all things Western. Our society isn’t very arts-oriented, despite what might be suggested by the Esplanade theatres’ bold presence on our skyline. People just aren’t that aware of or interested in any artists, writers, actors, musicians (radio station fodder notwithstanding), etc.
Also, there is nothing inherently wrong with comparing a local “talent” with someone from another country, Western or otherwise. The basis of comparison is more the issue, right? For instance, just because Britney Spears has sold more albums than all our local musicians put together, does that make her a superior musician?
Finally, the arts are certainly not only about expression. That’s like saying that blogging is only about words on a computer screen. But that’s a whole larger discussion that I’m not going to hijack this post for :)
If you’d like to try some Singaporean writers, may I suggest Alfian Sa’at’s poetry and Eleanor Wong’s plays. Julian Davison’s autobiographical One for the Road is really good too.