Introspection in age of anxiety

The Navratras are just over, with the Hindus celebrating the triumph of good over evil. Today is Gandhi Jayanti. We do take great pride in this one too to claim ourselves as a nation of believers in non-violence.

The world of today is one of extreme violence. However, one could always argue that it is not true that people living the everyday routine lives of our society are either given to or are the subjects of violent acts.

But, just look around us. What is the breaking story of any channel in the country? What do the headlines suggest to us every day?

Would it not be insane to deny the abundance of rape, murder, mayhem, manslaughter, suicide, torture, assault, arson and enslavement everyday everywhere? At least 100 women, mostly girls below 18, are raped in India every day and out of these at least four everyday are reported in the national capital, National Crime Records Bureau suggests! This is only about the registered cases. Many cases are never reported.

The national capital records one out of every four crimes that takes place in the country. In all 1,73,949 cases were registered in Delhi in 2015 which is 25 per cent of all the crimes recorded in 53 major cities in the country.

Considering the density of modern society, there is not much actual overt violence as one would suppose from the evidence that we get to know from the media, some researchers argue. Rulers and ruling parties always dismiss these as stray occurrences and blame it on anything other than their inefficiency.

But why view these crimes as occasional, accidental or simply because of road rage, etc.?

Is it not about the great inner conflict and tension due to which people are resorting to these crimes? Our channels are only telling us about the great inner conflicts and tensions that modern journalism describes.

Since the tempest within will not submit to description in words of exact reference, the tempest without must serve as metaphor to tell about the soul's life.

Those who criticize the channels of resorting to drama should understand that modern story-telling methods have chosen the device of hyperbole with which to show forth the inner life -- all the shocks which the spirit is heir to in our time -- the insults, the humiliation, the sacrifice and the moral corrosion.

The violence, coupled with the fear of violence, that is in us and so much a part of our psychological life is only amplified many times in the metaphor of melodrama.

The terror of the cinema screens or the small screens and the ferocity thereon are mirrors held up to the terror and rage of our inner lives.