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This is in defence of the city. Rather city ambience. A lot
of people, right from the poets of the Romantic Age, notably
William Wordsworth who liked to "escape" from the
hustle-bustle of the city to the quiet countryside to get
'healed', to the present ones who shun the madness of the
city life to the serene hillside, have given the city a rather
unsavoury image. Of course, there are grains of truth in this
attitude, but it is also true that the city as an entity helps
people to develop their potential and creativity to thrive,
be it in architecture, literature, music, fine arts. People
also learn to cope with the surroundings, even to squalid
neighbourhoods, and aspire, vindicating the validity of a
basic facet of human nature- adaptability.
Even Natrure adapts. Refer, for example, to a recent finding
that the Great Tit, a little bird distinguished by green and
yellow plumage, glossy black head and two white cheeks, is
great at coping to new surroundings. Experts have discovered
that the bird has changed its birdsong, literally, and is
surviving and multiplying by changing its particular mode
of singing to adjust to urban ambience. They have studied
the bird's behaviour in cities like London, Prague , Paris
and Amsterdam and observed that the basically woodland species
use singing which is shorter, faster and of a higher frequency
so that it can be heard above the din of traffic and attract
a mate. In fact, now they are inhabiting many more parks and
gardens in the urban conglomerates. So there!
For the human species, all through the growths of great civilizations
like, Egyptian, Roman, Greek, Assyrian, Indus Valley, Chinese
etc., human concentration has been a wellspring for all-round
development of the race. The great artistic awakening of Renaissance
was launched by thinkers and artists living in the towns of
Italy which later spread to other European metropolises. Can
one think of later-day Mozart without the patronage of the
royalty in Vienna? Can one think of the great European artists
without associating them with the South Bank (to the Seine
river) of Paris? Or of great musicians, even the Taj Mahal,
without Delhi's patronage in the Mughal era? Some of the best
novels in the modern age are all city-centric. As for Kolkata,
the legendary addas at the Coffee House have hosted many a
filmmaker, notably Satyajit Ray and Aparna Sen, as well as
well-known literateurs, artists, etc.
The fact remains that the much-maligned city, despite its
many shortcomings, also showcase human endeavour and talent.
It is another matter that we humans are stripping many cities
of their character and their heritage by haphazard building,
negligence, callousness towards beauty -one can go on. But
that is not the fault of the city. Cities are the cradles
where intellectualism pulsates and creativity finds a language,
where people can bring out their best (and the worst), find
scope to develop, and learn through interaction with like-minded
fellowmen.
To appreciate and nurture the city is to show recognition
of this fact.
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