Aubaid Ahmed Akhoon
‘’No one is more hated than he who speaks the truth’’ (Plato)
When we hear the word criticism, a lot of thoughts keep circulating in our minds and most of our thoughts are so limited that we even use this seemingly small word to oppose ourselves or someone else, but if we take into account other aspects and try to draw positive conclusions from the criticism, then this criticism will be called constructive criticism or critics for the upliftment and it is the criticism that reminds the writer , or an individual or a Government, not to ignore the fact that you are being held accountable for every step you take
In Urdu literature the word criticism (Tanqeed) is actually a translation of the English word Criticism, which means Appreciation, Estimate, Assessment, Judgment, Evaluation, etc. It is used in every sense. Similarly, in Urdu literature, the literal meaning of the word criticism is to examine a piece of literature from every angle/aspect and presenting any conclusion after examination or investigation to the reader without any prejudice so that it will be refined and the reader will be able to differentiate between right and wrong.
From childhood we have all observed that whenever our parents find us guilty of any shortcomings, they show us the intention to learn or take advantage from the virtues of another intelligent friend, relative or acquaintance, this Criticism is also called constructive criticism ,but if this practice (criticism) of parents becomes a daily routine, it paves the way for negative criticism because each person has different abilities ,every human being has different strengths and weakness and it’s this unique quality that makes a difference in the personality of every human being, the comparison is fine as long as it’s done in limitations if it’s not done in limitations then children may suffer from mental illness due to inferiority complex. Not only this but it has been observed that doing so creates a gap between parents and children that sometimes take decades to fill.
In the same way, when a writer picks up a pen to write, he also has to keep in mind many aspects , the effect of literature on society is profound. The writer is the interpreter of the society. If a writer ignores flaws and highlights only the good then It is the death of literature. Similarly if he only highlights the flaws , then he does not stand out as a writer and it will be considered the incompetence of the writer. So we can say that the writers scales must adhere to the principles of balance for example , when ‘Altaf Hussain Hali’ a famous Urdu poet and a writer of (1837-1914) era saw a shortcoming in the famous and favorite genre of urdu literature, Ghazal, and even many writers considered it as a semi-savage genre and attempts to eradicate it from literature were also gaining momentum. At that time, Altaf Hussain Hali came out in a favour of Urdu ghazal as a benefactor by writing a book Muqadma Sharo Shairi’. He set the weight of ghazal and requested the writers to bring many mentioned changes in it. It’s the result of Altaf Hussain Hali’s efforts that today Ghazal goes to the forefront of Urdu literature, otherwise, if he had also accepted the negative criticism and ignored the positive aspects, the ghazal genre would not be alive today and Altaf Hussain would not be so famous
If the mind of a writer is full of enmity, hatred, resentment, then he cannot be faithful to criticism. Remember, the critic must know the art of writing above personal criticism otherwise the critic’s criticism is nothing but a useless exercise. The critic must be aware of this fact that personal criticism is the death of literature
The greatest threat to freedom is the absence of Criticism (Wole Soyinka)
According to ‘Plato’
‘If you do not take an interest in the affairs of your government, then they are doomed to live under the rule of fools.
In India, as in the rest of the world, the impact of Covid-19 is growing day by day. The Government is trying to control the epidemic in which the health sector plays a major role while as the opposition party is criticizing the Government for failing in the health sector. If we too criticize it we will find both strengths and weaknesses in it, for example, due to the criticism of the opposition, the current government is fully focusing on the health sector and in the future the health sector will be among the priorities of the governments and if we try to draw negative criticism in it, it will become a new Election Manifesto for the upcoming governments to get votes in the name of better health sector and the fear of being misused is also a bitter reality.
Prof. Ale-Ahmad Suroor (9-08-1911 to 9-02-2002) a Padma Bhushan and gold medal awarded Professor ,Poet, critic from India and Pakistan respectively has a credible role in introducing criticism to the art of regular genre literature in Urdu literature. Whatever literary and critical capital he has, holds a unique place in Urdu literature, he has made very eloquent remarks regarding the demands of criticism and its definition and explanation in the beginning of his collection of articles namely ‘What is Criticism’? See an excerpt from one of his articles on criticism
” I take criticism seriously; I consider it an important and difficult task and I don’t know how to enjoy it, but I know how to publish values – so I demand , seriousness and consideration from the readers as well. ”
Accept both compliments and criticism, it takes both sun and rain for a flower to grow.
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