Bottled GiaB
The Great Force of History
We carry it within us
Hello GiaB community!
After a little more than a year since the pandemic started, many of us are taking stock of our lives — the things we accomplished and the things we didn’t, and the things we hoped to accomplish but didn’t. As an educator, this retrospection is an essential part of our professional development. As a writer, occasional glimpses of our past achievements build our confidence. As a parent, replaying the previous year in our heads makes us unsure of the path ahead. Nonetheless, we march on while internalizing the lessons fossilized in the legacy of those who preceded us. That brings us to the editors’ picks for prompt #18.
Editors’ Picks for GiaB Prompt #18
History is little more than the register of the crimes, follies and misfortunes of mankind.
~ Edward Gibbon
Declarations by jenine bsharah baines and Across the Bering Strait by Chloe Paulina Hawes are ingeniously crafted critiques of examples set forth by our predecessors.
History repeats itself, and that’s one of the things that’s wrong with history.
~ Clarence Darrow
They are Tired of Waiting by Madelynn Rae speaks to those of us who are blinded by the privileges bestowed upon them, not by virtue of merit, but by virtue of cultural supremacy.
History is nothing but a pack of tricks that we play upon the dead.
~ Voltaire
As cruel as this sounds, this holds true for most nations today. The editors’ picks testify to this harsh reality.
Announcing GiaB Prompt #19
The latest prompt invites you to explore a personal aspect of your life. How did it start? Why does it mean so much to you? What has or hasn’t changed? What could change? Unravel its hidden beauty in poetry, fiction or nonfiction. We’ll be waiting!
And the Search Continues
The publication is keen to add more editors to its team. If you or someone you know is interested in the role of editor, please send an email to geniusinabottlemedium@gmail.com with “Request to join as an editor” in the subject line.
Savoring Life with Shaheena
The great force of history comes from the fact that we carry it within us, are unconsciously controlled by it in many ways, and history is literally present in all that we do. It could scarcely be otherwise, since it is to history that we owe our frames of reference, our identities, and our aspirations.
~ James Baldwin
The Language Movement of 1952 was absent from school textbooks for many years after Bangladesh achieved independence in 1971. The Liberation War didn’t get the attention it deserved either. As a result, my generation was left in the dark about what happened during the 9 months of bloody warfare. In a strategic move by the enemy, the nation’s brightest were massacred and their naked corpses littered the streets. The stench travelled far and wide, but the global superpowers refused to rise above their petty squabbles and their lust for geopolitical dominance.
What provoked the war in the first place? The belief that the West is superior to the East, and the economic and political manifestations of this belief. Why, after 50 years of independence, do vested groups continue to act upon this belief on a different level? Are qualified Bangladeshis not as competent as their counterparts from neighbouring countries to run multinational corporations? Who are the syndicates that inflate the prices of local produce, forcing consumers to buy imported garlic, ginger, and onion? The massive trade deficit, in turn, becomes a burden that is thrust upon taxpayers’ shoulders.
Jamdani has long been the pride of the Bengali-speaking community. They were (and still are) coveted by people living in the West. As the British conceded defeat and departed from the Indian subcontinent 200 years ago, they destroyed the handlooms in East Bengal so no artisan would be able to weave jamdani material and make a living out of it. They mechanized jamdani production in Manchester in an attempt to monopolize the trade. The artisans, who were left penniless and without an alternate source of income, did not surrender to their circumstances. They revived the craft and rebuilt the trade from scratch.
Have we honoured the sacrifices of these brave craftsmen by recognizing jamdani as our national heritage? How many of us take pride in owning a jamdani sari? We’d rather brag about the yards of silk we acquired on a recent trip abroad. We also have the audacity to cough patriotic slogans in our coworkers’ faces, labelling them unpatriotic in the same breath. They weren’t even doing anything that could potentially harm the national GDP.
History has plenty to teach us, but we must be sincere students to inherit its wisdom. An important part of this process is recognizing that knowledge is a vast ocean and we have only tapped the surface.
Until next time, keep calm and revisit your history lessons.
On behalf of the GiaB Team,
Shaheena Chowdhury
