Break the boundaries of tradition. Why must everyone look at a groundhog on February 2? Where does it say that women and black people shouldn’t be president of the U.S.? [This is one is getting a run for its money.]
A recent short story I had read for my Amer. Lit. class was entitled "The Lottery" by Shelley Jackson. It described a town which drew lots each year to decide which of their citizens was to be stoned to death. The entire town was supposedly in the drawing, because that was just the way it was. No one questioned the reasoning behind stoning a citizen each year. All thought that it was merely for the benefit of the town; and every person had a chance to throw a stone. [Which may have been a motivating factor for some people.] The only moments in which someone would begin to protest was if there name was drawn as the one to be stoned. A specific scene involved a woman, a wife and mother, preparing to be stoned; her children were present with stones in hand ready to hand their mother her fate.
What struck a chord with me is that no one protested unless they were the one to be killed. It reminds me much of the citizens in this country. Most of the time we do not protest action or non-action [whatever that may be] unless we are specifically being affected by it. At what point do people realize that there may be methods to quash a wrongness before it even happens to someone else? Is it possible for fellow human beings not to feel this compassion for their own kind?
Tradition is another interesting point that pops in to mind. Numerous are traditions which serve little to no purpose. What purpose is there in killing one citizen of this fictional town each year? There is no concrete purpose. It is based upon the comfort that comes from being taught that if one citizen dies the rest of us are in a better place. Translate this idea of tradition to matters involving U.S. government and elections as mentioned above. Until this upcoming election period there has not ever been serious nominees who are of color or a woman. We can watch this tradition start to tip into oblivion from our living rooms and offices. More and more people are realizing this tradition is not needed and has no value. I wonder what other traditions can be sent off into oblivion? Maybe, groundhog day because of the intensifying dynamics of our climate. What other traditions do you see disappearing in the coming future? Might newspapers be in the mix? or reporters? or big business? or, dare I say, digital social networks?
