I have always been a fan of satire. Satire, for me, is a way of presenting our idea in a subtle way. We want to give our opinions but at the same time not wanting to look so obvious. It is literature at its highest level. Satire is not something new. Even the folk tale of Sang Kancil dan Sang Harimau is actually a satire which touches on the aspect of people in power who are very arrogant but can be tricked by someone who is smaller but is definitely wiser. It is about brain over brawn.
Today's satire might not be using animals as the subject of satire as much as it used to but satire is definitely still in use in today's literature. For example, the scene from one of P. Ramlee's movie, Bujang Lapok. Some might argue that it was just a coincidence but we might never know, do we?
Ideas and ideologies are things that are commonly being projected through satire. But these few days, it hit me how asserted ideologies are being taught to people all this while. Lately, people have been talking about the notorious Biro Tata Negara (BTN) course. I have never been to one but others who have been to the course are saying that it promotes racism. A lot have been said about it but I rather let you judge it on your own. Here is the lyric of a song that is taught to all participants of the course, Anak Kecil Main Api.
Anak kecil main api,
Terbakar hatinya yang sepi,
Air mata darah bercampur keringat,
Bumi dipijak milik orang.
Nenek moyang kaya raya,
Tergadai seluruh harta benda,
Akibat sengketa sesamalah kita,
Cinta lenyap di arus zaman.
Indahnya bumi kita ini,
Warisan berkurun lamanya,
Hasil mengalir ke tangan yang lain,
Peribumi merintih sendiri.
Kita rumpun bangsa Melayu,
Menganut agama yang suci,
Semangat bangsa berlandaskan Islam,
Teras capai kemerdekaan.
Masa depan sungguh kelam,
Kan lenyap peristiwa semalam,
Tertutuplah hati terkunci mati,
Maruah peribadi dah hilang.
Kini kita cuma tinggal kuasa,
Yang akan menentukan bangsa,
Bersatulah hati, bersama berbakti,
Pulih kembali harga diri.
Kita sudah tiada masa,
Bangunlah dengan gagah perkasa,
Janganlah terlalai teruskan usaha,
Melayu kan gagah di nusantara.
Terbakar hatinya yang sepi,
Air mata darah bercampur keringat,
Bumi dipijak milik orang.
Nenek moyang kaya raya,
Tergadai seluruh harta benda,
Akibat sengketa sesamalah kita,
Cinta lenyap di arus zaman.
Indahnya bumi kita ini,
Warisan berkurun lamanya,
Hasil mengalir ke tangan yang lain,
Peribumi merintih sendiri.
Kita rumpun bangsa Melayu,
Menganut agama yang suci,
Semangat bangsa berlandaskan Islam,
Teras capai kemerdekaan.
Masa depan sungguh kelam,
Kan lenyap peristiwa semalam,
Tertutuplah hati terkunci mati,
Maruah peribadi dah hilang.
Kini kita cuma tinggal kuasa,
Yang akan menentukan bangsa,
Bersatulah hati, bersama berbakti,
Pulih kembali harga diri.
Kita sudah tiada masa,
Bangunlah dengan gagah perkasa,
Janganlah terlalai teruskan usaha,
Melayu kan gagah di nusantara.
The lyric of the song is obviously promoting something. For me, if you want to promote something, promote something that touches on justice, hope and truth. Not some ideas about how we must not let other races, who are Malaysians too, to take our country away from us. It is their country too, for God's sake. It is not a country for one race, but for all races. As long as they are Malaysians too, they have the same rights to be successful too. What baffles me is that when we go to other countries, we look at each other and identify each other as Malaysians. But when we are here, in our own country, we identify each other according to our race. I dont think we need any WWIII for us to start identifying ourselves as Malaysians in our own country. Touch wood.
