The Darling World of Mr Darcy

The Darling World of Mr Darcy

by | Inspire, Latest Edition, Reflect

Written by Cassidy Krygger

It is a truth universally acknowledged, that everybody swoons over Mr Darcy. 

 

He is the dashing romantic hero of Jane Austen’s most famous novel Pride and Prejudice, first published in 1813. The story has stood the test of time and has had a seemingly even more successful transition into the modern world of film and television. Handsome and arrogant Fitzwilliam Darcy, his leading lady Elizabeth Bennet and their slow-burning romance have inspired countless stories and romantic heroes since they were introduced to the world over 200 years ago.

There have been 12 film and television adaptations of Pride and Prejudice since it’s 1940 cinematic debut when Sir Laurence Olivier brought Mr Darcy to life. 

Each has a different view on Jane Austen’s world, responding to popular culture at the time of release and also the latest filming trends. But who donned Mr Darcy’s breeches best? I have narrowed the list down to the three most famous (and perhaps my three favourites). 

Laurence Olivier: Legendary British actor Laurence Olivier, who had brought another famous literary hero Heathcliff to life in the first-ever adaptation of Wuthering Heights the previous year, signed on to bring Mr Darcy into the moving picture world in 1940. 

The film is perhaps the loosest of all the adaptations with the hope of capitalizing on the success of Gone With The Wind which had swept the world the year before, by changing the period of the story from the 1810s to the 1830s. 

 

The chemistry between this Darcy and Elizabeth, played by Hollywood legend Greer Garson, can leave you wanting. 

 

Even Olivier agreed, “It was difficult to make Darcy into anything more than an unattractive-looking prig, and darling Greer seemed all wrong as Elizabeth.” The film came at a $241,000 loss to the studios, but Olivier’s portrayal of Darcy has seemingly influenced every other Darcy portrayal that has come after it. And perhaps this is its enduring legacy.

Colin Firth: When Colin Firth emerged from the lake as Mr Darcy in his wet shirt in the 1995 BBC Pride and Prejudice mini-series, hearts raced all over the world, and British critics called the moment “the most memorable moment in British television history.” He and the series became a phenomenon, with over 10 million UK viewers glued to the weekly 6 part series. 

 

The legacy Firth and Jennifer Ehle as his Elizabeth Bennet left behind is best described by Professor Deborah Cartmell of DeMontford University “It’s almost usurped the original novel in the minds of the public.” Firth and his wet shirt changed the way the viewing public related to Jane Austen and her novels, inspiring most period dramas that have emerged out of England since. 

 

Matthew MacFadyen: Only ten years after the 1995 mini-series, a young and relatively unknown actor by the name of Matthew Macfadyen filled the big shoes left by Colin Firth when he was cast in the 2005 Pride and Prejudice movie. 

 

This is a significant declaration for me to make, but Macfadyen’s portrayal of Mr Darcy is my favourite. He nails the aloofness of the character but injects a vulnerability that seems to have been missing from earlier performances (sorry!). The chemistry between this Darcy and his Miss Bennet played by Keira Knightley is electric. The film was a smash hit with Knightley earning her first Academy Award nomination. 

 

Austen scholars also approved with Professor Carol M. Dole of Ursinus College praising the filmmakers for the use of “youth-orientated filming techniques.” and consequently, opening up Mr Darcy and the world of Austen to a new and younger generation. 

 

JAX Tyres for Ponderings

Every version of Darcy mentioned in this article is different. 

 

A symbol of the time mixed in with the hero Jane Austen wrote over 200 years ago. Do you have a favourite Mr Darcy? Is it the originality of Olivier? The smouldering aloofness of Firth? Or the heart-pounding romanticism of Macfadyen? Or perhaps your heart lies with another actor not mentioned in this article. I’d love to know your thoughts! 

 

Also, side note for the diehard Pride and Prejudice fan, other Austen based worlds I love and recommend are; Lost in Austen, Death Comes to Pemberley and Austenland. 

 

Happy Swooning!

 

http://www.screenonline.org.uk/tv/id/465921/index.html

 

https://www.theguardian.com/film/2004/sep/29/books.gender 

 

http://www.jasna.org/persuasions/on-line/vol27no2/dole.htm

 

Related Articles

Related

Follow Us

Join

Subscribe For Updates & Offers

Support our mission to write and produce Positive Stortelling, it takes a tribe to build one. 

SUBSCRIBE TODAY

Food Glorious Food – Autism and Eating

Food Glorious Food – Autism and Eating

by | Latest Edition, Prosper, Reflect

Written by Kate O’Donnell

“HERE COMES THE AEROPLANE…OKAY, THE TRUCK… THE MERMAID? JUST EAT IT!!!!”

 

– Parents Globally

 

Sensory sensitivities can involve taste and smell.

 

So when it comes to food, sometimes there can be little hurdles and sometimes epic ones. Often it comes back to the texture of the food in the mouth, which can create a gag reflex and vomiting. Sometimes eating food can even become a trigger, as I mentioned earlier. 

 

Given that food is both necessary for nourishment and life, this is an important one to try and overcome if you can. Food is also a very social event these days, so you have this impact as well.

 

In our house, planning meals for a family of four felt like preparing three different meals for a royal family. One person eats only soft food, the other only likes crunchy and don’t even think about mixing anything, or it’s over before it begins.

We can finally laugh now about the times we sat with Mister in his toy car to eat. 

The number of times we have watched and played games on the iPad just so we could spoon-feed with distraction.!

And yes I can hear the criticism, but when the other option is a feeding tube in hospital you don’t question the iPad! Sometimes you have to do what works. At times it felt mealtimes were like the story Green Eggs and Ham by Doctor Seuss… 

 

“Would you on a train, would you could you in a boat… and a whole lot of not in a boat, not with a goat, I will not eat there here nor there, I will not eat them anywhere. I will not eat them, Sam, I am I DO NOT LIKE GREEN EGGS AND HAM!” Insert tired, stressed parents, nutritional deficits and loads of worry.

Distractions are good, enticement, a reward system with the passion factor being used again. 

Trying to source some choices that can fit into your child’s likes, whether that is smell, texture, shape or colour. Go gently when introducing anything new, remember to use stories and habits. 

Never stop offering new foods. 

Food time should never become about a parent becoming angry or trying to ‘make’ the child eats. This is a sure path to disaster.

And again you may be faced with comments from those gorgeous helpful ‘others’ like: “Picky eater, fussy, choosey, spoilt… just make them eat it… they need to learn…back in my day…if they are hungry they’ll eat…” NO! Planet Spectrum doesn’t work this way!

Please know that if food/eating is an issue for your child, you are not alone. Our family worked with the OT and speech pathologist… There are thirty- two steps to eating…Who knew?! 

JAX Tyres for Ponderings

We worked on playing with food, sensory issues, no stress at mealtimes, modelling, and the importance of still offering a variety of foods. 

There are so many different areas to eating and food that your OT and speech pathologist can work on with you. Please refer to the resource section for helpful links.

TIP – If you are experiencing difficulty with your child’s eating, limited food choices and mealtime disarray- you need to seek help from your OT and speech pathologist. This is their area of expertise! 

For more information about the world of Autism CLICK HERE. 


Related Articles

Related

Follow Us

Join

Subscribe For Updates & Offers

Support our mission to write and produce Positive Stortelling, it takes a tribe to build one. 

SUBSCRIBE TODAY

The Negative Thinkers Guide to The Galaxy

The Negative Thinkers Guide to The Galaxy

by | Latest Edition, Reflect

Written by Kirsten Macdonald.

Calling Alanis and her Jagged Little Pill… Warning: what you are about to read is a little bit of satire and irony, read if you dare!

ONE: Do you really need to talk about it? 

Wouldn’t it be better if you bottled all of those traumas up that had nothing to do with you as a child and wait for them to manifest like potatoes sprouting out your ears? Tough people fester and pop with emotion later—a bit like a volcano burp only more dramatic. Hold onto it, if you dare. 

TWO: Be a part of the problem; not the solution! 

Instead of wasting all that energy you have trying to understand a perspective different from yours; you could spend it coming up with a million reasons to defend an oppositional opinion that bears no assistance to anyone. So much less fun and helpful, and who wants to contribute in a positive way to society anyway? Geez.

THREE: Life only holds a certain amount of resources- surely there is not enough for everyone. 

If Jack has a better car than you do and makes more money but has the formal education of a gnat, it reinforces that adage- what’s the point? No use developing your own unique path in life and finding abundance or prosperity. Jack has it all. 

FOUR: You can’t get what you want when you want it.

You ask for it, and zilch. You have a plan, so why isn’t it happening? Ask Veruca Salt; or Augustus Gloop. I want it now! Roald had a few thoughts on this; it ended with rotten eggs and getting stuck in a pipe. Could be worse. So plan wisely and expect the worst in your time frame you made up and told the universe to deliver. Giving the “universe” a deadline makes complete sense, don’t you think? 

FIVE: Always be wary of politicians. 

No one ever grew up wanting to make a change in the world or aspired to stand up for the people. All snotty-nosed mean people just want to rule the whole planet, ruin it completely and get an excellent retirement package and make up taxes and legislation to make life difficult for everyone. We hear they have a secret handshake involving a pinky on the lip with a cackle. They eat criticism for breaky like cornflakes. Its new world order. 

SIX: Are addictions REALLY that bad?

If you are a high functioning addict, what is the worst that can happen? You only live once right, except when you don’t. 

SEVEN: Make sure you watch the news at LEAST three times a day. 

Get all the latest updates on your phone or any device you have. You must not miss a beat. That arrest in Brazil might impact the price of bricks in Tootgarook. Believe everything you watch, the world is a big bad place, and you must be on top of it, if not to think about but to cause you subconscious stress which is like salt and pepper for Number 5 and 6. 

EIGHT: Self-doubt: doing this before anyone else can certainly keep out the go-between. 

Why buy wholesale when you can make it your self? Doubting yourself at every turn is a sure way to stop worrying about doing anything new or exciting; both emotions that can induce feelings of joy, so TREAD CAREFULLY HERE PEOPLE!

JAX Tyres for Ponderings

NINE: Ruminate, ruminate and more rumination! 

Ruminate: mid 16th century: from Latin ruminat- ‘chewed over’, from the verb ruminari. To deeply think. 

Then get stuck ruminating. A hamster in a wheel springs to one’s mind, and why not? It’s not like your time can be spent doing something more constructive anyway. 10,000 mental steps in the reverse direction must be suitable for something surely. 

TEN: Don’t change. 

The only humans who like a change are babies. Change means different. Different is scary. Scary means no, right? Learning more about the world just makes life uncomfortable, undoubtedly it’s much better to sit in the proverbial and endure?

Endurance means a tough skill set, and if you pair this with bottling shit up, with a dash of self-doubt, a sprinkle of global suspicion and a ripper addiction you have my friends a brilliant cocktail called the Clusterf**k delight; shaken not stirred. It goes down a treat with a twist of impatience and a bowl of conspiracy theory. 

 

End note: please be advised this is satire and a tongue in cheek reflection. If feeling overly negative, please seek professional guidance.

See these helpful resources;

Beyond Blue 

Lifeline

Sane

Written by

More From

Related Articles

Related

Follow Us

Join

Subscribe For Updates & Offers

Support our mission to write and produce Positive Stortelling, it takes a tribe to build one. 

SUBSCRIBE TODAY

Scar Tissue That I Wish You Saw

Scar Tissue That I Wish You Saw

by | Latest Edition, Reflect

Written by Kirsten Macdonald

All over the world, scars are perceived as a trauma, a wound, and something to be repaired—damaged goods. 

Scars have been a big part of my life. Born without an eyelid, I had multiple surgeries from birth to teenager to repair this eyelid. This was vital to keep my eye viable. A country first; Prof Billson, a pioneer Ophthalmologist, did an excellent job saving that eye. 

However, there was noticeable scarring along with a distinct lack of eyelashes. People would ask me ‘What did you do to your eye? How did you hurt your eye? The best one was; She is such a pretty kid, shame about the eye. The ugly duckling was another, one day; you will be all fixed.  

 

When I slept, I slept with one eye partially open. 

 

This became a hilarious joke to those around me if I fell asleep first. I often stayed awake all night at birthday parties to avoid such a thing if I could. 

 

One bus trip in primary school, a fellow male student, whipped out a camera and took a photo of my eye, much to the amusement of others. Not sure what he did with the developed shots. No social media back then, thank goodness. 

 

High school bought an array of trouble in this area. Makeup became my best disguise. But my identity formed around being scarred and ‘unpretty.’ I developed other parts of my person, like humour and silliness to detract and distract, to amplify and make up for the broken bits. We adjust our sails. 

 

Reading and writing became an escape too. So Much to Tell You, by John Marsden, changed my life. Teenagers can be very cruel. 

 

Enter brain surgery in 2012 and neurosurgery meant a saw and drills were used to open my skull up like a coconut. There’s no way around scars, lumps and bumps when these pieces of nifty equipment are involved. People told me to cover it up with my hair. Or, ooooh that’s nasty swelling; will that go away? 

 

An aid came to our home and asked who the pretty lady was on the wall, I said; it is me. She said; “OMG that doesn’t look anything like you!” No kidding. Or what about the postman who asked where Kirsten was; it’s me, I said. “What a shame, you were so pretty.” Ouch. 

 

Once again reinforcing and validating the belief that I was very lucky to have my life, I was so pleased I had a great sense of humour and am a nice person because I was not considered pretty. Who cares? Other people care. 

 

My self-confidence plummeted all over again. 

 

The good old ego-self was attaching to the perception of others about how a body should appear, or when it is ‘broken.’ My sense of identity was internally associated with this.

I love a challenge, and this epiphany presented a big one, releasing the perception of others from my being. 

There are many incredible options now for non-invasive procedures for the assistance of healing and scar reduction. I had a wonky cheekbone repaired and some foundation work to help stop my face from dropping after severe stretching in my skull tissue. As a kid, the scar tissue on the inside of my new lid rubbed on my eye, often causing infections. So that person is not just dealing with a world who thinks beauty is symmetry, but they are often dealing with physical discomfort. Scar thickness, nerve damage and infection are only some aspects. 

This was just an eyelid. There are much larger scars out there. Fact; scars can cause big physical issues; it ain’t all about the pretty. 

I would have jumped rainbows not to have those experiences as a child. 

Traumas have the potential to form us positively. But I would be telling you porky pies if I said the psychological impact was positive. 

I am not alone. Acne scarring, burns and growth of scar tissue can create an array of problems. The Australian Journal of General Practice reports that scarring can have a negative impact on adolescent wellbeing leading to social isolation, a decrease in self-esteem and an increase in anger, and are significantly correlated with suicidal ideation. 

For kids and teens to have options available now is so positive and essential. One very cool breakthrough in the last decade was by NASA. They developed LED technology to help improve healing in space and for long-term human spaceflight. 

LED therapy is a multi-use therapy and can help heal surgical wounds post-op. Scars can get infected, become itchy, cause extreme skin conditions and problems of all kinds. Massage therapy is another, along with the brilliant progression of burn healing medicine. 

Image for Ponderings Magazine

Identity of self is tricky business. 

 

We must do all we can to foster a sense of acceptance for children, and at the same time continue to develop technology and help make it accessible to everyone to help scar reduction for ease of pain and suffering. 

 

I no longer allow the identity association of others to rule me; enjoying “inside me” to shine brightly; as unencumbered as possible. 

 

With each grey hair, I have discovered I am not my body, not my face, not my eyelid, not my scars, not my lumps and bumps, not my even my humour or ability to moonwalk. (I can) This vehicle is the wonderful shell in which I reside, and it works for me. There’s a whole lot more going on behind that driver’s seat. 

 

I enjoy getting dressed up (maybe too much? lol), like makeup and love feeling good, but this comes from a place of fun and impermanence. They no longer stem from a “self” belief based on fear or worry. Do you know how much joy can come through without the worry of appearance?

 

Some boundaries remain; photos continue to bring me extreme discomfort; I only take them for my family and the odd one or two for Ponderings when I have to. Selfies are occasional; with sunglasses on, and I don’t look at them again. I am a work in progress. 

 

To this day if I don’t wear makeup, I always get comments from new people or strangers. 

 

A fascinating insight into human behaviour is the response to appearances. Those not fixated on finding faults in others never notice, and those who have known me a long time don’t see it either. But there is a shift; I don’t get embarrassed or ashamed, and I don’t feel less than. 

 

While you can “own your scars”, until we live in an emotionally intelligent Utopia, scars can and do profoundly impact the psyche of a growing child. 

 

My scars are the footprints of my experiences here. They adorn my body with a story of restoration and survival. But I do look forward to living in a place where the world reflects this belief to the child. 

 

Written by

More From

Related Articles

Related

Follow Us

Join

Subscribe For Updates & Offers

Support our mission to write and produce Positive Stortelling, it takes a tribe to build one. 

SUBSCRIBE TODAY

Ten Insights Into The Narcissist

Ten Insights Into The Narcissist

by | Latest Edition, Prosper, Reflect

We hear the word Narcissism in reference to traits of self-interest and vanity in a world of social media. 

 

However, Narcissism or Narcissistic Personality Disorder PD is a mental condition. A well-balanced perspective is needed along with some tips for those on the other end of Narcissistic behaviour. 

 

The excessive need for admiration, disregard for others’ feelings, the inability to handle any criticism and a sense of entitlement along with criticism and manipulation, grandstanding (the list goes on) are all facets of Narcissism. Researchers have reported associations between NPD and high rates of substance abuse, mood, and anxiety disorders. For more symptoms see the bottom of this article, we have some excellent references. 

 

“Narcissus, the Laconian, was a young hunter who loved everything beautiful.

Once, during the summer, he got thirsty after hunting.

He leaned upon the water and saw himself in the bloom of youth.

He fell in love with his own shadow, as if it were somebody else.”

 

JAX Tyres for Ponderings

Being in a relationship or friendship with a true Narcissist can find you drawing in toxic sludge. 

Many an injured heart, broken life and mental anguish can be the product of such behaviour. So what can be done? 

1) Never admit vulnerability to a Narcissist. 

It can and will get used against you in a typical 123 Gaslighting maneuver. Do not appear fragile to a Narcissist, you are a duck on a lake, graceful, your legs might be going nuts underneath, but all anyone can see is serenity. Vulnerability is important with the right person. A Narcissist is not that person. 

2) Understand Gaslighting behaviour. 

A type of psychological manipulation whereby a person covertly sows seeds of doubt in a targeted individual or group, making them question their memory, perception, or judgment, often evoking in them cognitive dissonance and other changes including low self-esteem. 

3) While many people tell you a Narcissistic person is self-centred, mean and arrogant, it is MUCH more complex.

Manifesting in many ways, including an overdeveloped sense of entitlement, a lack of empathy, and a need for admiration, grandiose behaviours, sensitivity to criticism, the list goes on. The point here is- the condition is layered and varied, so unless you are a trained psychologist or therapist; seek professional assistance if you believe you are on the receiving end. It is very dangerous for your mental health and not always obvious. Gaslighting, in particular, can be very insidious. 

4) Understanding that while the condition remains somewhat of a mystery to psychology experts; behavioural disorders are often deeply rooted. 

You cannot talk a Narcissistic out of anything. Some studies suggest many Narcissists know precisely what they are doing, they believe they are on a higher pecking order than others, view themselves as more evolved, and they are never ‘wrong.” There is no reasoning here. Try and reason, and you will soon find yourself attacked verbally and wounded. 

 

5) If stuck in a verbal corner, try using non-critical words and don’t attack or question their motives. 

There is no win here. Use phrases with sincerity. Phrases such as “I’m trying to understand what you are saying, leave it with me and I’ll come back to you on that one” can help disentangle. You have the option to smile sweetly and say “Well, I’ll take that into consideration. I am sorry you feel that way.” Make your polite exit. Walk away and keep the tone light. 

6) You can have objective empathy, so you can spend less time with the person and try to remember it’s okay to do this. 

Just because you live near a poisoned lake, doesn’t mean you have to drink from it every day and it can still have lovely elements on sunrise. Focus on the positive, but remember it’s okay to say no. 

7) Do not believe the love bombing. 

The Narcissist enjoys making you feel loved up and joyful; this may come in the form of gifts or favours. This makes you fodder; it makes you open up and become vulnerable for an unfortunate future personal attack. Be pleasant, but don’t soak it up or take it as gospel. Be objective and don’t get attached to incoming feels. They become weapons later. 

8) Do not encourage codependency. 

Be warned! You need you. Be self-sufficient and do not rely on the person. Relying on people who care about you for support sometimes is okay, this is the essence of community, looking out for each other. But do NOT do this with a Narcissist. This will foster a sense of dependency, so when you do wake up and realise what is happening, you will have emotions, not unlike an addiction. 

9) Pay attention! 

 

Long term exposure to Narcissism can make you immune to the behaviour. Keep a note of when you feel awful or manipulated and when you don’t. Are you okay at work and with other relationships? Do you have strong bonds with others and feel good? If you only feel poorly around one person, this is a sign of a deeper issue. Ongoing mental manipulation is damaging and will have consequences.  

 

10) Get educated. 

 

You have power in your life to make choices, so make them! Reclaim your personal power and find out more about these aspects showing up in your life. Why are you making room for them? Do you have to? What will happen if you don’t make any changes with this relationship or within yourself concerning this person? What might happen if you do? Seek help professionally and use the situation to learn about the events in your life. 

According to Erika Carlson and co in extensive research; the Narcissist is often fully aware of their reputation and simply do not care. 

 

They believe they are genuinely the right one, the most important. Consider for a moment that narcissistic people do not really lack empathy, but instead, their vulnerability and need for self-protection limits their freedom to express it.

Exploiting and bullying others while being the best on show is a standout feature of NPD, and some very strong tricks are used to keep everyone playing out the illusion. So the warning here is if you listen for long enough, even the strongest of minds can and do break under pressure.

Calling a person with NPD out can inflame the situation making life much harder for you. Stay calm, collected and reduce your exposure. 

**Always seek medical assistance and professional psychological help. Helping yourself is the first step to a positive life.

Journals and websites for further reading: 

Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition

Kacel, E. L., Ennis, N., & Pereira, D. B. (2017). Narcissistic Personality Disorder 

Clinical Health Psychology Practice: Case Studies of Comorbid Psychological Distress and Life-Limiting Illness. Behavioural Medicine, 43(3), 156-164

Carlson, E. N., Wright, A. & Iman, H. (2017). Blissfully blind or painfully aware? Exploring the beliefs people with interpersonal problems have about their reputation. Journal of Personality, 85, 757-768. 10.1111/jopy.12284 

Getting to Know a Narcissist Inside and Out

Erika N. Carlson  Laura P. Naumann  Simine Vazire

Book Editor(s): W. Keith Campbell  Joshua D. Miller

First published: 20 July 2011

https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118093108.ch25

Citations: 6

https://www.skiplab.org/erika

https://www.helpguide.org/articles/mental-disorders/narcissistic-personality-disorder.htm

 

https://psychcentral.com/disorders/narcissistic-personality-disorder/

https://pro.psychcentral.com/freud-and-the-nature-of-narcissism/

https://blogs.uoregon.edu/autismhistoryproject/archive/sigmund-freud-on-narcissism-1914/

https://www.psychologytoday.com/au/blog/here-there-and-everywhere/202004/so-youre-stuck-home-your-narcissist-parent

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0146167215581712 

 

https://www.psychologytoday.com/au/conditions/narcissistic-personality-disorder

Written by

More From

Related Articles

Related

Follow Us

Join

Subscribe For Updates & Offers

Support our mission to write and produce Positive Stortelling, it takes a tribe to build one. 

SUBSCRIBE TODAY

Thou Dost Protest Too Little

Thou Dost Protest Too Little

by | Inspire, Latest Edition, Reflect

Democracy is a beautiful instrument; however, it can be plucked in ways producing music not kind to our ears, or a little bent. 

Upholding democracy means tuning and care. In the theatre of life; if the play isn’t going the way we like it, we have ways we can express this, and it isn’t about throwing rotten tomatoes. 

Enter the protestor! 

Many associate protestors with “lefties” or a mob mentality. 

Okay so maybe you’re not a fan of crowds. I get it. I’ve got personal space issues at the best of times and a compromised immune system. So during a pandemic, the health experts aren’t the only ones concerned. Aside from the current virus outbreak; large groups aren’t everyone’s cup of tea, but if we examine the importance of protest closely, we may just reclaim the joy and freedom of positive impact. 

Who could blame us in this big fast progressing world for being overwhelmed? 

The actors are getting cunning; the characters are intense and layered. It could be said people have grown disenfranchised; they no longer feel in control of the world around them, the bigger picture is out of their hands, and they have as much impact as a water bottle in a blizzard. Men in suits in closeted rooms might be doing deals; we can’t change anything. Or can we? 

Peaceful protest is a way of demonstrating your concerns and a larger cry for change; a Please and Thankyou or Come On We Have Had Enough. Some may even say it is a means of civil duty. 

Mahatma Gandhi took a walk one day; it lasted another 22 with a 240-mile stroll to the coast of India to collect salt, which was illegal under crown laws. He collected tens of thousands of people along the way. His quest for satyagraha (asserting for truth) and ahimsa (non-violence) was indeed compelling.

The governing body was forced to admit Gandhi into a legislative council, he was recognised as a force to be reckoned with, and India eventually gained her independence. Even though the protest was peaceful, many died, and Gandhi himself was jailed and ultimately assassinated. 

Needless to say, his legacy lives on, and the non-violent peacekeeper anchored in our human history. 

Martin Luther’s demand in the 1500s for the everyday person to have access to the Bible, limiting the financial indulgences of the catholic church and announcing salvation could be achieved through faith alone was the beginning of the Protestant movement.

Martin sought to place the Bible into the hands of ordinary Christians. He translated it from the language of scholars and clergy; Latin-into the vernacular. This lead to the reformation. To protest. Again, the world altered monumentally. 

Do you object? That’s okay; it is your democratic right. 

You can object and argue all day long, about anything you like. I am not trying to get into a religious debate, but rather I am using this to illustrate times in history where protesting changed something. Good one Captain Obvious, but there will be those who comment without understanding the intent. 

Debating might not win you friends or help you influence people, but hey, everyone has an opinion. Shall we ponder some more? 

Many protests have turned to horror. 

Anarchy, chaos, looting, murder, rape and complete mayhem can ensue when passive resistance turns to aggressive agitation—Dante’s inferno springs to mind. 

We can adhere to principles, or we risk protests becoming the vehicle for suppressed rage. When people get intensely passionate, physicality is never far away. A power battle ensues and people can get very hurt. This highly charged atmosphere can turn us against each other and make enemies of those on either side of the barricade. 

In Australia we have a template, a best practice medium if you like for protest, you can access it here. We are very capable of growing our choices like seeds that turn into a beautiful new species of trees, ones that have been calling us for so very long. Evolving can be a choice. 

The set of principles as set out by the Human Rights Law Centre are a brilliant resource for knowing and understanding your rights as a citizen to demonstrate your expression. 

“These principles are rooted in Australia’s Constitution, international law, common law, and general democratic principles. They also draw on international and domestic best practice. They provide a blueprint for a democracy in which the freedoms of expression and assembly are respected and protected.”

A protest is often the way our politicians can gauge the temperature of the community. 

If there is enough uproar, enough disheartened “loudness” it can get hot in the kitchen. Sometimes the soft leaders will call for expensive referendums or voting booths to make sure they are being forced into the act, then when it swings the other way they can’t do much; because the “people have spoken.”

As frustrating as this stance can be, we are reminded they too are vehicles for democracy to journey on.

So perhaps a big enough peaceful assembly signals to our leaders their people want the opportunity to make a different choice or to change something. 

We cannot forget the success 116 years ago by the Suffragettes. In 1918, the efforts of the women’s suffrage movement resulted in a Bill being passed through Parliament granting women the right to vote. They had to be over the age of 30 and own property, or be married to someone who owned property. Despite the restrictions, it was still a big victory, giving 8.4 million women the vote!

 

JAX Tyres for Ponderings

We are seeing more and more laws getting passed like notes in class, seeking to turn a peaceful protest into civil disobedience and chargeable offences. 

What drives this? There will be plenty of guesses, often the bell of truth tolls when money is afoot; commercial interests tend to yank the rope. Caution is needed here, and we must pay attention.

Our civil liberties and the right to protest are precious and necessary. It is our means of expression and upholding democracy. Lawmakers and governments should take positive steps to promote freedoms of expression and assembly. Let’s not allow the lawmakers to bend the rules and clip our wings. Freedom is a bird who must never have her wings clipped, even if she is told the removal of feathers will keep her safe. 

Am I an idealist? Absolutely. Always. 

Some great articles to read: 

 

The Principles of Protest in Australia by the Human Rights Law Centre

Martin Luther

Gandhi – The Website 

Suffragettes Movement 

 

Written by

More From

Related Articles

Related

Follow Us

Join

Subscribe For Updates & Offers

Support our mission to write and produce Positive Stortelling, it takes a tribe to build one. 

SUBSCRIBE TODAY