The most common reading of Grocer’s “Lerner and the Chief,” at least as it pertains to modernity, is that the grocer is the story’s true hero. \u00a0The grocer, as is ultimately acknowledged by the residents of his village, had a quasi-prophetic nature; less than four years after he died Balgat resembled more the world of his dreams than the one that scorned him for his “pretentious” ways.<\/p>\n
To claim that the grocer is the story’s most powerful symbol of modernity, however, is to disregard some of the basic mechanisms by which society changes. \u00a0The grocer’s relationship with the village was better defined by a hostile dichotomy than a cooperative evolution. \u00a0Just because the grocer foresaw and appreciated “modernization” does not mean that he influenced it. \u00a0Indeed he ostracized himself from society and looked condescendingly down at his fellow villages rather than fostering an environment of mutual respect in which he could “raise them up.”<\/p>\n
Thus the grocer was a prophet and not an agent of change. \u00a0In stark contrast, the chief, despite holding convictions that the grocer would consider antiquated, actively oversaw the “modernization” of his village, supporting and helping his people in the transition that swept over them following political change in Ankara. \u00a0In my opinion, especially in today’s complex and multicultural societies, this is what represents true modernity. \u00a0Society can only peacefully and effectively evolve through the construction of bridges between new and old worldviews, not through the Soviet-style scorn and then meteoric destruction of a previous way of life. \u00a0“The Grocer and the Chief,” while problematic in some ways, can still be said to have import on “modern” societies. \u00a0As we storm further into this 21st century of rapid change, we would be wise to heed the graceful and compromising attitude of Lerner’s wise chief.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The most common reading of Grocer’s “Lerner and the Chief,” at least as it pertains to modernity, is that the grocer is the story’s true hero. \u00a0The grocer, as is ultimately acknowledged by the residents of his village, had a … Continue reading