Different Perpectives!

Each of us has our own point of view of the world around us and our perspectives in turn are shaped by our environment and experiences. Well, we all know one man’s dream can be another’s nightmare. Similarly one man’s spectacle can be another’s man damp squib! For instance, on a tour of famous tourist destinations, you may want to visit certain lesser known places which other fellow travelers may deem “not worth visiting”. Or if you are not of a religious bent of mind, you may dispense with visiting even the most famous shrines that others would not even dream of missing!  It is all about one's perspective, isn’t it? For instance, on our tour of Ajanta and Ellora last week, we were discouraged from stopping by Cave No.29 at Ellora or the moat at Daulatabad fort as supposedly they weren't extraordinary enough to deserve a visit. Well, we were glad that we didn't pay any heed to the suggestion as we would have missed the spectacular water falls "Sita ki Nahani" flowing by Cave No.29 and the fascinating water defense strategies employed by erstwhile dynasties that ruled the fort. After all, whether the glass is half full or half empty depends on the way you look at it, isn’t it?

Speaking of different points of view, today I read a story that is narrated in four different voices. “Voices in the park” by Anthony Browne is essentially the same incident played out and seen by four different pairs of eyes    and conveyed in four different voices. In fact, this is the one book of Anthony Browne’s that I couldn’t lay my hands on for a very long time! As soon as my husband stumbled upon it at the Hippocampus library, he immediately wanted it checked out! Since the first page was torn, the librarian assuming that we may want a book with pages intact, asked us to pick another picture book instead. Little did she know how long I have been looking for this one! Torn or intact….we were taking “Voices in the park” home! :)

 

Though each voice recounts the same incident in the park, notice the subtle differences in each narration. Anyway, the author takes us to the first voice which is of a fashionable woman who takes her pedigree Labrador named Victoria and her son Charles for a walk in the park. When they arrive at the park, the woman lets Victoria off the leash and is rather  annoyed  to find a scruffy mongrel appear from nowhere and trying to befriend or rather bother Victoria. The woman is disgusted that the horrible mongrel is  chasing Victoria everywhere, despite being shooed away,  (though it appears that it is other way around). She then instructs her son Charles to sit on the bench that has a man reading a newspaper seated on the far corner. But Charles is nowhere in sight! Scared that the park may be a dangerous place for a young boy, she calls out his name a number of times.  She is alarmed to find Charles talking to someone whom she thinks is a rough looking child. Ordering Charles to come back at once, she heads back home with Charles and Victoria. The reader finds the mother's point of view in stark contrast to her son Charles's whose voice is featured as the third voice. Charles finds the scruffy mongrel rather friendly and is envious of Victoria having found a friend in the park, making Charles wish he'd have a friend too. Just then, he hears the voice of a girl sitting next to newspaper reading man on the bench. This is the same girl whom his mother found rough looking! Charles learns the girl's name is Smudge and they both go around in the park, going down the slide, going up the trees, etc when his mom tracks him down and takes him home! Needless to say, Charles is sad to leave and wonders if he'll find Smudge the next time!The second voice is of the man who was on the park bench along with Charles and his mother. Wanting to get some fresh air, he decides to take his daughter Smudge (the same rough-looking child), and his dog Albert ( the same horrible mongrel) to the park. A visit to the park proves refreshing and his upbeat mood is also reflected in the lively surroundings that had earlier seemed dull and sad on his way to the park! The fourth voice is of Smudge, the care free girl who at first finds Charles wimpy but later enjoys his company. As she recounts her happy-go-lucky adventure in the park, you cant help but notice the same story that reveals itself in different hues and nuances, when narrated from different perspectives. So it may be the same story, but your experience can never be the same as mine!  A great story  to introduce your little one to the differences in perceptions, to which my little one said  "just like how you find shopping at BIBA shop (a clothing store) interesting and I find it boring!" :-)