PROPAGANDA— Are We Living In It?

    

  The word "propaganda" is excerpted from the Latin word "propagare" which means "to spread", which has vouchsafed the modern day word "propaganda" its veracious meaning. Equating with the records, the word propaganda was first used in 1622 in correspondence with the missionary activities but the Catholics in Europe. But let's be honest, propaganda had its existence since the dawn of cosmic reality itself. And if this sounds like an exaggeration (maybe it is), then propaganda's epoch can be marked by the genesis of the cognitive capacities of our species. Though fundamentally, propaganda means to spread ideas and thoughts, however courtesy of our ethical and virtuous society and political leaders, the word "propaganda" has become synonymous and resonating with the political sphere and false news. 

 PROPAGANDA AND ITS IMPLICATIONS

As far as my knowledge accounts, the most vicious and strategic use of propaganda was done by none other than Adolf Hitler. As far as what he did is concerned, I repute there's no shred of doubt of the wariness about the same. However the decimation of such a stupendous number of people must not have been the same way Thanos did it right? That transpired through a subtle and tactical process which was concealed through propaganda. I don't intend to overwhelm you up with much of what you have already perused in your text books and written your ass-off in your notebooks. Rather I am up for something different. As aptly as the slaughterer Hitler himself puts it, "If you constantly chant a lie, people are going to accept it as the truth." The Nazi propaganda was indifferent. False news, manipulate campaigns and agitating posters we're dissipated everywhere about the Jews like the one below.

The above picture illustrated a German woman who is being taken away by a Jew which indicated an alarming racial threat to the pure German race. But let's delve in depth. This was not just a random poster. It was engendered in correspondence with the wiring of human mind. The Jew was made fat and had a long, curved and sinisteristic nose which limned that he was a greedy guy who was coming in to elope a slender and beautiful German woman. 

This further manifested that all Jews are greedy pigs who are coming to rape German women and pollute the holy and pure German race. On the other hand, if somebody has been designated to be the villian, there must be a saviour-of-all to balance the equation. You got it! That was done through glorifying the savior and as it turns out, the savior happened to be the same guy who is reprehensible for WW2, the same guy who took anti-Semitism at apex and  the same guy who increased our history syllabus. You got it right, the same guy with the Charlie Chaplin moustache, Adolf Hitler. Now have a look at the poster below. 

This poster features Hitler standing erect which limns that he is the savior of Germany who is devoted to the purpose of making Germany "great" again. And artistically speaking, the whole poster features only erect figures in focus because artistically, the curved and irregular shapes and patterns are used to manifest things and emotions related to cowardice and fragility while those that are straight manifest intrepidness and strength. This further made Hitler the living embodiment of the strong leader that Germany craved. 

These were, in themselves, very insignificant moves. However these along with many other tactics were constantly used to propagate the Nazi propaganda. And as it turns out, when all those seemingly insignificant events were combined and concatenated, the resultant synergy led the most brutal act of humanity to eventuate which is known as the Holocaust. 

      CATEGORIES OF PROPAGANDA

Let's be real. Propaganda is all around us. We face it everyday and we disseminate it everyday. Because in its most literal sense, as we conceived, propaganda is the dissemination of ideas, thoughts and beliefs. As it turns out, propaganda in that sense, is an inalienable component of our lives. We have propaganda in marketing, we have it in literature, we have it in arts and movies and most indefensibly, we have it in our interpersonal communication as well. As it turns out, there is nothing inherently wrong about propaganda and in an ideal world, propaganda is quite the equivalent of persuasion. But unfortunately, anything as such an ideal world only exists, if it at all exists, in Utopia. 

So I would like to draw a distinction between the categories of propaganda as one a healthy and the other a toxic one. Healthy propaganda, quite obviously, incorporates those ideas and endorsements that are civil, ethical and progressive. For example, a coach drilling his cadets, a parent indoctrinating his/her child's mind with vibes of harmony and integrity and a doctor prescribing medicine to his/her patient. 

These all scenarios involve the dissemination of information and ideas from one end to the other but are in fact persuading, that either benefits the one receiving the information or benefits both the ends in one way or other. Seen through this lens, any marketing commercial, art, literature, technology or even political ideology that slakes this equation can come under the category of healthy propaganda. Also, I would like to add on here by decrypting something mystifying. At times, it might be in a healthy persuasion, only one end is benifitting from the encounter while the other end is in fact incurring a loss in the form of time, energy or resources. This kind of situation can come to life when suppose a friend is asking another friend for help in the project or a beggar asking for money. Here, we might be losing energy or resources in the encounter and incurring a loss (at least materialistically) but this will still classify under persuasion (as far as the other is end is legit in their intent). 

Moving on we have the distinction of the toxic propaganda with which the modern day word propaganda concords most of its resonance. Any type of commercial, literature, painting, song, movie or manifesto that disseminate wrong, misleading, pseudoscientific or manipulative information come under this distinction. For instance, the classic literature that advocates male superiority for sustaining a healthy society or that commercial which commends how not consuming product from a particular brand with make you a tyrant/anti-national or just anything such like "Mein Kampf." 

         PUBLICIZING PROPAGANDA

Propaganda can proliferate through a miscellany of ways, as we conceived. But at first, propaganda is just an abstract idea or vision in an institution, entity or organization (basically filled with scoundrels). From there, it is then targeted to the required audience in the ideal way and as we conceived, later gets transmuted into a mass movement that might eventuate into a terrible horror. The advent of technological burgeoning and the invention of internet paved the way for propaganda's blooming milestone. As we know everything has a price and for the global progression and paradigm shift into the information age for the better, the price to be paid was gigantic. And we paid through the nose for it. 

Now it is easier then ever before in the timeline of cosmic reality to disseminate propaganda. Everybody has an access to mass media and social networks and can disseminate propaganda from virtually anywhere in the world. Cherry on the cake, the option for not revealing your identity in public and the access to the curtaning VPN, further eliminated the entry barrier in this demagogic game. And if this sounds hyperbolic to you, then just open Twitter and check what's trending in politics or news and you'll have a limpid idea of what I am descanting about. 

This demagogic game has been quite effective in corroding our rationale and repertoire of critical thinking (if we ever truly had one). People can be brainwashed with literally no clinical equipments and only a tweet or a subreddit or the equivalent on any other platform. This has also led to the rise of "Gurus" or so called 'experts' who are reputed the savant in virtually every sphere you can think of and who regard their school of thought as the doctrine, and the one and only truth, of cosmic reality. Their one statement is enough to incite uproar or trigger riots, mobilize a procession or engender a stigma for any individual or community. This is where the trouble gets whetted which brings me to the role of celebrity endorsements in publicizing propaganda. Celebrity endorsements in disseminating propaganda, just like other endorsements are as lethal a weapon and can generate radiating influence irrespective of the rational quotient. 

Like not long ago, a heated geopolitical crisis was uproaring between Azerbaijan and Armenia. Now I won't proceed in making any geopolitical analysis of the crisis but would just illuminate a statement made by Azerbaijan's famous chess player Teimur. I don't remember it accurately but here's how I recall it, "I don't know where this will go but war is the only solution. We hate all Armenians."

Not to forget this was endorsed at a time the situation was already heated and that chess player, being the living embodiment of a jerk, added to the fuss his abrupt and reprehensible opinion. However that was just one example of the many and many time celebrity endorsements have been a way in disseminating extreme and vindictive propaganda.

        PROPAGANDA— The New Reality

We are all on the edge now. As we descanted earlier, the advent of internet, personal computer and mobile phones has brought propaganda to every walk of our lives. It is now as natural as sunset and as fundamental as gravity. You are just a click away. Whatever you want to know or are dubious about can be resolved in a click. Whatever you want to believe can become your reality in a click. You just need to enter where you want to go(intellectually) and there will be people on the internet who can take you to your intellectual destination.

If you want to be an atheist, there are enough people to convince you with arguments that reinforce the same. Corresponding is the game if you want to follow a religion. Whether you want to believe in the existence of aliens👽 or want to be the one to impugn the same, you are just a click away to find the people that can vouchsafe you reasons for the same.You can go on and find reasons to do a start-up or to get your doctorate and compete in the corporate ladder. You are just a click away. 

On the same account, this is an indication of a potential havoc. As we conceived, you are just a click away, so you can choose to believe anything and there would be arguments that foster the same. 

Think that LGBT empowerment will emasculate all men and make then infertile which would lead our race to perish? Well you are just a click away. 

Think that Jews will wander from school to school flirting girls and exploding bombs on you? Well my friend, I am sure there are a thousand blogs already "proving" this "conspiracy" theory. Hence you are again a click away. 

And in fact why am I even divulging this to you? Why should you even believe me? After all this blog is itself a propaganda (though a healthy one). 

And at last it's all an illusion out if the reality we create. Now you chose!

     THE ANTIDOTE FOR PROPAGANDA

If you are a regular reader then you must be attuned that I wouldn't effectuate any blog without sharing some pragmatic solutions or positive approaches that we can all can take on our part in any sphere. This brings me to the most pivotal part of the blog and that is the ways by which we, together, can shun propaganda in this ever-going demagogic game.

(i.) Don't see with your eyes, analyze with you mind. Don't believe in anything and everything you come across. There are ample of stuff out there to manipulate us. Instead check the validity of the source with arguments from multiple perspectives of the story without jumping on to any conclusion.

(ii.) Inspect on to both side of the story. Gather information from both side of the story (make sure you dump and avoid the extreme of any side nonetheless) and then only land on to any conclusion. Also repute that it's not always an argument of black and white, that is to say, one thing is radically veracious and the other is something to be abashed for. Because one scenario might also have different implications and answers that are equally true or at least hold a relevance. For instance, a false dichotomy that states that either you are with hanging the criminals to death or you embalm criminality yourself. But what can imply here is that you can also oppose to death penalty while still having your submission towards justice. The key is to disagree without disrespect. As Aristotle puts it, "It is the mark of an educated mind to entertain a thought without accepting it." And that's maturity.

(iii.) Avoid the worship culture. Keep in mind that any celebrity whom you adore is not a God. They can also be mistaken or prone to err in some aspects. For example, a movie star can be a savant when it comes to the realm of acting and cinematography and can be a douchebag in some other field out of his/het expertise, say politics or economics. So you can passionately adore your favorite star as long as you don't become a blind follower. 

(iv.) Be broad and open minded. You, me and every single creature out there might be living a propaganda without realizing it. That's where critical thinking becomes a cardinal component for a healthy and progressive life. Reading books and materials about the wiring and working of our brain and similar niche can be the need of the hour. It is also pivotal for us to constantly challenge our beliefs and welcome change of perspectives (only if required) in this ever changing world. That being said, we must regularly fuel our rationale with the courage to dare to challenge the status quo and ask ourselves that one eye-opening question, our we living a propaganda?

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