Man is a sovereign, self-governing and autonomous rational being. We, as humans, prefer to call ourselves conservative or are labeled as traditional by our society. We are afraid to accept a change or revolve and always try to stay in our existing circle. It is basically due to our limited and restricted understanding of the world that we are unable to absorb or explore any change. It may also be due to some fear caused by some previous experience. What is it about being modern or what is modernity? It is more complex than just an era or a period, it’s the story of human life, human form, and human advancement. Ever since man has lived on Earth, change has been constant and that is all that added to ‘modernity’.
Human life is in a flowing dimension and modernity is a relative aspect and concept. There is one class of individuals who label themselves as modern and at the same time traditional. The majority of the human population belongs to this group or class. They want to enjoy the richness of the ancient world and the richness and the attractions of the new world. They are generally confused about the new and the old. They try to fit in but are usually unable to make their place. Such people live in a mixture of the modern and traditional worlds.
‘Modern’ has become a hazy word and can be evaluated using many different interpretations. Another possible interpretation of being modern is being accommodative to the views of others, who are ready for a change in the society and who are capable of re-defining their lifestyles. But this doesn’t mean adopting Western culture under the guise of modernization. In our country, the majority of the youth wants to be westernized and believes that Westernisation is the only way of being modern, superior and liberal than others. Being modern has more to do with the grooming and presentation rather than just the thought of being modern.
The real meaning of being modern lies in being open-minded, examining and evaluating everything on the basis of logic and reasoning and not on age-old concepts. According to an old saying, “Nothing is constant but change.” Modernity is basically accepting the change and understanding the world. Modernity, to borrow a term from the philosoher Edmund Husserl, expresses a relation of consciousness to time, where the notion of being modern is based on ‘now” as breaking the bonds from pre-modern systems. Modernity is unending because the world is evolving and transforming rapidly. Rapid urbanization, the spread of good education, the emergence of media and the vast population explosion all contribute to the social spectrums of being modern.
To become a modern person you just need to understand your role in the society. It doesn’t mean that you have to be “new” or “unique” to be modern. Modernity has its basis in learning the significance and importance of social changes occurring in the world. Modernity has nothing to do with new clothes, new trends, new gadgets, or new accessories. A modern individual tries to live in the world of reality; that demands knowledge and logic, not anything new, to show off in front of the fellow individuals. People think that being new is being modern and cool, but in reality, modernity has nothing to do with their so-called “coolness”. Modernity is not about anything new or the very recent past. For example what is not modern for you, must have been modern for your parents or grandparents.
Modernity is a worldview, an ideology and an idea. The true essence of modernity lies in creating a balance between past, present and future. It requires logic, reasoning and understanding of the world. God has gifted human beings with the ability to think wisely and intelligently. To be modern means to be intelligent, just, wise, fair, and logical. Anyone who just blindly follows a trend only to label himself as modern can’t be regarded as purely modern. Modernity is a phenomenon which describes how a society looks at itself. It defines a set of norms and values that are purely the evolution of old ideas. The complexity of being modern is an exciting game indeed
Anyone and anything can be modern. Even the earliest man or the most ancient things can be regarded as modern. Being modern not only means dealing with developments of the world or its complicated concepts, rather, it means to have a realistic view of the world. The key sentiment of modernity is the desire to move in a circle and restore the human in you with the rapidly evolving society. This is a never-ending effort since life poses its questions, challenges and tasks every day and one has to be ready to meet them happily to succeed in this modern world.
Modernity is a worldview, an ideology and an idea. The true essence of modernity lies in creating a balance between past, present and future. It requires logic, reasoning and understanding of the world. God has gifted human beings with the ability to think wisely and intelligently. To be modern means to be intelligent, just, wise, fair, and logical. Anyone who just blindly follows a trend only to label himself as modern can’t be regarded as purely modern. Modernity is a phenomenon which describes how a society looks at itself. It defines a set of norms and values that are purely the evolution of old ideas. The complexity of being modern is an exciting game indeed.
