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Ship of fools

Aug 14, 2010 Features / Columnists, Freddie Kissoon

The term ‘ship of fools,’ is one of the oldest allegories in the culture of Western civilization, with vivid expressions in literature, music and art. The history of the meaning began in the 15th century with the publication of a book with that title by a German theologian. The book’s name subsequently influenced a world famous painting with the same title.
Common use of the term occurred in 1962 with the best-selling novel of the same caption by Katherine Ann Porter. By this time the meaning of ‘ship of fools’ was universal because Porter’s book was made into a film with the same heading starring a host of big screen personalities with the “Gone with the Wind” star Vivian Leigh as the leading lady. A number of superstar rockers have made songs with that name including Robert Plant and the defunct iconic group, the Doors.
So what does ‘ship of fools’ symbolize? What purpose do we give it when we write? In the original 15th century publication it is about the journey of a group of people whose ideas and beliefs are frivolous and their journey will never end in any meaning for each of them. Porter’s 1962 book follows a similar description. In literature and political analysis, the term is employed to describe an association of people whose ideas are grounded in self-delusion and selfishness with no possibility of the realization of what they think are feelings and passions that have objective validity.
In Guyana, no other group symbolizes the meaning of ‘ship of fools’ than the 15-member body that leads the PPP and makes policy for that party that has been in power for 18 years. The PPP’s ship of fools has been journeying for 18 years with a captaincy of 15 persons and as the cruise-liner moves from port to port the cry of all the captains is; “I would love to visit that city.” Then asked why as one of the captains, the voyage to that city was never taken, the frivolous answer can never be understood by the human mind. To conclude then, the 18-year-old journey at sea has been the movement of 15 restless souls who have not understood as yet what the voyage was about and what they have learnt from it.
We can start with the old lady. Just before she died she desired to see the retirement age in Guyana move to 65. The old lady is your typical lonely, confused passenger on the ship of fools. The blue-eyed communist had been at the helm of her party for almost sixty years. When her party came to power, she became the president of the country for two years. She gave up the seat of power but controlled it with an iron fist, fading away from control just about a year before she died.
For 18 years, the blue-eyed one dominated the throne but only expressed her belief in the retirement age as time ran out. One is forced to ask what happened when she was President? What happened during the 18 years in her office at Freedom House directing the ship at sea?
Then there is the lawyer who exclaimed in 2010 that the NIS structure is fatally flawed. He wants to see the NIS return to commonsense, because commonsense should instruct every Guyanese that it is when you reach over sixty that you need the NIS help, because your aging body will require more medical attention than when you were younger. The lawyer is confused to know that NIS stops paying benefits to those who have attained age 60. The lawyer tells his interviewers that he became part of the 15-member captaincy in 1974. Take that to mean 36 years in the leadership of the PPP. Of course the lawyer couldn’t change the NIS benefit scheme because from 1974 to 1992 he was not part of the power structure.
He has been sharing the helm of the ship for eighteen years now. And you are forced to ask him what has he done with that dream since 1992? Did he bring it up in 1993 and it got shot down? Five years after in 1998 did he pursue it again with his fifteen-man team? Did it get shot down again? Did he pursue it five years after in 2005? Did he fight for it after the PPP won its fourth successive victory in 2006?
By any stretch of the imagination, 18 years of power is a long time. By that time your beliefs, ideas and dreams should find translation. The sailing continues. The ship takes its fifteen-man crew around the world. But the crew is yet to understand the purpose of the journey of life.

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