In the Wit and Wisdom section of Tales of Juha, one story covers the theme of blame. The story picks up when Juha has his donkey stolen. When Juha tells his friends what terrible fortune has befallen him, he receives no sympathy. Juha’s friends immediately begin telling Juha that it is his fault his donkey was stolen. One friend tells Juha that the wall around his house was too low. Another friend tells Juha that it is fate; Juha is being punished for the past. Another friend claims that Juha must have left the gate unlocked. No one says sorry or gives any condolences.
I believe that this same reaction can be seen in our culture today. There are many instances where a person befalls some misfortune and we try to blame everything else around the issue. An unemployed person is given the excuse that the economy is bad or the job market is no good. It must be Wall Street’s fault or the government. In some cases this can be true. There are fewer jobs in a bad economy and there are fewer opportunities. Sometimes though, an individual is to blame. Some people have not looked for a job and that is why they cannot find one.
For a less controversial example, let’s consider my grades. Overall, I have excellent grades. I am in the Honors College, a Neeley Fellow, on the Dean’s List. With this in mind, I once told my mom that I made a fifty-one on a test. She immediately spouted off numerous reasons why it wasn’t my fault. I, her baby, could never be wrong. It must have been the professor’s fault. His test was too hard. He didn’t teach well. Maybe it was my roommate’s fault. He had kept me up too late. No, those were incorrect. Sometimes the blame needs to be placed on the obvious point. I didn’t prepare for that test properly.
This story of Juha and his friends made me smile because it is a phenomenon that I see regularly. People sometimes just don’t accept the obvious.
Initially when I read the story you mentioned, I didn't notice the connection you had made between the story and the idea of blame within our society. I find it intriguing too because I also notice this attitude too amongst the people I interact with. For instance, one of my friends wasn't replying any of my messages but my other friend, who was really close to him, kept making excuses for him, saying that he might have not checked his phone yet, when he himself might have actually been ignoring me. I think this is why these Tales of Juha are universal as they use common attitudes that we can also relate to.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed your blog post because I found it very relatable. It is far easier to blame other people instead of blaming ourselves. However, I agree with you that it is often necessary to understand when something is our fault. I also agree with you that Tales of Juha is very relatable even though it is from another culture, which is why I found it so enjoyable.
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