Emperor's Best Clothes

The analogy of this fable has been interpreted in diverse manner depending on perspectives....

I remember irritating (deliberately) some colleagues way way back (more than 10 years), when we were preparing for a relatively mega exhibition, and two days before the event, my section, which was to occupy nearly two classroom space had nothing up....

There were reasons....but people werent interested to listen... and they didnt understand anyway when i presented the idea...so i just worked with my kids....

I was actually not in good shape then, having had a bereavement some months earlier, and the impact was clearly visible...in all honesty, i was struggling, but knew i would get it accomplished...

there is an anxiety that meant well, that meant to render support to you at all costs....
there is an anxiety where the concern is, well, not for you....and you know it....

so when some relatively senior colleagues approached me then, with respect to the non-visible arrangment, i replied, cheerfully, using this fable to my advantage...and of course duly annoyed people.....

Nevertheless, in due time, everything was up and it turned out well, actually very well........

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In the more recent years and months, i begin to see the fable yet from another angle.....

If you see the Emperor not wearing clothes, you must not say he is not wearing clothes.

You must tell a child to say the Emperor is not wearing clothes.

From a child, it is refreshing, naive, and spontaneous.

But from an adult?

That is an insult, an affrontation, the perception is totally changed...

And the probability of that adult would not keeping his head, literally, should be close to one.

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I enjoy meeting up with L for discussions, because it is such a sparring session, no matter how contrary our positions may be, we somehow managed to converge in divergence. When we met 2 days ago, she used this fable as an analogy of her position, (not realising of course that this is also one of my favourite analogy) which reminded me again of my new 'postulation' of the interpretation.

I said to her, it is not for us to say the emperor is not wearing clothes. We must ask a child to say it. Well, she gave me that look of, well, thats you again!

Some things are really obvious, not only to children. It isnt that adults are so 'blinded' and 'crowd following' that they dont say what is obvious, or that they lacked the courage.


The truth is, for some truth to be palatably accepted, it must come from 'non-threatening' sources, perceived as innocent and guileless...

and as long as someone does not agree with the one in lead, the person would always be conjured as quite a.....dubious character.....

of couse some truth will never be palatable, and will never be seen as what it is....

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why all these came to my mind was because i saw this advertisement on the side of a bus today.

The advert says: "The change is me".

What is it suppose to mean?


Change is neutral. "Me"? Well, it is personal.  Good or bad, who can say?

Wouldnt it be obvious that this slogan is meaningless, subjected to a myriad of interpretation, without much contextualisation? And for an advertisement of an institute......?

But this is perhaps the purpose, to promote high level thinking in esteemed institutes?

Perhaps thats precisely the noble intent of such a seemingly nebulous 'punchline'..... to generate 'intellectual' discussion of the kaleidoscope of changes?

Changes for whom? To whom?

Of course the key object has got to be  "ME". The primary focus, of utmost importance.

Why else would one want to consider change if " ME" is not involved?

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And there was another statement near the slogan, something about if i can turn a blade of grass to a source of energy, I would be saving the environment....

seriously, i read it a couple of times...... I dont know if i have read it wrongly, but i was really intrigued..........

Isnt the blade of grass a part of the environment we want to save? like saving trees?

But turning it to a source of energy, will save the environment..... i see ( i mean i am trying to see).....i have learnt something new....

...i seriously lack the intelligence to understand such profundity.....

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somehow, insidiously, the emperor's best clothes fable surfaced in my befuddled mind....