Today, while speaking about our respective blogs, my daughter suggested me something foolish: draw a link between European Defence and Gangnam Style.
First assumption: Psy, the singer has never heard about European Defence. O.K, this is an easy statement. But it deserves being done, as a matter of principle.
Secund assumption: the viral video may not be as irrational as it seems, as I read that some years ago Psy had sung a song against U.S war on Iraq. The contradiction between his current public image in Europe and his former statements could let think that he owns a developed political sensitivity. Then I went to the conclusion that, may be, some more things are to be found in the video, also said to be a caricature of upper-class neighbourhood of Gangnam.
The ultimate reference is to be found on a blog titled My Dear Korea, that I warmly invite you to visit.
In fact, Gangnam Style is closely linked to the economic boom of Asia as Gangnam once was a rural area, which has now turned into a modern, urbanized neighbourhood. The video displays a occidental style of life, opposed to the traditional korean culture, symbolized by the two chess players, comically blown up by an explosion, whereas Psy is going away. All along the video, at no moment the people are working. All their time is spent in sports and leisure, as illustrated by those strange floating ducks.
On the opposite side of the planet, Europe puts at the pinnacle its traditional values, proud of being the heirs of the masters of the world. Some of European countries are currently showing their reluctance to abandon their glorious past and expressing not only their fear for Asia, but a sort of fatalism, taken their downfall as inevitable, taking refuge in their bankrupt welfare states.
Indeed, whereas Psy describes a futile Korea, assuming its thriving economy and changing way of life, European citizens contemplate a world evolving to fast for their exhausted minds, especially in the Southern European countries. In the same time, fans of Psy show their opened minds, although not visible in their votes yet.
The direct consequence is that the European Union, torn apart by nostalgia on the one side and readiness to challenge the new world on the other side, meets the outmost difficulty to draw what its future should be, and therefore, without perspective, no direction. Without direction, no project and finally, as European Defence is first of all an ambition, without ambition no European Defence.
To conclude, I would say that Psy shows us a world that we contemplate passively, a world that has not only adopted our way of life but transformed it, adapted it, instead of just imitating us. This is a proof of Asian vitality.
Whereas the rest of the world is changing, we just contemplate it from our closed window, by fear of being cast away by this Asian storm.
I just hope that modernist opinions will win, but it will be at the price of pieces of our cultures, just like Asia did.
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