Típico inglés

Hay constantes en la historia de la prensa inglesa que no se si se deben al propio funcionamiento de la prensa (y de las alternativas que toma la interacción entre las "personalidades" y los oscuros empleados de una editorial, por ejemplo; o de los múltiples intereses a los que responde que algo esté escrito en un medio) o al funcionamiento de los ingleses.
Por ejemplo, los tipos siempre destrozan a sus ídolos de ayer: no importa que sea Kate Moss, Amy Winehouse u Oscar Wilde.
Me hice esta pregunta "Hojeando" (¿se puede seguir diciendo que uno hojea las "páginas" digitales?) la biblioteca del semanario satírico Punch en el Gutemberg.
En la edición del 9 de julio de 1892 aparece esta caricatura de Oscar Wilde, el más ingenioso del mundo hasta antes de que lo encarcelaran,

acompañada del texto:

A WILDE IDEA.

OR, MORE INJUSTICE TO IRELAND!

The licence for the production of his French Play of Salomé, accepted by SARAH B., having been refused by the Saxon Licenser of Plays, The O'SCAR, dreams of becoming a French Citizen, but doesn't quite "see himself," at the beginning of his career, as a conscript in the French Army, and so, to adapt the Gilbertian lines, probably—

"In spite of great temptation

To French na-tu-ra-li-sa-tion,

He'll remain an Irishman!"


Obviamente, no trataron con tanta sorna al colonialista Cecil Rhodes, a quien dedicaron un panegírico que a cualquier lobbysta de hoy en día le daría vergüenza siquiera adaptar a la prosa bárbara de nuestros días.


THE RHODES COLOSSUS.

["Mr. Rhodes announced that it was his intention, either with the help of his friends or by himself, to continue the telegraph northwards, across the Zambesi, through Nyassaland, and along Lake Tanganyika to Uganda. Nor is this all.... This colossal Monte Cristo means to cross the Soudan ... and to complete the overland telegraph line from Cape Town to Cairo; that is, from England to the whole of her possessions or colonies, or 'spheres of influence' in Africa."—The Times.]

The World's Seven Wonders are surely outshone!
On Marvel World's billows 'twill toss us—'twill toss us,
To watch him, Director and Statesman in one,
This Seven-League-Booted Colossus—Colossus!
Combining in one supernatural blend
Plain Commerce and Imagination—gination;
O'er Africa striding from dark end to end,
To forward black emancipation—cipation.
Brobdingnagian Bagman, big Dreamer of Dreams.
A Titan of tact and shrewd trader—shrewd trader!
A diplomat full of finesse and sharp schemes,
With a touch of the pious Crusader—Crusader!
A "Dealer" with despots, a "Squarer" of Kings,
A jumper of mountain, lake, wilderness, wady,
And manager 'cute of such troublesome things
A Lobengula or the Mahdi—the Mahdi.
Well may Abercorn wonder and Fife tootle praise,
His two thousand hearers raise cheering—raise cheering.
Of wild would-be Scuttlers he proves the mad craze,
And of Governments prone to small-beering—small-beering.
Sullen Boers may prove bores to a man of less tact,
A duffer funk wiles Portuguesy—tuguesy;
But Dutchmen, black potentates, all sorts, in fact,
To Rhodes the astute come quite easy—quite easy.
The British South-African Company's shares
May be at a discount—(Trade-martyrs!—trade-martyrs!)—
But he, our Colossus, strides on, he declares,
Whether with or without chums or charters—or charters.
Hooray! We brave Britons are still to the front—
Provided we've someone to boss us—to boss us;
And Scuttlers will have their work cut out to shunt
This stalwart, far-striding Colossus—Colossus!"

Quizás la verdad esté en pensar a ciertos medios de comunicación (o géneros dentro de medios) fuertemente involucrados en censurar y promover conductas. En este caso, la moral victoriana y el imperialismo británico se ocupan de censurar el vicio privado (aunque quizás solo porque se hizo público) y fomentar el Progreso. Funcionan, dentro de los géneros persuasivos de la retórica clásica, como "epidícticos": ensalzan o denuestan.

Un poco de eso y un poco también de que ningún editor se iba a permitir criticar con la misma ligereza a Rhodes que a un dramaturgo caído en desgracia por su propia debilidad. Como hoy.


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