ARTSPEAK LOSING THE PLOT.

Shakespeare's Macbeth calls life 'a tale told by an idiot full of sound and fury signifying nothing.' Mirza Ghalib says, 'Bazeecha atfal hai dunya meray aagay/ Hota hai shab-o-roz tamasha meray aagay' [The world before me is a child's playground/ Where the drama of life is enacted daily].

Psychologist Dan McAdams says we perceive our lives as a story. The human brain is hardwired to seek the story that connects events of the past, present and an imagined future to bring meaning and purpose to our lives. All religions and folklore persuade through relating stories that convey underlying moral principles.

The early English novel can be seen as an alternative to the Church sermon as society became more liberalised. Jonathan Swift's Gulliver's Travels, Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe, or Jane Austin's Pride and Prejudice were laced with moral dilemmas. The Urdu novel, starting with Mirza Hadi Ruswa's Umrao Jan Ada, has been more of a critique of society's judgemental prejudices.

Fictional characters in novels, drama or film have had a strong influence on social attitudes and aspirations. We can organise our experiences like a novel into characters, plot and settings. Real life, however, unlike fiction, cannot be neatly managed - too often we find ourselves in a manjdhar [the midstream of a journey we set off on] unable to go back and confused about how to proceed. We lose the plot.

'Losing the plot' is a term taken from fiction writing where the author loses track of the narrative. It also applies to losing sight of an important principle, commitment or direction in the world of business and politics.

Throughout human history, narratives have been created and perpetuated to aid the functioning of societies. However, many of these beliefs are now crumbling away as new questions are arising

At a personal level, the joyous birth of a child may become a twisted tale of conflict and abuse. A marriage that started with romance may turn into boredom and despair. The job we longed for may become the cause of stress and burnout.

Narratives are formulated as inspiring stories to create national cohesion and as a declaration of nationhood to the world. The lofty declarations, whether the revered United States Bill of Rights, the declaration of Israel to guarantee equal...