Maung Khin Min (Dhanuphu) - Myanmar prose for the people

Prose is a key pillar of literature. It is true that people use language every day. However, good prose is rare. The literature of nations that write good prose flourishes. As literature progresses, the nation progresses. The importance of prose is described in the Myanmar Encyclopedia. Similarly, Saya Min Thuwan, who once proclaimed that “Prose is the life of literature,” also said that if we look at the literature of nations that are currently growing, we will see that prose is particularly important. There are hundreds of millions of books written in prose on arts and sciences. It is obvious that nations are growing and prospering by relying on those prose books. It has been proven. That is true. Prose is a tool that people use every day. It is also a tool for writing and storing various sciences. It is also an indispensable and important tool. It is true that this tool has entered into the lives of various people. Think about it. If you are a student, you must use prose as a student. A worker is always exposed to prose as a worker. A farmer is also exposed to prose as a farmer. In the end, even a housewife who does not leave the house is exposed to prose as a housewife.

Students come into contact with prose as soon as they start school. Starting from the school board, they have to memorize various school papers written in prose throughout the class. If they want to gain external knowledge, they have to read books written in prose. Everything that teachers teach at school has to be written in prose. Various exercises in class are also written in prose. Each exam is also written in prose. In this way, prose becomes a close friend that the student will interact with throughout his life.

When I entered the working life, my friend who wrote prose came to me and hugged me tightly. I couldn't refuse to be friends. I read various office letters written in prose at work, wrote various reports in prose, and when I reached a higher position, I wrote instructions and orders in prose, wrote speeches in prose, and gave speeches at ceremonies. I was constantly surrounded by prose.

What about a farmer? It may seem like prose has nothing to do with his work, but in fact he cannot avoid prose. He reads prose in the newspaper, from weather warnings, rice sales announcements, to educational documents on what type of fertilizer to use, how much to apply, and how to use it.

The same goes for a housewife who doesn't leave her house. She uses prose when writing a grocery list. She also uses prose when writing to distant relatives. She also uses prose when reading comics and novels for relaxation.

In this way, people in general life write prose every day. They read prose. In the case of writing, it is clear that prose is used to write, from the daily grocery list of a housewife to the writing of letters to friends to the compilation of literary works. In the case of reading, it is clear that prose is used to read, from daily newspapers to school and office letters to great classic novels. So, isn't prose, which is so widely used among the people, worthy of being called public utility? It is clear that it is worthy of being called so.

There is a saying that poetry is the property of the wise. It seems to mean that only the wise can compose and enjoy poetry. If poetry is the property of the wise, then it is certainly true that prose is the property of the people (in other words, a public good). Because prose is widely used not only by the wise but also by the people as a whole. Therefore, it is undeniable that prose, which is the property of the people, is more widely used than poetry, which is the property of the wise.

However, at one time, prose did not have the same place as poetry in the field of Burmese literary studies. Scholars did not study prose as seriously as poetry.

Therefore, the Burmese people seem to particularly like poetry and prose, and they study them extensively. But prose seems to be neglected, except for the content of the novel, and the way it is written, the way it is arranged, and the way it is told. This is a major flaw in literature.

Master U Pe Maung Tin once remarked, "I don't know how to do it."

Nowadays, however, it must be said that prose has found its rightful place. We hear voices saying that prose is important. Schools and universities are teaching prose with great emphasis. The literary world is studying the concepts of prose. Prose writing techniques are being explored. Prose writings are being analyzed. The power of prose, which has a wide place among the people, is being respected. In short, prose has been given its rightful place as an indispensable and important public utility.