November 21, 2017

Every November, men around the world grow out moustaches in support of the near global Movember movement. The campaign seeks to raise awareness for men’s health related issues such as prostrate cancer and mental health issues.

Moustaches and beards aren’t only influential in global movements. This hairy trend also has a place in alumni Catherine Lim’s (Dept. of English Language and Literature) satirical short story, Goonalaan’s Beard (2015). Lim uses her razor sharp wit to highlight the materialistic culture and feebleness of Singaporeans through Goonalaan’s purposefully untrimmed beard. Goonalaan, who was running for Minister of Parliament, had failed to gain the electoral support of a weak willed people. Refusing to let discouragement grow on him, Goonalaan vows to grow out a beard which he will not keep clean. Overtime, his beard becomes a successful site of protest against the very things which denied his entry into politics, as well as a signifier of institutional decay.

The short story was published in UNION: 15 Years of Drunken Boat, 50 Years of Writing From Singapore (edited by Alvin Pang and Ravi Shankar).

Click here to find out more: https://www.ethosbooks.com.sg/products/union