Assignment Code: MEG -10 / TMA 01 / 2022-23

Course Code: MEG-10

Assignment Name: English Studies in India

Year: 2022 -2023

Verification Status: Verified by Professor

Answer all questions.

Q 1. Would you agree that the social reform movements in India contributed to the institutionalisation of English studies? Discuss. 20

Ans) Any society is made up of people from various religions, castes, colours, genders, and faiths, and it is expected that they all live in harmony and without discrimination; the ideal situation is when there is equality, freedom, and brotherhood among all sections of society. However, human society around the world demonstrates a variety of exploitative practises that are prevalent; these practises arose from human greed for power, authority, and superiority. In the long run, these discriminatory and exploitative practises become social evils and leave a scar on the face of any civilised society. In the first half of the nineteenth century, Indian society was also plagued by social ills such as casteism, superstitions, Sati Pratha, female education, widow remarriage, and child marriage, all of which hampered our progress. The urgent need for social reform became apparent in the early decades of the nineteenth century.

When the British arrived in India, they brought with them some modern ideas. Liberty, social and economic equality, fraternity, democracy, and justice are examples of values that have had a significant impact on Indian society. Many religious and social reformers, such as Raja Ram Mohan Roy, Ishwar Chand Vidyasagar, Swami Dayanand Saraswati, Swami Vivekanad, Sir Syed Ahmad Khan, and others, were advocating the abolition of the evils prevalent at the time and were eager to bring reforms to the society in order for it to face the challenges of the West. They were no longer willing to accept the society's traditions, beliefs, and practises simply because they had been practised for centuries. Indian intellectuals carefully examined the country's past and discovered that many beliefs and practises were no longer useful and needed to be abandoned; however, they also discovered that many aspects of Indian culture heritage were intrinsically valuable to India's cultural awakening. As a result, many socio-religious reform movements affecting almost every segment of Indian society arose.

Contribution of the Reform Movements

Many reformers, including Dayanand Saraswati and Swami Vivekananda, promoted Indian philosophy and culture. This instilled pride and faith in Indians in their own culture. Female education was encouraged. Girls' schools were established. Even medical schools for women were established. This resulted in the slow but steady advancement of girls' education. The socio-religious movements' cultural and ideological struggles aided in the formation of national consciousness. As a result, they paved the way for the rise of nationalism. Since they had become associated with religious beliefs by the late nineteenth century, most social reform movements were religious in nature. In the nineteenth century, a group of European and Indian scholars began researching ancient India's history, philosophy, science, religions, and literature. The Indian people gained pride in their civilization as their knowledge of India's past grew. It also aided religious and social reformers in their fight against all types of inhuman practises, superstitions, and so on.

Phule, who was born into the Mali caste, rose to prominence as a champion of societies downtrodden. In 1854, he was the first Indian to open a school for untouchables. He also advocated for the liberation of Indian women. He and his wife established a girls' school in Poona in 1851. Bhandarkar earned the title of 'Maharshi' for himself through his extensive scholarship. Ranade was a man of many interests. He was a graduate of Elphinstone College in Bombay and served as a judge on the Bombay High Court from 1891 to 1901. He believed that the caste system was the most serious flaw in Indian society. He realised that the social reform movement could not gain traction unless it included religious reform. In 1867, the Paramhansa Sabha was reorganised under his leadership as the Prarthana Samaj.

He led the Maharashtra movement with intellectual strength and pragmatism until the end of his life. The Prarthana Samaj promoted monotheism while condemning priestly dominance and caste distinctions. Its activities were also extended to South India thanks to the efforts of Telugu reformer Veeresalingam. Chiplunkar founded the famous Nibandhmala, a monthly Marathi magazine devoted to the cause of social reform, in 1874. Naoroji Furdonji, Dadabhai Naoroji, and S.S. Bengalee were among the other reformers in Bombay. They founded the Rehnumai Mazadayasan Sabha, a religious organisation, in 1851. It represented the modernization of the Parsi religion and social customs. It began a fight for the introduction and spread of education among women, the grant of legal status to them, and uniform inheritance and marriage laws for the Parsi community.

Q 2. Why do you think Michael Madhusudan Dutt stopped writing in English and started writing in Bengali midway through his career as a writer? 20

Ans) When Michael Madhusudan Datta realised the "impossibility of being European," he began writing in Bengali. He was not only ahead of his time, but very much of it. Madhusudan was revered as a legendary poet by middle-class Bengalis across the spectrum until 1940. However, the brilliant aura that surrounded him was tainted by critics whose modernist ancestry was an even more powerful impulse than the Marxist. This paper recontextualizes reading and representation strategies, which have changed historically in response to evolving and shifting cultural paradigms. It demonstrates how readings of a specific writer or period are orchestrated through a variety of exchanges in politically charged situations. It neither redeems Madhusudan nor resurrects the Bengal Renaissance concept.

The nationalist understanding that a country's literature must be written in the authenticity of the mother tongue was first articulated in Bengal in the mid-nineteenth century, in a symbolic moment in the life of Madhusudan Datta. Following the publication of Madhusudan's English narrative poem Captive Ladie in Madras in 1849, John Drinkwater Bethune, a leading educationalist and proponent of women's education in Calcutta, wrote to Madhusudan's closest friend, Gaurdas Basak, that Madhusudan "could render far greater service to his country and have a better chance of achieving a lasting reputation for himself, if he will employ the taste and talents, which he which he has cultivated by the study of English, in improving the standard and adding to the stock of the poems in his own language, if poetry, at all events he must write”.

According to standard texts of Bengali literary criticism, Michael Madhusudan then turned away from the foreign to return to the welcoming arms of his native literature. Surprisingly, such a conception is still held in contemporary postcolonial writings like Provincialising Europe, which is a book that presents a pointed and persuasive critique of European historicism. Michael Madhusudan Dutt, the young Bengali author of this poem, eventually realised the impossibility of being European and returned to Bengali literature to become one of our finest poets, as quoted in its entirety by Dipesh Chakrabarty, who also makes the following observation: "Michael Madhusudan Dutt, the young Bengali author of this poem."

Dipesh Chakrabarty's article in the Literary Gleaner in 1842 published an It is not clear whether Michael ever truly stopped "being European" or realised the futility of using European forms to create his own. If he did, he certainly did not let that realisation stop him from using European forms. Also, paradoxically, this "return" inaugurated not the triumph of a pure Bengali literature, but rather of a composite literature written as a participant in the world literary culture. This is because it would not be unreasonable to point out that the literary arena, even as it struggled with and gloried in the nationalist burden of expectation, was, throughout its existence, also involved with the concept of modernity as it was located in a world literary practise.

This creative exchange was to become one of the hallmarks of the late nineteenth-century literary project, which was written as a narrative of the triumph of a modern literature that survived the baneful influence of either the colonial (and foreign) or popular (but vulgar) inheritance. This creative exchange runs counter to Chakrabarty's idea that once Madhusudan began writing in Bengali, he realised the "impossibility of being European." Because of this, Madhusudan's accomplishment of weaving all of these together to create an accomplished Bengali literature has been appropriately celebrated, despite the fact that he had various allegiances to Homer, Virgil, and Milton, as well as his equally eclectic borrowing from Kalidasa and all that he knew of his ancestors' "grand mythology."

Michael himself was responsible, however, in no small part, for the propagation of this imagery of return, reconciliation and fulfilment when, in some of his most famous sonnets, he held forth passionately on his own neglect of, and return to his mother tongue, his mother land, his native shores, as here in the last mentioned poem that began: He Banga, bhandare taba bibidha ratan- O Banga, your store has many gems;- All of which (ignorant as I am), I held in contempt; Intoxicated by the riches of others, I journeyed

To other countries, at an importunate moment, as a beggar. Many days did I spend forsaking happiness! Sleepless, I dedicated my body to starvation, gave My mind to fruitless meditation, receiving the unacceptable; Played with moss; having forgotten the lotus groves! In a dream, your Kulalakshmi then said to me: “O child, your mother’s store is ranged with jewels Why are you then in this beggar’s state today? Go back, you un-awakened, go back to your home! Happily, did I obey the command; finding, in time A mine in the form of my mother tongue, fully a web of gems.

Q 3. Explain the term 'exploding the canonˊ. Critically analyse what the term means. 20

Ans) The canon is a collection of works considered representative of a period or genre in fiction and literature. William Shakespeare's collected works, for example, would be considered part of the canon of western literature because his writing and writing style influenced nearly every aspect of that genre.

The Canon Changes

However, the accepted body of work that comprises the canon of Western literature has evolved and changed over time. For centuries, it was primarily populated by white men and did not reflect Western culture as a whole.

Some works become less relevant in the canon over time as they are replaced by more modern counterparts. Shakespeare and Chaucer's works, for example, are still regarded as significant. However, lesser-known writers from the past, such as William Blake and Matthew Arnold, have faded into obscurity, having been replaced by modern counterparts such as Ernest Hemingway ("The Sun Also Rises"), Langston Hughes ("Harlem"), and Toni Morrison ("Beloved").

Origin of the Word ‘Canon’

A canon is a religious standard of judgement or a text containing those views, such as the Bible or the Koran. Some formerly canonical texts within religious traditions become "apocryphal," meaning outside the realm of what is considered representative, as views evolve or change. Some apocryphal works are never officially accepted, but they are still influential.

Cultural Significance and Canon Literature

As the emphasis on Eurocentrism has waned, people of colour have become more prominent in the canon. Contemporary writers like Louise Erdrich ("The Round House"), Amy Tan ("The Joy Luck Club"), and James Baldwin ("Notes of a Native Son"), for example, represent entire subgenres of African American, Asian-American, and Indigenous writing styles.

Posthumous Additions

Some writers and artists' work are not well received during their lifetime, and their work becomes part of the canon many years after they die. This is especially true for female authors like Charlotte Bronte ("Jane Eyre"), Jane Austen ("Pride and Prejudice"), Emily Dickinson ("Because I Could Not Stop for Death"), and Virginia Woolf ("A Room of One's Own").

The Evolving Canon Literary Definition

Many teachers and schools rely on the canon to teach students about literature, so it is critical that it includes works that are representative of society and provide a snapshot of a specific point in time. This, of course, has resulted in numerous disagreements among literary scholars over the years. As cultural norms and mores shift and evolve, debates over which works merit further examination and study are likely to continue.

The term literary canon refers to a collection of texts that serve as a recognised standard of stylistic quality, cultural or social significance, and intellectual value. The literary canon is not so much determined as it is adopted by widespread use in university and graduate classrooms, as well as reference and citation in academic journals, and it is influenced to some extent by curriculum publishers and testing organisations. The fact that the canon is determined by usage and collaboration makes it both highly adaptable and highly contentious. In recent years, there has been much debate in the Western literary world about which authors and works should be considered canon or canonical.

Canonical Texts in Literature

The English word canon stems from an older, Greek term (transliterated as Kanon). Originally, this Greek term referred to a” standard” or a” measuring rod” against which something was measured to ensure that it was set correctly. The physical, engineering use of this term eventually took on a metaphoric meaning. Now, the term canon is used to mean an agreed-upon standard against which other, most frequently intellectual, works are measured for quality, long-term value, and influence.

In general, the western canon has prioritized the voices of the dominant Greco-Roman philosophers, the poets and novelists of France and Britain, and, in more recent centuries, the sociological/philosophical voices of Germany. It is equally true that American novelists, in particular, have found their way into the generally accepted canon during the late 19th and throughout the 20th centuries. As many have noted, the generally accepted western canon is currently dominated by men, and, for much of the last several centuries, white, Christian men. However, during the mid- to late 20th century, literary departments, professors, and publishers began to question the validity of a canon that did not represent minority and/or female voices, leading to a debate over expanding the literary standard.

Q 4. What is the importance of a Dalit Consciousness' in Dalit writings? Explain with examples. 20

Ans) Slaves become aware of their slavery as a result of Dalit consciousness. Dalit consciousness is an important seed for Dalit literature; it is distinct from other writers' consciousness. Because of this consciousness, Dalit literature is distinguished. Limbale makes it clear that Dalit chetna is an essential component of the Dalit literary aesthetic. It is inextricably linked to B.R. Ambedkar's emancipatory ideology, and it serves as the yardstick against which the dalitness of Dalit literature is measured. Ambedkar persists as the primary symbol and inspiration of struggle and freedom in Dalit political, social, and literary imaginations. Hindi Dalit author and critic Omprakash Valmiki grounds his detailed definition of Dalit chetna in the Ambedkarite ideology of emancipation. ‘Dalit Chetna obtains its primary energy from Dr. Ambedkar’s life and vision. All Dalit writers are united with respect to this truth. The major points of Dalit chetna are:

The vision of Dr. Ambedkar on questions of freedom and independence

1. Being for Buddha’s rational, intellectual perspective and concepts of no-God and no-soul and being against the hypocrisy of Hindu law and custom.

2. Being against the caste system, against casteism, against communalism.

3. Being against social divisions, and in support of brotherliness.

4. Taking the side of independence and social justice.

5. Supporting social change.

6. Being against capitalism in the financial sector.

7. Being against feudalism and Brahmanism.

8. Being against supremacy.

9. Disagreeing with the definition of ‘great poetry’ by Ramchandra Shukla.

10. Being against traditional aesthetics.

11. Taking the side of a caste-less, class-less society; and

12. Being against hierarchies of language and privilege.’

Points 10 and 11 illustrate the clear connection between the concept of Dalit chetna (consciousness) and literary production.

The concept of Dalit chetna is being developed as a strategy for Dalit critical analysis, a kind of 'test' by which Dalit critics can judge the 'dalitness' of any work of literature, whether written by a Dalit or not. Though I do not claim that the definition of Dalit chetna is fixed or that its tenets are universally accepted, I do want to emphasise that it is almost universally regarded by Dalit writers as the ideal for all Dalit literature, which is generally measured within the Hindi Dalit literary sphere by how closely it adheres to this ideal. It is a concept that pervades discussions of both the future directions of Dalit literature and critical re-readings of major works of twentieth-century literature that have been widely hailed as progressive in Hindi literary circles.

Dalit writers and critics are most interested in offering their own analysis of these works of literature in order to situate their social and political stance in relation to Dalit literature. The emphasis is on writing with Dalit characters or descriptions of Dalit life and experiences. With a separate set of theoretical tools, the critical act of reading and analysis allows Dalit readers to be restored to the position of subject, to be the ones writing rather than simply being written about.

The term 'DALIT consciousness' is frequently used. It is a term that frequently appears in discussions of Dalit politics and identity. It can refer to political awareness in the sense of raising consciousness among certain sections of the Dalit population, and it can also refer to a collective sense of identity among diverse Dalit communities.

For example, Badri Narayan and A.R. Misra write of Swami Achhutanand's publication of the newspaper Achut in the early twentieth century, "no event in modern times has played such a significant role in awakening Dalit consciousness as the print medium, and Swami Achhutanand was its architect in the northern belt of the country."

In an essay about the contested terrain of naming and identity currently presided over by the term 'Dalit,' Gopal Guru suggests that 'although the Dalit category has been put to political use by various agents at the all-India level, it has yet to become an integral part of the deeper Dalit consciousness.' Indeed, Eleanor Zelliot wrote an essay titled 'The Roots of Dalit Consciousness' in the pages of this very magazine in 1998, describing those elements in Dalit collective culture that "allow pride, self-respect, and a vision of the future." These are genuine attempts to describe what are, at best, complex and amorphous concepts, shared constructions of meaning and perceptions of community and self that proliferate to varying degrees across a vast and disparate pan-Indian Dalit community.

Q 5. Examine Said’s definition of Orientalism. Do you find any flaws, or loopholes, in his argument? Discuss. 20

Ans) Said’s central concern in Orientalism is the multiple relationships between the act of writing and cultural politics, language, and power. He attempts to show how Western journalists, fiction writers, and scholars helped to build up a prevalent and hostile image of the Eastern cultures as inferior, stagnant, and degenerate. He also attempts to show the extent to which these representations permeate the Western culture. The West exploited these representations to justify their imperialist policies in the Middle East.

Explanation of Terms used in Edward Said’s Orientalism

In Orientalism, Edward Said has used various derivatives of the word Orient which literally means the East, the direction from which the sun rises. Geopolitically Orient signifies the Middle East, Asia and the Far East, territories that were once a part of one or another European Empire. Said uses the word Orient to signify a system of representation framed by political forces that brought the Orient or the East into Western Empire, Western learning and Western consciousness. The West uses the word in its relation to the East. It is a mirror image of the inferior, the alien (other) to the Occident (West). ‘Oriental’ is a noun-form which means an individual or people of the Orient. As an adjective the word qualifies anything belonging to the East e.g., Oriental landscape, literature, attitude, etc.

The Concept of ‘Other’ and ‘Alter Ego’ in Said’s Orientalism

Edward Said’s starting point in Orientalism is that the existence and development of every culture impels the existence of a different and inevitably competitive “other” or “alter ego.” Therefore, Europe, in attempting to construct its self-image, created the Middle East (the ‘Orient’) as the ultimate “other.” The Middle East (the ‘Orient’) and the West (the ‘Occident’) do not correspond to any stable reality that exists as a natural fact but are merely products of construction.

Orientalism: Definition and Explanation

Edward Said put forward several definitions of ‘Orientalism’ in the introduction of his book Orientalism. Some of these are:

Firstly, “Orientalism is a style of thought based upon an ontological and epistemological distinction made between ‘the Orient’ and (most of the time) ‘the Occident.’” Said argued that his distinction emphasized the supremacy of the Occident versus the inferiority of the Orient. Second, Orientalism is a field of academic research that includes everyone who teaches, investigates, and writes about the Orient. Third, Orientalism is a “corporate institution for dealing with the Orient” beginning in the eighteenth century.

In short, Orientalism is “a Western style for dominating, restructuring, and having authority over the Orient.” Moreover, it is a way of coming to terms with the Orient (the East) that is based on the Orient’s special place in European Western culture and experience.

In the light of this perception, the Middle East is static, unalterable, and cannot define itself. Therefore, through Orientalism, the West took it upon itself to represent the Orient and by doing so opened it to exploitation. The very purpose of Orientalism is to take control of the Orient and take away from it any ability to speak for itself. Said maintained that it is the stereotypes and prejudices that determine the Western representation of the Orient.

Edward Said’s Orientalism

Said discusses Orientalism in three chapters, each with four topical sections, addressing its scope, structures, and recent iterations. In the first chapter, Said defines Orientalism as the historical practise of consolidating Orient knowledge for a Western audience. Orientalism's influence on intellectual and political activities in the West and the Orient can always be traced to its consolidating tendency. Because the Orient is culturally diverse, politically nuanced, and geographically expansive, the West repeatedly returns to it through scholarship and political intervention to contain it. This effort is driven by a self-perpetuating crisis: the more the West tries to contain the Orient, the more complicated it becomes.

In the second chapter, Said analyses several cultural texts, focusing on Western studies of Islam. Philology and anthropology promoted Orientalist views of Islam; he explains. By turning Islam into a science of observation and description of objective reality, Western scholars and writers promoted the idea of a known Islam. Islamic ideas were prevalent in Western cultural works, which relied on Arab and Islamic stereotypes to portray Arabs and Muslims as different, fearsome, sinful, and inferior to Europeans.

18th and 19th-century Western academic institutions formalised Orientalism as a discipline. While European powers had different cultural and political investments in the Orient, their contributions to Oriental Studies shared values. The study of the Orient helped secure the West against an increasingly complex East.

In the final chapter, Said discusses contemporary Orientalism. With America's rise to power, Islam and the Arab world have permeated popular culture. According to Said, Orientalism created popularised images alongside expanding Western intervention in Arab and Islamic states. Orientalism, once associated with a conservative agenda, is now driven by a liberal desire to become involved in the non-Western world. Said wonders how this book's project can challenge Orientalism given current events.

The main argument against Said's account of Orientalism has been one of historical errors. David Kopf argues that Said's account lacks historical precision. In particular, he suggests, “Said misunderstands the nature of British Orientalism in India.