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MEG-07: Indian English Literature

By Dr. Anamika Shukla   |   Indira Gandhi National Open University, New Delhi
Learners enrolled: 114

Shri Aurobindo  opines that   Indian Culture has sufficient dynamic qualities to save the world. India is special to Aurobindo for its spirituality. Hence it is time to reflect on the importance of Indian English Literature.

Why should we study it?

The course on Indian English literature is an endeavor to retain the niche, an effort to revive the life and spirit, to dictate the lost taste, to discover reputation and   fall back upon time tested resources in an effort to revive the life of the spirit, to ascertain our place in the contemporary cultural scene in a civilized world.

The course talks about the trio-Mulk Raj Anand, R.K.Narayan and Raja Rao. It helps you  understand the philosophy of the first generation novelist who affirmed their faith in the undying traditions of the country with its continuity and vitality.

Outstanding Indian orators like Vivekanand, Tilak and Shrinivasa Sastri are discussed in the course.

The course gives you a detailed account of non-fictional prose ranging from Vivekananda, to  Shri Aurobindo, Coomarswamy , Gandhi and Nehru, etc.

The Indian tradition of writing in English continues with the women writers.  They avowedly refuse to be considered pure feminists with a preoccupation with a female psyche only. Anita Desai, Shashi Deshpande, Subhadra, Sen Gupta, Raja Narsiman, Geeta Hariharan, etc are on the list who write in an affirmative view rather than breaking the fabric of social life.

The Course talks about the success achieved by Roy, Rushdie and Seth because they display an inventiveness which, while breaking all ground rules of English, creates a register close to Vernacular Indian Tongue.

The course on Indian English Literature presents an overview that both Diaspora and Native writers do not forsake India and remain preoccupied with Indian ethos and multilingual complexity.


Summary
Course Status : Completed
Course Type : Elective
Language for course content : English
Duration : 24 weeks
Category :
  • Language
Credit Points : 8
Level : Postgraduate
Start Date : 26 Aug 2023
End Date :
Enrollment Ends : 31 Aug 2023
Exam Date :

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Course layout

Week 

Topics 

Week-1: Block-1 Non-Fiction Prose 

Unit-1: Non-Fictional Prose: A Survey

Unit-2: Swami Vivekananda, Sri Aurobindo and Ananda Coomaraswamy

Week-2: Block-1 Non-Fiction Prose 

Unit-3: Gandhi

Unit-4: Jawaharlal Nehru

Week-3: Block-1 Non-Fiction Prose 

Unit 5: Nirad C. Chaudhuri

Unit-6: Vikram Seth and Amitav Ghosh

Week-4: Block-2 Mulk Raj Anand: Untouchable 

Unit-1: A Short History of the Indian English Novel

Unit-2: Life and Work of Mulk Raj Anand 

Week-5: Block-2 Mulk Raj Anand: Untouchable 

Unit-3: Untouchable: Title, Theme, Plot and Characterisation

Unit-4: The Picture of a Fragmented Nation in Anand’s Untouchable 

Week-6: Block-2 Mulk Raj Anand: Untouchable 

Unit-5: The Gandhian Influence

Unit-6: Style

Week-7: Block-3 Raja Rao: Kanthapura 

Unit-1: Raja Rao: Career and Works 

Unit-2: Kanthapura: Background 

Week-8: Block-3 Raja Rao: Kanthapura 

Unit-3:  Kanthapura: Themes

Unit-4: Kanthapura: Structure and Technique 

Week-9: Block-3 Raja Rao: Kanthapura 

Unit-5: Kanthapura: Characters

Week-10: Block-4 Anita Desai: Clear Light of Day

Unit-1: Anita Desai: Life, Works and the Language Issue

Unit-2: Clear Light of Day: Themes, Techniques, Times 

Week-11: Block-4 Anita Desai: Clear Light of Day

Unit-3: Political Dimension, Major Characters

Unit-4: Music, Minor Characters

Week-12: Block-4 Anita Desai: Clear Light of Day

Unit-5: Anita Desai’s Contribution to Indian English Fiction

Week-13: Block-5 Midnight’s Children 

Unit-1: Background

Unit-2: Midnight’s Children: The De-Doxified English

Week-14: Block-5 Midnight’s Children 

Unit-3: Themes in Midnight’s Children

Unit-4: Techniques in Midnight’s Children

Week-15: Block-5 Midnight’s Children 

Unit-5: Characterization in Midnight’s Children

Unit-6: Midnight’s Children as a Literary Event 

Week-16: Block-6 The Short Story

Unit-1: About the Short Story

Unit-2: R. K. Narayan

Week-17: Block-6 The Short Story

Unit-3: Arun Koshi and Manoj Das

Unit-4: Subhadra Sen Gupta and Raji Narasimhan

Week-18: Block-6 The Short Story

Unit-5: Shahsi Deshpande and Githa Hariharan

Unit-6: Ruskin Bond

Week-19: Block-7 Poetry

Unit-1: Background to Indian English Poetry

Unit-2: Henry Derozio and Toru Dutt

Week-20: Block-7 Poetry

Unit-3: Sri Aurobindo and Sarojini Naidu


Unit-4: Nissim Ezekiel and Kamala Das

Week-21: Block-7 Poetry

Unit-5: A. K. Ramanujan, Arun Kolatkar and Jayanta Mahapatra

Unit-6: R. Parthasarathy and Keki N. Daruwalla

Week-22: Block-8 Mahesh Dattani: Tara

Unit-1: An Overview of Indian English Drama

Unit-2: A Preview of Dattani’s Dramatic World 

Week-23: Block-8 Mahesh Dattani: Tara


Unit-3: Reading Tara

Week-24: Block-8 Mahesh Dattani: Tara


Unit-4: Appreciating Tara

Instructor bio

Dr. Anamika Shukla

Indira Gandhi National Open University, New Delhi

MA in English Literature, she specializes in Indian English Literature and is a Ph.D. in American Literature, pursued research at American Studies Research Centre, (ASRC) Hyderabad. She is a resource person to the UGC – Human Resource Development Centre at various states and central universities. She has contributed as a resource person at National Resource Center, SavitriBai Phule University, Pune for the SWAYAM platform.

She has been an expert member in the Discipline of English for the committee constituted by UGC for the selection of candidates under the Post Doctoral Fellowship Scheme, Research Award Scheme and Emeritus Fellowship Scheme of the UGC.

She has also been on the list of experts for preparing Self Learning Material of MP Bhoj Open University, Bhopal M.P.

She is a member of the Board of Studies of various universities namely, Dr. B.R Ambedkar National Law University, Rai, Sonepat Haryana and Department of Higher Studies and Foreign Languages, Chhatrapati Sahu Maharaj University, Kanpur. Presently, she is member, School Board of various Schools of Studies of Indira Gandhi National Open University, New Delhi.

Her areas of interest are Creative Writing, ICT interventions in the Humanities, Teaching English as a Second Language, Studies in Culture and Literary Heritage and Interdisciplinary Studies, She is presently working on Indian knowledge systems and English Communication Skills.

She has published books on Saul Bellow, Pedagogy & Teaching of English Language. She has to her credit articles and research papers published in National / International Journals. She appears on the editorial board of journals. She is also a research guide and has successfully supervised PhDs under her guidance.

Official Address:
Discipline of  English 

School of Humanities  

IGNOU
New Delhi, India


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