Marksheets and Fees

The mark-sheets for the Qualifying exam are available now, and if you haven't already, I recommend you pick them up soon, so as not to give the university a chance to lose them! You will need your fee-book.

Also, you have to pay your second-year fees. I'm not sure there is any deadline for this, though I assume they will want it before you pay the exam fees, but anyway: it is Rs.950/-.

Exam Results

A notice announcing the provisional results of our Qualifying Exam has been put up on the notice board opposite the Head's Office. Take a look.

NO CLASS ON THIS FRIDAY..SANTANUDA BEGINS WITH REPRESENTATION ON 22ND, FOLLOWED BY P B ON FRIDAY, THE 24TH...

Exam Schedule (Re-revisited)

The notice is up next to the Head's Office. On July 6, we have Paper 1: Group A and B; while on July 8 we have Paper 2: Group A, Group B, Group C. This means that on 6th July we have our Theory papers, whilst on 8th July we have General Background and Post-Colonial/Cultural Studies. And the timings are from 11:30am to 3:30pm.

However I suggest you take a look at the notice yourselves, the next time you're in campus.

Exam Roll Numbers

Our Examination Roll Nos. for the Qualifying Exam are up, on the noticeboard to your left if you stand facing the door of the Head's office. And the likely dates of our exam seem to be the 6th and 8th of July.

In our General Background classes...

...this is, more or less, what we have done so far:

Renaissance

The lecture focused on the way in which the term ‘Renaissance’ was used in history and literary criticism in the last two centuries, thus attempting to prove that the phenomenon of the ‘Renaissance’ was a constructed entity that may or may not have corresponded to the way in which it actually took place. The debates regarding the time-span, the geographical distribution and the very use of the term ‘Renaissance’ were discussed. A brief discussion of the social and political condition under which texts were produced also took place.

Enlightenment

The development of the deliberately rationalist and secularist discourse, reflecting the divergence of science and philosophy from theology, was discussed at length. Specific concepts such as libertinism and pantheism, ideas of the natural morality and the absolute liberty of conscience, and issues such as the sexual liberation of women were also spoken of. Major figures of the period --- Newton, Locke, Descartes, Hobbes, Spinoza --- were mentioned in some detail.

Romanticism

The difficulties and contradictions inherent in the dating of the period were mentioned. The issue of the women poets was discussed, with special attention to the differences in the theories of creativity held by them and by the male canonical poets. We looked at the intricate and involved relationship literature had with contemporary politics, with reference to the culture of dissent. Figures such as Leigh Hunt and John Thelwall figured in this context, as well as in the context of the repressive legislation prevalent in England at the time, and the effects of the same on literary endeavours. The role of artists and musicians in fostering literary endeavour was also discussed briefly.

The Victorian Period

Discussion revolved around the “double” nature of Victorian society, with its enlightened legislation and obvious scientific and technological advancements on the one hand, and its darker underbelly of exploitation, inequality, and social callousness on the other. Major developments of the period, including the Industrial revolution and the Darwinian revolution, were discussed at some length, as was the Woman question, educational reforms, and the issue of suffrage. The social consciousness of many of the major Victorian novelists, as expressed in their novels, was discussed, and we looked at how this affected the development of the novel form.

Modernism

The revolutionary nature of Modernism, with its radical rethinking of the relation of reality to fiction, its apparent abandonment of well-established literary traditions, and its use of new and startling forms and idioms, was emphasized. The question of the roots of Modernism, and attempts to posit it in continuity with literary history were also discussed, as was the question of its complicated relationship to organized Christianity. We also looked at the limitations of Modernism.

Linguistics

Class discussion revolved around the shift of focus from diachronic to synchronic linguistics that occurred at the turn of the century, and noted the similar upheavals in literature at the same time, discussing the possibility of the two being related. We also briefly looked at the difference in focus between Sassure and the Post-Structuralists

Theatre Studies

We looked at the events leading up to the formal recognition of the field of Theatre Studies in the early twentieth century, and considered the subsequent major developments in it. Class discussion focused on the necessity of having Theatre Studies as a separate discipline, allied to but not dependent on, mainstream literary studies.

Post-Colonialism

Taking a historical account of the large-scale cultural interactions that marked as a starting point, discussion focused on how such interactions could be seen to have affected the cultural sensitivities of the communities concerned. We discussed why and how the cultural fallout of the European imperial projects were different from earlier empire-building attempts, and how attention to this aspect of cultural history could serve to illuminate our understanding of literature.

Post-Modernism

Discussion focused on the idea of Post-Modernism as a historical concept, and the conditions which led to its rise. We discussed the essentially negative nature of the idea of Post-Modernism. We also looked at some of the major developments in the theory.

Just to clear up any misunderstanding: I do not have any articles, reading lists etc. other than those that have been put up on the blog. It's all up --- I don't have anything else.

General Theory: Reading Lost

I'm very sorry about being so late in posting. I hope this will still be of some use.

There is a lot of secondary material on Greek historians. The following may be of some use.

1. Gregory Crane: Thucydides and the Ancient Simplicity:The Limits of Political Realism, Berkeley · Los Angeles · London 1998

E-text at

http://www.escholarship.org/editions/view?docId=ft767nb497&brand=ucpress

2. Simon Hornblower (ed.) Greek Historiography Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1994.

3. I have already mentioned Francois Hartog's The Mirror of Herodotus, partly on Google Books

On Augustine, Markus is very reliable (NL), also on Google Books.

4. RA Markus: Saeculum: history and society in the theology of St. Augustine, Edition: 2, revised

Cambridge University Press, 1988 Partly on Google Books

5. JGA Pocock, The Machiavellian Moment, rev. ed 2003, Partly on Google Books

There is not much I can recommend on the Hunne lecture by way of commentary. Read the account (coroner's report) of his death and if possible More's version.

6. Keith Thomas: Religion and the Decline of Magic, Penguin, 1982

You could also try to read a bit of Foucault's Madness and Civilization, at least grasp the general argument.

Benjamin:

Rajeev Patke critically reviews two books on Benjamin's view of history: “Benjamin's Theses on the Concept of History”. Well worth reading in itself. Andrew Benjamin's book is well known.

www.fsu.edu/~proghum/interculture/pdfs/patke%20rajeev.pdf 

Steinberg, Michael P., ed. (1996). Walter Benjamin and the Demands of History. Ithaca: Cornell University Press. 

Class on Monday, 27 April 2009 (Cultural Studies)

Professor Ananda Lal will meet us for class on Monday, 27 April 2009, at 3:00pm.

ATTENTION

Students who are completing their dissertation under the supervision of Dr. Nilanjana Deb, please get in touch with her immediately.

You must be prepared to hand in your dissertation by the first week of July. If you feel you will be unable to do so, please look for another person to guide you, as Nilanjanadi will not be available after this time.

Class on Friday, 24 April 2009 (Cultural Studies)

Professor Swapan Chakravorty will meet us on Friday, 24 April 2009, at 2:10pm.

Class on Monday, 20 April 2009(Cultural Studies optional)

We will have class on Monday, 20 April 2009 with Professor Swapan Chakravorty, at 2:10PM.

Class on Friday, 17th April.

Professor Swapan Chakravorty will take a class today at 2.10pm.

class: cultural studies option

friday, 10th april being a holiday, there will be no class.

Prof Supriya Chaudhuri will meet the class at 2 pm on Monday, 13th April and will speak on New Historicism.
If required, she will you at a mutually convenient time later that week.

nilanjana gupta

Examination Forms.

Does anyone know anything when the examination forms are given out? I heard that the last date for the submission is 9th April.

Class on Wednesday, 8th April 2009

Dr. Rimi B. Chatterjee will take a class on Research Methodology at 2:30 p.m. on Wednesday, the 8th of April, 2009. Students have to complete the exercise handed to them last week and bring it with them to be checked.

Class on Friday, 3rd April 2009

Dr. Prodosh Bhattacharya will take the Cultural Studies class on Friday, 3rd April 2009 at 3 p.m. on Victorian Bestsellers.

i am now on

i, nilanjana gupta, have now tried my first attempt at blogging.

from now i hope to be able to post any notices for the whole batch.

keep reading and contact me if you need any of the books.

nila

No class on Friday (Cultural studies)

There will be no class on Friday, March 27 2009 for the Cultural Studies optional. Prof. Nilanjana Gupta will take class on Raymond Williams on Monday, 30 March 2009, at 2:00 PM.

Prof. Prodosh Bhattacharya will meet us on 3 April, 2009 to discuss Victorian Best Sellers.

Class on Wednesday, 25th March 2009

Dr. Rimi B. Chatterjee is supposed to take the third class on Research Methodology at 2/2:30 p.m. on Wednesday, the 25th of March, 2009.

Not been confirmed, this has, though.

Class on Wednesday, 18th March 2009

Dr. Rimi B. Chatterjee will take the third class on Research Methodology at 2:30 p.m. on Wednesday, the 18th of March, 2009.

For those who have the CULTURAL STUDIES option

Alright, first things first, we will have class on Friday, 20 March 2008 at 2:00 PM.

The following is the schedule for the Cultural Studies classes, till mid-April. Nothing, of course, is set in stone, but this is more or less what we can expect for the nest month or so.

16th & 20th March: CULTURAL STUDIES (Nilanjana Gupta)

23rd & 27th March: RAYMOND WILLIAMS (Nilanjana Gupta)

30th March & 3rd April: THE VICTORIAN BEST SELLER (Prodosh Bhattacharya)

6th April: SOCIOLOGY OF TECHNOLOGY (Dalia Chakraborty)

10th April: SCIENCE & CULTURE (Kunal Chattopadhyay)

13th & 17th April: CULTURES OF PRINT (Swapan Chakravorty)


We will be informed about the remaining lectures at a later date.

Also, please see previous post.

Reading List for Cultural Studies optional

Professor Nilanjana Gupta has furnished us with the following reading list, so that we can get started.

Reading List (Nilanjana Gupta)

Raymond Williams: Culture

Raymond Williams: The Politics of Modernism

Stuart Hall: “Encoding, decoding”

Anthony Easthope: Literary into Cultural Studies

Pepi Leistyna: Cultural Studies: From Theory to Action



Other books and works may, of course, be added in due course.

Class(es) on Wednesday, 4th March 2009

Dr. Rimi B. Chatterjee will take the second class on Research Methodology at 2:30 p.m. on Wednesday, the 4th of March, 2009.


Students who have opted for the Cultural Studies optional course are requested to meet Professor Nilanjana Gupta at 1:40 p.m. on the same day. The meeting will take place in the office of the School of Media Communication and Culture, which is located on the ground floor of the UG Arts Building.

Class on Wednesday, 25th February 2009

Dr. Rimi B. Chatterjee will take a class on Research Methodology at 2 p.m. on Wednesday, the 25th of February 2009.

Special Background and Special Theory.

Please check Hrileena's post on Special Background options, and do contact your coordinators soon.

The course being offered under the Special Theory head is "Principles of Scholarly Writing", being offered by Dr Rimi B. Chatterjee. She is currently attending a course, and will be free only towards the end of the month. But do talk to her and fix up times and schedules.

Amlan Das Gupta

Attention please

We have two options for our Special Background paper (see the very first post on this blog if you need to jog your memory). These are:

1. Cultural Studies (coordinator: Prof. Nilanjana Gupta)

2. Post-Colonial Studies (coordinator: Dr. Nilanjana Deb)

Please come on Wednesday and contact the coordinator of the paper you wish to take.

Link to the text of Leonardo Bruni's Laudatio Florentinae Urbis or Panegyric to the City of Florence

http://www.york.ac.uk/teaching/history/pjpg/bruni.pdf

Here is the text of Boniface's papal decree (bulla) known as Unam Sanctam, thought to be one of the most extreme statements of papal supremacy.
www.romestudy.org/Unamsanctam.pdf

Hrileena and Somnath have kindly agreed to the idea of putting up some texts on Renaissance
Political Theory on this site. Here are extracts from Bartolus' On City Government and Marsiglio's Defensor Pacis.


www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/bartolus.html
www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/marsiglio4.html
www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/marsiglio1.html

MPhil Class Schedule - January 2009

MPhil classes will remain suspended till the end of January. The new set of classes will begin in February.