Modern South Asian Literature: GOOD GIRL! BAD GIRL!

^{Gabriela Nik. Ilieva, 53 Washington Square South, Room 506}

Objectives:

Through this course students will be able to:

— Identify contributions of major writers, thinkers, artists and cultural icons [writing in Bengali, Hindi, Panjabi, Urdu, Rajasthani, Malayam, etc.] in an historical and cultural context from mid-19th to the end of the 20th century and compare literary traditions and methods of literary criticism. 

— Analyze orally and in writing defining cultural works written in a South Asian language  in a variety of genres and show how they represent shifts in cultural perspectives over time. 

— Interpret and synthesize ideas and critical issues contained in historical and contemporarySouth Asian literary and other cultural texts representing a broad range of authors and a variety of forms and media taking into account multiple perspectives.  

Weekly Schedule

Required Readings:

Novels:

• Rabindranath Tagore: Home and the World (Bengali)
• Mirza Hadi Ruswa: Umrao Jan Ada by  (Urdu)
• Ismat Chughtai: Crooked Line (Urdu)
• Amrita Pritam: Pinjar   (Panjabi)
• Susham Bedi: Fire Sacrifice (Hindi)
• K.P.Ramanunni: What the Sufi Said (Malayalam)

• Kakshmi Ambai (Tamil)
• Ismat Chughtai (Urdu)
• Vijay Dan Detha (Rajasthani)
• Mahasweta Devi (Bengali)
• Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain (Urdu)
• Khadija Mastur (Urdu)
• Saadat Manto (Urdu)
• S. Mani Mowni (Tamil)
• U.R.A.Murthy (Kannada)
• Munshi Premchand (Hindi/Urdu)
• Bhishan Sahini (Hindi)
• Yashpal (Hindi)

Recommended Films:

• The Home and the World
• Umrao Jan Ada
• Shatranj ke Khilari
• Garm Hawa
• Pinjar
• Paheli

Recommended Readings: A list of recommended readings related to each topic is available on the LMS course in each week’s Resource folder.

Introduction lecture: A Unique Literary and Linguistic Development

Assignments:

1. Weekly reactions: In the course of the semester, students will be required to submit weekly reactions to the readings, to make one oral presentation and one final paper.

The weekly reaction papers, one page long, need to include three general sections/paragraphs:

• the overall key point of the assigned text or of a certain passage
• students’ own thoughts, reactions and/or criticisms
• students’ reactions to class discussion on the topic and/or text from the previous week (this section is based on attendance).

2. Class presentation: Each student is required to make one class presentation (15-20 min.) on one of the assigned readings. It deals with the new readings, about to be discussed. For these oral reports, students work individually or in groups, and each student:

• presents a two-three page written summary and analysis of the readings
• provides a handout for the class, a brief oral report on the significance of the reading they have chosen and its main literary, semantic and socio-cultural characteristics.

The goal of these presentations is to give students an opportunity to deepen their knowledge of certain aspect of Modern South Asian literatures and cultures and a writer that interests them. Students are encouraged to use visual aids such as power point presentations.

The oral presentations are due after the 3rd week and volunteers will be accepted on a first-come first-served basis.

3. Final paper: The final paper is on a topic related to Modern South literature and it will allow the students to delve further into an aspect of this course that interests them. Generally, the students are advised to take a particular literary text that interests them (should be a set of readings different from the one used for the oral presentation) and analyze the text/s from the point of view of the South Asian literary traditions or in a broader context of society, culture and history. Students are expected to conduct in-depth close-text analysis of the chosen issue, theme, problem, etc. Comparative or contrastive approach to two or more texts or authors is also recommended. The recommended readings list needs to be consulted. Minimum requirements for the paper — it should have:

• 10-12 double spaced pages
• number on each page
• a title
• a list of references

Each student will present a brief synopsis of his/her final paper during the sessions of week 14 or 15. The floor will then be open for questions and discussion from the fellow-students and the instructor. The final paper is due May 17 by 12:00pm. It should be submitted on Brightspace or via email.

Please consult the Academic Integrity page: https://cas.nyu.edu/content/nyu-as/cas/academic-integrity.html

Final paper Grading Guide:

Strong (A):

• Competently articulates a position, provides relevant textual evidence, and demonstrates excellent control of the elements of textual analysis.
• Presents an interesting, clear, and debatable thesis.
• Provides relevant, concrete evidence and persuasive support, i.e., reasons, examples and quotations.
• Incorporates information and arguments from multiple, reliable sources or perspectives, but does not always assess them critically.
• Displays a clear and consistent overall organization of ideas.
• Develops unified and coherent paragraphs with clear transitions.
• Demonstrates strong control of language, including appropriate word choice and sentence variety, and facility with the conventions of standard written English, i.e., grammar, usage, punctuation, and mechanics.

Adequate (B):

• Articulates a position, provides supporting textual evidence, and demonstrates a working knowledge of the texts and their background.
• Presents a thesis which is not necessarily debatable or specific.
• Provides evidence and support for most assertions, i.e., reasons, examples and quotations.
• Incorporates multiple sources or perspectives, some of which may be unreliable or used uncritically.
• Displays an overall organization, but some ideas may seem illogical and/or unrelated.
• Develops unified and coherent paragraphs with generally adequate or apparent transitions.
• Demonstrates control of language, including word choice and sentence variety, and a familiarity with the conventions of standard written English (i.e., grammar, usage, punctuation, and mechanics).

Limited (C):

• Attempts to articulate a position that is undeveloped, unfocused, and/or unsupported and demonstrates uneven control of the elements of analysis.
• Presents a thesis which is vague, too broad or limited in scope.
• Provides little support, analysis or persuasive reasoning; may rely heavily on summarizing and sweeping generalizations.
• Insufficiently incorporates multiple sources and/or inadequately addresses alternative perspectives.
• Displays an uneven, illogical, and/or ineffective organization. 
• Transition between paragraphs may be weak or abrupt.
• Displays problems in word choice and/or sentence structure which sometimes interfere with meaning; sentence variety may be inadequate. Occasional major or frequent minor errors in grammar, usage, punctuation, and mechanics.

Seriously Limited (D):

• Asserts a position that is largely undeveloped, unfocused, and/or unsupported and demonstrates insufficient control of the elements of writing.
• Presents a thesis which is unclear, inconsistent, and/or insufficiently debatable.
• Lacks supporting evidence, analysis, or persuasive reasoning; may rely excessively on description or summary.
• Fails to incorporate multiple sources and/or shows little or no awareness of alternative perspectives.
• Displays no consistent overall organization.
• Little or no attempt to consider audience in its choice of claim, structure or evidence.
• Does not develop coherent and unified paragraphs; transitions are illogical, unclear, or absent.
• Displays problems in word choice and/or sentence structure that frequently interfere with meaning; sentences are unvaried. Consistent errors in grammar, usage, punctuation, and mechanics.