LITERARY SPHERE

J.M. Coetzee: Apartheid Thinking - An Explanation J.M. Coetzee, a Nobel Prize-winning South African writer, deeply explored the psychological and moral landscape of apartheid in his works. His essay, "Apartheid Thinking," delves into the very core of the ideology that shaped South Africa for decades. It's not just about the laws and segregation; Coetzee examines the mindset , the distorted logic , and the human cost of such a system. Understanding Apartheid: More Than Just Laws To grasp Coetzee's essay, we first need a clear understanding of apartheid. Beyond the dictionary definition of "separateness," apartheid was a system of institutionalized racial segregation and discrimination enforced in South Africa from 1948 to the early 1990s. It classified people by race – White, Black, Coloured (mixed race), and Indian – and assigned them different rights, opportunities, and living areas. This led to immense suffering, injustic...

Literary Development of Postcolonial Literature The Evolving Landscape of Postcolonial Literature Defining Postcolonial Literature Postcolonial literature, a vibrant and multifaceted body of work, emerged from the historical context of colonialism and its enduring legacies. It encompasses writings that respond to the experience of colonization, the struggles for independence, and the ongoing effects of imperial rule on formerly colonized nations and their peoples. More than simply a historical marker, "postcolonial" signifies a critical engagement with the power dynamics, cultural clashes, and identity formations shaped by colonialism. This literature often explores themes of cultural alienation, the loss of indigenous languages and traditions, the construction of national identity, and the complex interplay between colonizer and colonized. Early Seeds: Li...

Here are 10 MCQs on Diasporic Literature with short explanations 1. Which of the following authors wrote The Namesake, a diasporic novel exploring identity and belonging?   a) Salman Rushdie   b) Jhumpa Lahiri   c) Meena Alexander   d) V.S. Naipaul   Answer: b) Jhumpa Lahiri   Explanation: The Namesake follows the life of Gogol Ganguli, an Indian-American navigating cultural duality. --- 2. V.S. Naipaul’s A House for Mr. Biswas is set in which diasporic context?   a) British India   b) South Africa   c) Trinidad   d) London   Answer: c) Trinidad   Explanation: The novel depicts the struggles of an Indo-Trinidadian man to establish his identity and independence. --- 3. Which of the following is a key theme in diasporic literature?   a) Feudal loyalty   b) Industrial revolution   c) Displacement and nostalgia   d) Utopi...

100 Major Literary Theories, Movements, and Their Key Proponents 1. New Criticism - John Crowe Ransom 2. Structuralism - Ferdinand de Saussure 3. Post-Structuralism - Jacques Derrida 4. Deconstruction - Jacques Derrida 5. Reader-Response Theory - Louise Rosenblatt 6. Formalism - Viktor Shklovsky 7. Russian Formalism - Roman Jakobson 8. Psychoanalytic Criticism - Sigmund Freud 9. Archetypal Criticism - Carl Jung 10. Mythological Criticism - Northrop Frye 11. Marxist Criticism - Karl Marx 12. Feminist Criticism - Virginia Woolf 13. Gender Studies - Judith Butler 14. Queer Theory - Judith Butler 15. Cultural Criticism - Raymond Williams 16. Postcolonialism - Edward Said 17. Ecocriticism - Raymond Williams 18. Historical Criticism - Hippolyte Taine 19. Biographical Criticism - Samuel Johnson 20. Narratology - Gérard Genette 21. Aestheticism - Walter Pater 22. Decadent Movement - Arthur Symons 23. Reader-Response Criticism - Wolfgang Iser 24. Postmodernism - Jean-François Lyot...