Description
Book SynopsisThis collection uses a transnational approach to study contemporary English-language poetry composed by poets of South Asian origin. The poetry contains themes, motifs, and critiques of social changes, and the contributors seek to encapsulate the continually changing environments that these contemporary poets write about. The contributors show that English-language poetry in South Asia is hybridized with imagery and figurative language adapted from the vernacular languages of South Asia. The chapters examine women's issues, concerns of marginalized groupssuch as the Dalit community and the people of Northeastern India, social changes in Sri Lanka, the changing society of Pakistan, and the formation of the identity in the several nation states that resulted from the British colony of India.
Table of ContentsPart I: Introduction Chapter 1: South Asia in the Postcolonial Era: A Socio-Political Overview, by M. Yousuf Saeed Chapter 2: Time, Place, and Change: The Location of Contemporary South Asian Poetry in English, by Mitali P. Wong Part II: Perspectives on Women in Contemporary Poetry from India and Bangladesh Chapter 3: Taslima Nasrin and Revathi Kutti: Activists of the Female Body, by Pramila Venkateswaran Chapter 4: Finding a Home in the World: Reading Sanjukta Dasgupta’s Urban Poetry of Inclusiveness, by Sutapa Chaudhuri Chapter 5: Outside Margins: Sukrita’s Poetic Oeuvre, by Prem Kumari Srivastava Chapter 6: The Call to Awaken: Feminine Concerns in Selected Poems of Jayanta Mahapatra, by C.G. Shyamala Part III: Perspectives on Marginalization in India Chapter 7: Poetry as Witness to Terror: Life (and Death) in the North-East, by Sanjeeta Aheibam Chapter 8: Poetry and Cultural Politics: A Reading of Kynpham Sing Nongkynrih’s Poetry, by Arunima Ray Chapter 9: Representations of the Marginalized in Jaydeep Sarangi’s Silent Days, by Angana Dutta Part IV: Perspectives on Social Changes in Poetry from Sri Lanka Chapter 10: Sri Lankan Modern Tamil and Sinhala Poetry in English–A Reflection of Societal Changes, by Sivagowri Sivagurunathan Rajashanthan Chapter 11: Poetry as a Political Statement: A Study of Jean Arasanayagam's Poetry, by Nayomi Abayasekera Part V: Perspectives on Poetry from Pakistan in a Changing World Chapter 12: Demons in Maki Kureishi’s Poetry, by Ayesha Fatima Barque Chapter 13: Adrian Akbar Husain’s Search for Truth and Identity within Dialectics of Identity and Freedom: A Reading of His Pre-9/11 Poems, by Kaukab Roohi Rasool Chapter 14: Matriarchy and Language: Maki Kureishi, Imtiaz Dharker, Moniza Alvi, Hima Raza, by Muneeza Shamsie Chapter 15: Fluidity in Words: Exploring Themes in the Poetry of Shadab Zeest Hashmi, by Ilona Yusuf Part VI: Poets on Contemporary Poetics: Interviews with Two Contemporary Poets from India Chapter 16: Interview with Indian poet Sanjukta Dasgupta, by Jaydeep Sarangi Chapter 17: Interview with Australian poet Michelle Cahill, by Jaydeep Sarangi Chapter 18: Interview with Indian poet Jaydeep Sarangi, by Rob Harle
