SoSe 23: S-Colonial and Postcolonial Literatures: Amitav Ghosh
Justus Conrad Gronau
Comments
This seminar delves into selected works of the Indian author and intellectual Amitav Ghosh. Our main focus will be on the analysis of his novels The Hungry Tide (2004) and Gun Island (2019) in relation to various themes such as the construction of cultural identities, the juxtaposition and transformation of different knowledge systems, the function and limits of language, inter- and cross-cultural translation, indigenous, oral, and non-secular myths and practices, the history of colonialism and global trade, as well as displacement and migration. Additionally, the novels raise important ecocritical questions about the relationship between humans, animals, and the forces of nature. In this context, we shall critically discuss excerpts of Ghosh’s recent non-fictional writing on the Anthropocene and climate change and analyse how nature as a non-human agency is negotiated in the texts under discussion.
Participants of the seminar need to acquire and read both Ghosh novels. Editions used in class are Amitav Ghosh, The Hungry Tide (2004, ISBN: 9780007141784); Amitav Ghosh, Gun Island (2019, ISBN: 9781473686656). Further course material will be made available over the course of the semester.
Assessment in this course is based on regular attendance, active participation in classroom activities such as presentations and response papers, and a final term paper of about 4,000 words (for the Vertiefungsmodul with 10 LP), to be submitted by the end of the semester.
close14 Class schedule
Regular appointments