Seminars: 1 session / week, 3 hours / session
This course is an introduction to modern Indian culture and society through films, documentaries, short stories, novels, poems, and journalistic writing. The principal focus is on the study of major cultural developments and social debates in the last sixty five years of history through the reading of literature and viewing of film clips. The focus will be on the transformations of gender and class issues, representation of nationhood, the idea of regional identities and the place of the city in individual and communal lives. The cultural and historical background will be provided in class lectures. The idea is to explore the "other Indias" that lurk behind our constructed notion of a homogeneous national culture.
Narayan, R., and M. Gorra. The Guide: A Novel. Penguin Classics, 2006. ISBN: 9780143039648.
Bhagat, C. 2 States: The Story of My Marriage. Rupa & Co., 2009. ISBN: 9788129115300.
Choudhury, C. India: A Traveler's Literary Companion. Whereabouts Press, 2010. ISBN: 9781883513245.
The following table gives a breakdown of the grading for the course.
| ACTIVITES | % FINAL GRADE |
|---|---|
| Attendance, punctuality, and class participation | 20% |
| Response papers | 20% |
| Midterm | 20% |
| Class report | 10% |
| Final paper | 30% |
MIT OpenCourseWare makes the materials used in the teaching of almost all of MIT's subjects available on the Web, free of charge. With more than 2,200 courses available, OCW is delivering on the promise of open sharing of knowledge.
© 2001–2014
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Your use of the MIT OpenCourseWare site and materials is subject to our Creative Commons License and other terms of use.