blog.co.uk  »  Next Blog  »    Create your own blog for free •   •  Flag this blog Login

On Suitable Boy and Vikram Seth

by MohanaranganV @ Wednesday, 14. May, 2008 - 11:01:15 pm

English  is  an  interesting  language,  in  the  sense  that  no  language  has  been  so  active  in  begetting  new  dialects  and  regional  varieties  as  English.  At  least   in  the  modern  period  of  known  history  this  feature  of  a  global  language  remains  unique.   English  was  thought  to  be  singular  once  and  many  cultures were  thought  to  adapt  themselves  to  the  world  language.  But  this  concept  has  become  archaic  and  English   is  seen  to  be  adapting  itself  to  various  cultures  and  ethno  domains.   Actually  English  is  thought  of   as  a  plural  language,  again  unique  in  this  kind.   For  no  language  adapts  itself  so  thoroughly  to  the  receptor-culture.   There  are  very  many  good  examples  to  vindicate  this  point.   Aurobindo's  works  in  English  are  an instant  to  the  point.   Sri  Aurobindo   relaid  the  cultural  fibre  of  Indian  English  and  made  the  English muse  sophisticated  enough  to  resonate   the  Eastern  nodes.  
Of course  that  was  mainly  in  and  through  poetry.   In  prose  also  he  did   a  lot.   But   to  make  English   a  facile  patois  to  voice  all  sorts  of  domestic  din  and  banal  tunes  of  the  whole  cultural  spread  of  India  in  extent  and   depth  is  a  remarkable  feat.   One  way  of  measuring  it  is  to  say  such  a  venture   is  Mahabharathean  in  its  enormity.  Such  a  feat  of  our  times  is  The  Suitable  Boy  of  Vikram  Seth.    More  I  will  write  on  the  book  in  the  following  days. 



 
 

Trackback address for this post:

authimage

Comments, Trackbacks:

No Comments/Trackbacks for this post yet...

Leave a comment :

Your email address will not be displayed on this site.
Your URL will be displayed.
Allowed XHTML tags: <!, p, ul, ol, li, dl, dt, dd, address, blockquote, ins, del, a, span, bdo, br, em, strong, dfn, code, samp, kdb, var, cite, abbr, acronym, q, sub, sup, tt, i, b, big, small, img>
URLs, email, AIM and ICQs will be converted automatically.
Options:
 
(Line breaks become <br />)
(Set cookies for name, email & url)
Validation code:
Please enter the above code here:
For protection from spambots (case-sensitive).

Recent Posts

  1. Thoughts on Nation and Culture
    by MohanaranganV on Monday, 07. Apr, 2008
  2. The style of Bharathi's english
    by MohanaranganV on Tuesday, 26. Feb, 2008
  3. Epical delvings
    by MohanaranganV on Wednesday, 05. Dec, 2007
  4. Teasing the fire, a literary touch from the Rig Veda
    by MohanaranganV on Monday, 17. Apr, 2006
  5. Shakespeare on stage
    by MohanaranganV on Friday, 03. Mar, 2006
  6. Topo-mythology of a place, sanctified
    by MohanaranganV on Saturday, 18. Feb, 2006
  7. Trumpetting into self
    by MohanaranganV on Saturday, 18. Feb, 2006
  8. Who is inside, here?
    by MohanaranganV on Saturday, 18. Feb, 2006
  9. Translating Aristotle into Tamil
    by MohanaranganV on Saturday, 18. Feb, 2006
  10. THOUGHTS ON SHAKESPEARE'S SONNETS
    by MohanaranganV on Tuesday, 27. Dec, 2005