INDEPENDENT UNIVERSITY, BANGLADESH School of Liberal Arts and Social sciences Department of English and Modern Languages
INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE 2020
ENGLISH ROMANTICISM AND BENGALI LITERATURE 5-6 March, 2020
ORGANIZED AND HOSTED BY:
DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH and Modern Languages INDEPENDENT UNIVERSITY, BANGLADESH
In Bengal, anybody who has access to secondary education and higher becomes familiar with the names of at least the classical English Romantics quite early in their lives. Owing to 200 years of English colonial rule in India, Keats and Wordsworth have occupied our consciousness as much as Nazrul and Rabindranath have. Does Nazrul, the bidrohee, qualify as the ‘Byron of Bangladesh’? What affinity does Rabindranath share with Wordsworth? Indeed, our cultural understanding of the concepts of beauty, nature, the world of the sublime, and that of the dark core of humanity have been meaningfully informed by English Romantic thoughts.
In our post-colonial reality, therefore, it is possible to observe how English Romanticism has transformed and even transgressed from its organic roots in Europe and ontologically contextualized itself in Bengali literary consciousness and creativity. So, rather than asking what we have been taught to ask by our conservative pedagogues – such as whether Nazrul was influenced by the Romantics – it becomes more important for us to look at the cross interactions Bengali poets and authors have made with their English counterparts, and how far that have impacted Bengali literature and the literary tradition.
The two-day conference ENGLISH ROMANTICISM AND BENGALI LITERATURE will draw together scholars from Bangladesh, India and other countries to revisit and rethink English Romanticism in South Asia. The conference will attempt to address the issue from different theoretical perspectives with regard to appreciation, criticism, teaching and learning of Bengali literature.
Distinguished scholars who have already confirmed their participation are:
Professor Syed Manzoorul Islam, ULAB, Bangladesh Professor Fakrul Alam, Dhaka University, Bangladesh Professor Somdatta Mandal, Visva-Bharati University, India Professor Abhijit Sen, Visva-Bharati University, India
Professor Saugata Bhaduri, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India Professor Shamsad Mortuza, Pro Vice-Chancellor, ULAB, Dhaka
Professor Nevin Farida, Dhaka University, Bangladesh Professor Sabiha Huq, Khulna University, Bangladesh
Professor Abdullah Al Mamun, Rajshahi University, Bangladesh Professor Maswood Akhtar, Rajshahi University, Bangladesh Dr Srideep Mukherjee, Netaji Shubhas Open University, India
Topics of the conference include but are not exclusive to:
- reading and critiquing English Romanticism
- post-colonial and neo-historical critique of English Romanticism
- linguistic influence of Romantic verse on Bangla and other South Asian languages - linguistic features of Romantic literary works
- Romantic poetry and the Bangla language – issues of style, diction, etc.
- translating Romantic poetry into Bangla
- sociolinguistics of Romantic poetry – linguistic exchanges, structural adaptations, lexical borrowings, etc.
- significance of Romantic verse in language teaching
Academic papers will be accepted both in Bangla and English.
There will be some special sessions in the conference as follows:
- a session to discuss and analyze the interaction between English Romantic literature and other (non- Bangla) languages.
- a session for presentations by students and researchers.
- a session for recitation.
Each paper presentation will be of 20 minutes. Each session will have a 15 minute questions and answers segment.
A peer reviewed conference book will be published featuring selected articles presented in the conference.
There will be a performance of Rabindranath Tagore’s dance-drama Chittrangada.
Abstract
Abstracts of 150 – 200 words should be submitted to: [email protected]
Scholars who wish to read their papers in Bangla are requested to submit their abstracts both in Bengali (Sutonny MJ, 12 point) and English. Abstracts in English should be composed in Times New Roman (12 point).
Abstracts must emphasize the research objectives and include 4-5 keywords.
Important Dates
The last date for submission of abstract: 10 January 2020 Notification of acceptance: 16 January 2020
Date for submission of full paper for publication in the peer reviewed conference book: 30 April, 2020
Registration fees:
Local → 1. Student: BDT 500/- 2. Paper Presenters: BDT 3000/- 3. Participants: BDT 2000/- International: $250 (covers costs for two-night accommodation and food)
*There will be limited provision for spot registration.
Contact person: Professor Ahmed Ahsanuzzaman, Department of English, SLASS (Conference Convener;
e mail: [email protected]))
