Prof. Brinda Bose

Public Lectures

Achebe's Things Fall Apart as Text and Tool

De-Colonising the Classroom:

Achebe's Things Fall Apart as Text and Tool
29. April 2009, 14-16 Uhr c.t., Geb. CB 3.1, HS II

Prof. Brinda Bose, Delhi University

This presentation focuses on a classic of postcolonial fiction, Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart (1958). In using it as a discussion text, the functions of a post-colonial classroom will be re-assessed, with postcolonial theory being shown to be a politically meaningful tool of reading.

 

Sexual Minority Rights in India

The Long Arm of Colonial Rule:

Sexual Minority Rights in India
06. Mai 2009, 14-16 Uhr c.t., Geb. CB 3.1, HS II

Prof. Brinda Bose, Delhi University

The still valid Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code that criminalises homosexuality was instituted under British rule in 1861. Along with the history of this law, this lecture will highlight current debates around the sexual minority rights movement in India.

Feminisms, Censorship, and Writing in South Asia

The „Shaming“ of Taslima:

Feminisms, Censorship, and Writing in South Asia
13. May 2009, 14-16 Uhr c.t., Geb. CB 3.1, HS II

Prof. Brinda Bose, Delhi University

The case of the exiled Bangladeshi writer Taslima Nasrin can be variously read: as example, as symbol and as metaphor. The lecture will look at issues that surround the contentious and complex subject of censorship and feminism in contemporary South Asia by focussing on the Taslima Nasrin phenomenon.

Private Selves and Public Cultures in India

Star Bodies:

Private Selves and Public Cultures in India
20. May 2009, 14-16 Uhr c.t., Geb. CB 3.1, HS II

Prof. Brinda Bose, Delhi University

Film and sports stars overwhelmingly dominate the public imagination in contemporary India. The lecture will examine how these figures continually feed the hunger for sustaining a fantasy world in which the private and performative identities of these celebrities are fused – and confused.