LITERATURE OF

CENTRAL ASIA
GROUP 1, 12-EINSTEIN
BENGAL
LITERATURE
I
 Muslim Medieval Modern
Conquests of Literature Literature
12th to India
16th Century 1360 - 1800 After 1800
Muslim Conquests of India (12th to 16th century)

Poetic activity was

broken off until the
mid-14th century.
Impeded the growth of
Bengal literature (no
literary composition
can be attributed to
this period)
 Muslim Medieval Modern
Conquests of Literature Literature
12th to India
16th Century 1360 - 1800 After 1800
 Medieval Literature (1360 – 1800)

Early Vaishnava Literature (1360 to 15th

century)
Before the birth of Chaitanya
Mahapharabu (founder of
Gaudiya Vaishavism)
Different from Gaudiya
Vaishnavism in belief.

Believes that the soul is a higher

metaphysical reality. Spiritual
liberation is gained through knowledge
 Works

Shreekrishna
Kirtana
(Boru Chandidas)
Pastoral Vaishnava drama
in verse
Most significant
work after
Charyapada
 Muslim Medieval Modern
Conquests of Literature Literature
12th to India
16th Century 1360 - 1800 After 1800
Modern Literature (After 1800)
Bengali literature gained
momentum
Bengali Pandits translated
the text books of Bengali

Relevant
Writers
Michael Madhusudan
Dutt
Bankim Chandra
Chattopadhyay
 Relevant
Writers
Michael Madhusudan Dutt
• introduced the blank verse, literary epics, and
sonnets in Bengali language.
• wrote Tilottama Sambhab Kabya

Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay

• leading Bengali novelist and essayist of the
19th century.
• Durgeshnandini (1865) - benchmark in the history of
Bengali literature.
 INDIA
LITERATURE
N
 Ancient Colonial Independence
Literature Period Onwards
Ancient Literature

Sanskrit Literature
Text were produced about 16th century by
people known as Aryans.

Different regions began to develop their own

distinctive culture.
Indian languages were influenced by Islamic
religion, Persian, and Arabic languages.

Hindu literary traditions dominate a large

part of Indian culture.
Ancient Literature
Mahabharata by Vyasa (400 CE)
• One of the two major Sanskrit
epics of ancient India.
• Regarded as both test about
Dharma and history.
• Struggle of sovereignty between
two groups of cousins, the
Kauravs and Pandavas
• made up of 100,000 couplets
Ramayana by Sage Valmiki
• Depicts the duties of relationships
• Consists of 24,000 verses in seven
books and 500 cantos
• The story of Rama, whose wife Sita is
abducted by Ravana, the king of Lanka
• Explores human values and the concept
of Dharma
• Written in a 32-syllable meter called
anustubh
Ancient Literature

Classic Sanskrit Literature

Started with the flowering of the Gupta dynasty
About the great achievements in philosophy, sciences,
and arts, and reflected values of Hinduism

Notable work: Panchatantra (The Five Strategies) by

Vishnusharman
A collection of stories in prose and verse
The characters are animals that teach lessons
about human conduct
 Ancient Colonial Independence
Literature Period Onwards
 Colonial Period

India
• Started with oral literature
• Eight Schedule of the
Constitution specifies 22 Philippines
languages • Started with oral literature
• Colonialism affected the • Has many dialects but has one
literature (some works are national language
inspired by English novels, • Colonialism affected literature
writers start writing in English, (Spanish, Japanese, American)
there were speeches about
nationalism, some works are about
injustices, printing press was
 Ancient Colonial Independence
Literature Period Onwards
 Independence
Onwards
Independence from Britain marked the start of
modern literature.
Increase in globalization
and migration.
Rise of female writers and
feminist writings.
Notable work: The God of Small Things by
Arundhati Roy
Follows the childhood experiences of
fraternal twins
Comments on human nature, Indian
politics, religion, and the caste
system
PAKISTAN
LITERATURE
I
 Early Phase The 1970s and The 1990s to
(1947 to 1960s) 1980s the present
Blooming of
Restricted to Pakistani
a handful of Pakistani English
writers poetry was literature
Most writers gradually Middle class
were from coming into has adopted
elitist Pakistani
its own English more
'English fiction was as a global
medium' yet to develop language
Fiction came
educational into its own
Ahmed Ali(1 19 99 14 0) -
Wrote elegant
prose, fiction,
and
Notablepoetry.
work: Twilight in Delhi
(1940)
Reflects and
old, lost world
of Mughal
glory.
Zulfikar Ghose( 1 9 3 5 - )
His works are infused with
realism, magic-realism,
metaphor, symbolism, and
allegory to create a
Notable work: reality.
metaphysical The Murder of Aziz
Khan (1967)
Tells the story of a
Pakistani farmer’s
unsuccessful attempt
to resist three
unscrupulous brothers
from usurping his
Taufiq Rafat (1 19 99 28 7) -
His work influenced other
Pakistani poets and he is credited
with the introduction of the
concept of a “Pakistani idiom” in
English
Notable literature.
work: Arrival of the
Monsoon (1987)
The most important poetry
collection of this time;
establish a firm ‘Pakistani
idiom’ in English poetry.
Alamgir Hashmi( 1 9 5 1 - )

Wrote exceptionally
fine verse, and also
made prodigious
contributions to
literary criticism
and critical studies
at home and abroad.
Bapsi Sidhwa( 1 9 3 8 - )
The first Pakistani expatriate
writer to take up in detail
various larger issues such as the
trauma of Partition in 1947, the
poor treatment of religious
minorities and growing
Notable work: Ice Candyman
intolerance, and the suppression
of women.
A story about the Partition
of India and the 1947
upheaval that left countless
people homeless, hurt and/or
dead. Told from the point-
of-view of a little girl who
lived through the troubles.
Mohsin Hamid( 1 9 7 1 - )

Management consultant in New

York and a freelance
journalist in Lahore.
Notable work: The Reluctant
Fundamentalist (2007)
A frame story that
takes place during
the course of a
single evening in an
outdoor Lahore café.
TAMIL
LITERATURE
Sangam Bhakthi Modern
(or Devotional Ethics Literature
Classics Literature)
Sangam Literature/Sangan Classics
The earliest known phase of
Tamil literature.
Between 200 BCE and
500 CE
The anthologies of odes, lyrics and idylls
Mostly descriptive. They describe nature,
human feelings, love, lovers, husband-wife
relations, war, etc.
Two Parts of Sangam
Anthologies
Aham (dealing with love)
Puram (dealing with war).
Sangam Bhakthi Modern
(or Devotional Ethics Literature
Classics Literature)
Bhakthi or Devotional Literature
Deals with religious philosophy,
the history of saints, etc.
Most of these are
devotional poems.
Religious teaching entered Tamil
literature for the first time in
Manimekalai.
After the 7th century CE, there was
an acute fight between Saivites and
Jainas as well as Saivites and
Buddhists.
Sangam Bhakthi Modern
(or Devotional Ethics Literature
Classics Literature)
 Ethics
The major part of Thirukkural deals
with morals.
Literature was chosen as the best
instrument to teach morals.
The poetic works Naladiar, Nanmanikkadikai,
Elathi, Sirupancamulam, Athiccudi,
Konraiventhan, etc., are very popular in Tamil
Nadu.
Thiruvalluvar’s Thirukkural, accepted as a
work of great importance, has drawn from the
Dharmasastra, the Arthasastra and the
Kamasutra and is written in a masterful style.
Sangam Bhakthi Modern
(or Devotional Ethics Literature
Classics Literature)
 Modern Literature

Must be dealt with under two

sub-headings
Prose

Poetry
 Tamil Grammatical Tradition

According to the tradition that Later it was five fold:

Tholkappiyar followed a
grammar is three fold:
Ezhuthu (sounds and Ezhuthu (sounds and
letters) letters)
Col (words) Col (words)
Porul (meaning) Porul (meaning)
Yappu (versification)
Ani (beauty of
literature)
Madhorubhagan or One Part
WomanB y P e r u m a l M u r u g a n
It is the story of a childless
couple with a strong desire of
having a child, "depicted with
admirable sensitivity, anguish
Controversy
and gentleness"
It began to attract controversy
in 2014 after local caste-based
and religious Hindu groups
objected to the fictional
portrayal of traditions at the
Ardhanareeswarar Temple in
Siyagamiyin Sabatham
By Kalki
Set in 7th-century south India
against the backdrop of various
historical events and figures,
the novel created widespread
interest in Tamil history. Honor
love and friendship are
important themes that run
Parts the course of the novel.
through
Part 1: Paranjothi's Journey
Part 2: The Siege of Kanchi
Part 3: The Monk's Love
Part 4: The Shattered Dream