Understanding literary theories is important as it helps in analysing texts from different perspectives, said Dr. Veena M.K., president of the Forum of College Teachers (FOCET) and principal of Sahyadri Commerce College.
Speaking at the inauguration of one-day workshop on Understanding Literary Theory in Text organised at Sahyadri Arts College in Shivamogga on Thursday, July 27, Ms. Veena said that over the years, literary theories had changed the way readers treated texts. The characters of Shakespearean tragedies have gained new dimensions because of literary theories. Similarly, Mahashwethadevi’s Rudali, which tells the tale of a professional mourner, could be understood very well in the light of literary theories. Hence, knowledge of literary theories is essential for students, she opined.
Dr. T. Avinash, secretary of FOCET, said the workshop was necessary to clear misconceptions prevailing about literary theories. “There is a myth that these are only theories with no applicability. Similarly, some argue that the essence of literature is lost with the application of theories. We need to understand the theories well to prove these notions are wrong,” he said.
Giving an example from Kannada literature, Mr. Avinash said the feminist reading of Dr. U.R. Ananthamurthy’s celebrated novel Samskara gave a new approach to the novel itself. Similarly, there has been an attempt to read Pu.Thi.Na’s Gokula Nirgamana with respect to the time in which it was written. Knowledge of literary theories would help the students analyse the text in innumerable ways.
Dr. K.B. Dhananjaya, principal of Sahyadri College, inaugurated the workshop by reading out Prathibha Nandakumar’s well known poem — Navu Hudugiyare Heege.
Dr. Praveen Shetty of the Department of Humanities and Management at MIT in Manipal and Dr. Richa Gupta of Manipal Centre for European Studies conducted the workshop on literary theories. With examples of literary texts, including a poem, an essay, and a short story, the experts explained how literary theories are applied to texts.
Dr. Siraj Ahmed, coordinator of the Department of Postgraduate Studies in English, Dr. Meti Mallikarjun of the Department of Linguistics, and others were present.
