Indian Modernities: Literary Cultures from the 18th to the 20th Century

This book explores how modernity has been conceived, practiced, and performed in Indian literatures from the eighteenth to the twentieth century, challenging the dominance of colonial modernity and highlighting the complex ways in which modernism is tied to the harvests of modernity. It incorporates engagements with long prose fiction, lesser-known essays, research works, and short stories published in popular magazines, making it a valuable resource for students and scholars of Indian writing, Indian literatures, and comparative literatures.

Format: Hardback
Length: 290 pages
Publication date: 18 August 2023
Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd

This comprehensive volume delves into the multifaceted ways in which modernity has been conceived, practiced, and performed in Indian literatures spanning from the eighteenth to the twentieth century. It brings together a diverse range of essays on writings in Hindi, Urdu, Punjabi, Bengali, Odia, Gujarati, Marathi, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, and languages from Northeast India, all of which engage in a vibrant dialogue with one another within this volume. Through these scholarly investigations, the book challenges the prevailing notion of modernity by unveiling the complex interplay of concurrence and contradictions that emerge.

The book's sociohistorical and cultural analysis contextualizes modernity within the multilingual ethos of India, revealing its multifaceted nature. It further explores the intricate connections between modernism in India and the harvests of modernity, shedding light on the diverse conditions that shaped multiple modernities within the literature produced in India.

This versatile collection encompasses not only long prose fiction but also lesser-known essays, research works, and short stories published in popular magazines. Its unique approach makes it an invaluable resource for students and teachers of Indian writing in English, Indian literatures, and comparative literatures. Scholars of South Asian studies, literary historians, linguists, and cultural studies enthusiasts worldwide will find this work indispensable in their pursuit of understanding the complexities of Indian modernity.

Dimension: 234 x 156 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781032280127