Prism Of Silence

Book Code: 1111036803059

Editor: Pratyush Vatsala, Ratnakar Kumar

ABOUT THE BOOK

The book  Prism of Silence records different voices manifested through silence. It is an ensemble of essays on the theme of ‘speaking silence’. The scholars from different fields have contributed. The concept of silence is located through themes like – ‘of violence in the realm of war and how silence functions through that’, ‘voices of silence coming through prison spaces’, ‘world of art capturing the moment of silence post-partition’, ‘the silenced voices of women writers in the performing space of Indian theatre’ and many more.

ABOUT THE EDITOR

Dr. Pratyush Vatsala, a visionary academician  and dynamic administrator,  currently serves as the Principal and Professor at Lakshmibai College, University of Delhi. With over 35 years of rich academic and administrative experience, her contribution varies from literature, education, human rights, and multidisciplinary studies  to Values and Social Responsibility. Dr. Vatsala holds dual M.A. degrees in English and Hindi, a Ph.D. in English, a prestigious International Diploma in Educational Leadership in Higher Education, along with Postgraduate Diplomas in Educational Management and Human Rights, and a Certificate in Human Resource Management. Her scholarship reflects a seamless integration of contemporary pedagogy, Indian Knowledge Systems (IKS), and a deep-seated commitment to education as a means of social transformation. She has contributed extensively to national and international academic discourse through research supervision, paper presentations and invited lectures. Her unwavering dedication to inclusive, value-based education and social justice has earned her numerous prestigious awards recognizing her contributions to literature, culture, education and human rights. Dr. Vatsala has authored and edited a wide range of books. Her English publications include New Age Companion to English Literature, Human Rights and Dalit Narrative, Equality and Social Justice: Issues and Concerns, Current Issues in Human Rights Education and Value Development, Human Rights Education: Issues and Challenges, Breaking the Silence on Human Rights and Gender Issues, Human Rights Regime: Dialogic and Debates, Speaking Silence: History, Politics and Psychology, and Innovative Teaching, Learning & Evaluation in English. Her Hindi works include Jaane Anjaane, Ikkisavin Sadi ke Bharat mein Gandhi Chintan ki Prasangikta, Media evam Loktantra, Mahila Hinsa ka Ant: Kal, Aaj aur Kal, and Kavya aur Saundarya: Vividh Ayam.

 

Mr. Ratnakar Kumar is an Assistant Professor in the Department of English at Lakshmibai College, University of Delhi, with a decade of teaching experience. He is pursuing his PhD on Indian Classical Literature from University of Delhi. Mr. Kumar specializes in teaching Indian Classical texts, Graphic Narratives, Detective Fiction, Digital Communication, Theatre Studies and Dalit Studies to undergraduate students and has five years of experience teaching postgraduate students of NCWEB at University of Delhi. He is an active participant in academic seminars, conferences, and workshops, and has also organized such events. His contributions to environmental and sustainable education were recently recognized with the Environmental and Sustainable Education Distinction Award from the Indian Institute of Ecology and Environment.

CONTENTS

List of Contributors………………………………………………………………………………………………………..................…..  7

Introduction……………………………………………………………………………………………………………..................…….  9

 

1.  A Sisterhood of Silenced Voices: Analyzing Selected Prison Writing by Women in the Indian context……………….................…....... 13

 

2.  Silence and Estrangement in post-partition Pakistani Art………………………………………………………....……..................….  21

 

3.  Politics of Silence in relation to War in Detective Fiction: Understanding the interrelationship between War and Gender

through Agatha Christie’s The Mysterious Affair at Styles & N or M? and Virginia Woolf’s Three Guineas………....………...................  35

 

4.  The Silence of The Archive, Performance as a Living Memory: A Case of Women Directors in Indian Theatre………....................….. 45

 

5.  Denying the Dalit Identity: the Silence of the Kami, Damai, and Saraki Communities of Darjeeling and Sikkim…………..................…  51

 

6.  The Partition of 1947: Khasi lives mattered too! ……………………………………………………..………………….................... 61

 

7.  Patriarchal manipulation of Faith and Silencing of women in Tehmina Durrani’s Blasphemyand Fadia Faqir’s My Name is Salma……..  69

 

8.  The Construction of Silence and politics of withholding in MG Vassanji’s The Book of Secrets………………………………………  79

 

9.  Pervading yet Subversive Silence in Arundhati Roy’s novel The Ministry of Utmost Happiness…………………………………….....  93

 

10. “We could face each other over coffee cups in total silence”: Analyzing Naoko in Haruki Murakami’s Norwegian Wood…………...  103

 

11. Silence on the Subalterns and Marginalised in Partition stories of Manto………………………………………………....…………  111