Stephanian School of Literature
Encyclopedia
Stephanian School of Literature refers to a body of fictional works written in English, mostly novels written by the alumni of St. Stephen's College
, Delhi
.
It can be called as a sub-genre of Indian English Literature
but the validity of it is heavily debated among various critics. Brinda Bose's essay 'Of Voids and Speculums; Or Where is the Woman in the Text' is an essay that forcefully denies the existence of such a school of writing.
Many other authors and scholars have discussed this in detail in various essays. Some authors defend the spirit of Stephania and says, it doesn't matter whether of not there is such a school of literature while others tend to celebrate the college.
Amitav Ghosh
, Vikram Seth
, Rukun Advani, Mukul Kesavan
and Shashi Tharoor
are some famous Indian English Writers who belong to the Stephanian School of Literature.
In an interview Amitav Ghosh comments on this topic:
"The ethos of St. Stephen's were not at all artistic. Everyone had the IAS exams in their mind. But in a way many writers like Shashi Tharoor and Upamanyu Chatterjee came through that bureaucratic set-up. When I look back I find there is nothing really surprising about it. Because Stephen's had a lot of talented people who were also self-confident. Whenever there is some form of artistic outburst, there are links of this kind. Spanish filmmaker Luis Buñuel studied at San Fernando Academy of Fine Arts in Madrid with poet Federico Garcia Lorca and surrealist painter Salvador Dali. I think these connections do exist in the world of art and literature."
St. Stephen's College, Delhi
St. Stephen's College is a constituent college of the University of Delhi located in Delhi, India. The college admits both undergraduates and post-graduates, and awards degrees under the purview of the University. Famous for its rich history and many traditions, St...
, Delhi
Delhi
Delhi , officially National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India, next to Mumbai. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census...
.
It can be called as a sub-genre of Indian English Literature
Indian English literature
Indian English literature refers to the body of work by writers in India who write in the English language and whose native or co-native language could be one of the numerous languages of India. It is also associated with the works of members of the Indian diaspora, such as V.S...
but the validity of it is heavily debated among various critics. Brinda Bose's essay 'Of Voids and Speculums; Or Where is the Woman in the Text' is an essay that forcefully denies the existence of such a school of writing.
Many other authors and scholars have discussed this in detail in various essays. Some authors defend the spirit of Stephania and says, it doesn't matter whether of not there is such a school of literature while others tend to celebrate the college.
Amitav Ghosh
Amitav Ghosh
Amitav Ghosh , is a Bengali Indian author best known for his work in the English language.-Life:Ghosh was born in Calcutta on July 11, 1956, to Lieutenant Colonel Shailendra Chandra Ghosh, a retired officer of the pre-independence Indian Army, and was educated at The Doon School; St...
, Vikram Seth
Vikram Seth
Vikram Seth is an Indian poet, novelist, travel writer, librettist, children's writer, biographer and memoirist.-Early life:Vikram Seth was born on 20 June 1952 to Leila and Prem Seth in Calcutta...
, Rukun Advani, Mukul Kesavan
Mukul Kesavan
Mukul Kesavan is an Indian writer and essayist. He studied History at the University of Delhi and later at Trinity College, Cambridge where he received his MLitt. His first book - Looking Through Glass received critical acclaim. He teaches social history at Jamia Millia Islamia in Delhi. He's keen...
and Shashi Tharoor
Shashi Tharoor
Shashi Tharoor is an Indian politician and a Member of Parliament from the Thiruvananthapuram constituency in Kerala...
are some famous Indian English Writers who belong to the Stephanian School of Literature.
In an interview Amitav Ghosh comments on this topic:
"The ethos of St. Stephen's were not at all artistic. Everyone had the IAS exams in their mind. But in a way many writers like Shashi Tharoor and Upamanyu Chatterjee came through that bureaucratic set-up. When I look back I find there is nothing really surprising about it. Because Stephen's had a lot of talented people who were also self-confident. Whenever there is some form of artistic outburst, there are links of this kind. Spanish filmmaker Luis Buñuel studied at San Fernando Academy of Fine Arts in Madrid with poet Federico Garcia Lorca and surrealist painter Salvador Dali. I think these connections do exist in the world of art and literature."
See also
- Indian English LiteratureIndian English literatureIndian English literature refers to the body of work by writers in India who write in the English language and whose native or co-native language could be one of the numerous languages of India. It is also associated with the works of members of the Indian diaspora, such as V.S...
- Indian LiteratureIndian literatureIndian literature refers to the literature produced on the Indian subcontinent until 1947 and in the Republic of India thereafter. The Republic of India has 22 officially recognized languages....
- Literature from North East IndiaLiterature from North East IndiaLiterature from North East India refers to literature of Languages of North East India, and also the body of work by English-language writers from this region. North-East India is an under-represented region in many ways...