Academic one day Tour - 2018

            One Day Academic Tour - 2018

On 13 March, 2018 Department of English, M.K. Bhavnagar University   organized one day academic tour for students of semester 2&4. We have visited various places like Akashardham Temple, Central University of Gujarat, Mahatma Mandir and Science City.

First we visited the Akashardham Temple. Life of 'Swami Nilakhnth' was portrayed well in musical, instrumental, and sound effect.

Second place was CUG (Central University of Gujarat). It was very fruitful visit for us.  Dr. Atanu Bhattacharya sir warmly welcomed us. First we seen Virtual learning center, they have provided better facilities like net, computers  to the PhD and M.Phil students/scholars that they are allowed to work till 10 pm and they provided bus facility according their schedule.

                               

Then Dr. Balaji Rangnathan sir introduced us about PhD course of central University. It is mainly based on comparative study and translation studies; it was very fruitful session on research methodology, Research aptitude, Research proposal etc.  That how students can get admission and which types of entrants’ exam they take. He talked on various research fellow ship also that how these types of facilities given by government like JRF and other for further research or study. He said one thing that one has to do, is open 20 paths not only 1 and out of 20 you will definitely get 1 right way for your bright career but for that you should have faith in yourself and hard work.

                                        

 

      We visited their library which has very interesting facilities to find books with the help of technology. Librarian introduced the all systems that how they arrange books, how students issue and submit their books and if any book misplace then they have one electronic machine and through that they can easily find it. This kind of operating system also we have in our central library of Bhavnagar university but their library have more facilities for authentic research works, journal.

                               

 

     Then we visited Mahatma Mandir which is full of technology integration in shows on Gandhi and his life with good 3D effect. We have given valuable feedback on all things that are shown in technical way; there are also digital touch screen books on Gandhi’s life. Such a wonderful museum, it is like we are in the world of Da Vinci Code, a novel where is we find the same structure of Mahatma Museum like Louvre Museum from outside architecture and at bottom of that we find same pyramid also. When we visited the museum at that time we felt that we are in Hogwarts school of Harry Potter not because of magic but the way they use of technology it is very good and that’s why we can feel the whole journey of Bapu. 

   

At last we enjoyed fountain show at Science city as a perfect ending.

At last I would like to thanks Dr.Dilip Barad to permit us for this academic tour out of busy schedule.

OD2017-18: Contemporary Debates and Mario Vargos Llosa

Here is my views regarding this online discussion given by Dr.Dilip Barad.

 For further reading - click here

 Mario Vargas Llosa is a Peruvian writer, Journalist, essayist and college professor. he is one of the Latin American's most significant novelist and essayist, one of the leading writer of his generation. Some critics consider him to have had larger international impact and worldwide audience than any other writer of the Latin American Boom. In 2010 he won Nobel Prize in Literature(Wikipedia)

In the “Political correctness is the enemy of freedom” Llosa talked on various topics which are very relevant with today's world. He focuses on liberalism. He said that now in democratic world people have intellectual blindness and that is very true which is very dangerous for society.

Liberalism defends some basic ideas: freedom, individualism, the rejection of collectivism and nationalism – in other words, all the ideologies or doctrines that limit or annihilate freedom within society. 

Nationalism: Llosa speak about Nationalism as a kind of racism. He says that, if we believe that belonging to a certain country or nation or race or religion is a privilege, a value in itself. we believe that we are superior to other but when we see in a concept of cultural studies so what about other who remain? They are also human being. So nationalism is good but now a days we find people do lot many wrong things on the name of nationalism. for that we always have to remember the history. Because nationalism is like drink . 

Populism is now biggest problem also. He said that in literature also freedom is very important because Literature expresses what reality tries to hide for a variety of reason. Morality and literature both are enemies.

Post truth is also a big problem in now a days. we can't say what is true or wrong. That's why we find lots of fake news.

 

                                       

The Sense of An Ending by Julian Barnes

Classroom thinking activity - Reading of "The Sense of An Ending" by Julian Barnes

To view full Activity - Click Here 

                                               

                                                 

Here is my response to questions,

(1) What is the meaning of phrase ‘Blood Money’ in Veronica’s reply email? 

This 'Blood Money' phrase used by Veronica in email sent by Tony. Because Sarah has given 500 pounds and letter to Tony because she is very much happy with the relation with Adrian and it is possible only through Tony, because Tony wrote a letter to Adrian that meet Veroniks's mother and then all things happened. But then Adrian died. So this money is like Blood Money .

(2) How do you decipher the equation: b = s – v x/+ a1 or a2 + v + a1 X s = b?

B=baby, S=Sarah Ford - Veronica and A1 = Adrian. So in the absent of Veronika Sarah and Adrian had affair and baby born. Here A2 Tony is absent. But that is not reality. Because some how Tony is responsible for this but it is in just his memory so he can't put himself in this .

This is very reliable equation because in which we can easily identified clear idea of whole the chain of relationship. A2= Tony Webster + V = Veronica +A1 = Adrian X S= Shara =B means baby. So we can say that mentally disturb baby born because of Tony. Tonny had first relation with Veronica after the breakup between them Veronika meet his friend Adrian and then Adrian had relation with Veronica's mother and she is late age women and that's why mentally disordered baby born.  

(3) Adrian’s diary is willed to Tony by Sarah Ford. Why did Sarah Ford own it? Why was it in the possession of Veronica?

Because Adrian had relation with Sarah Ford and that's why this diary Sarah Ford own Adrian's diary . After the death of Adrian this diary is also with her. So it is in the Possession of Veronica because she is the daughter of Sarah and all that belongs to Veronica as inheritance. 

(4) Was the mentally retarded middle aged ‘Adrian’, Tony’s friend who did not commit suicide and was suffering from trauma and thus gone mad, and was living with hidden identity?

No, the mentally retarded middle aged ' Adrian' is not living with hidden identity. Because when we read novel at that time we can come across the truth that this mentally retarded 'Adrian' was son of Sarah and Adrian, and because of the late age of Sarah this boy born mentally retarded. And Adrian commit suicide because of Sarah became pregnant by him and he himself responsible for it.  

(5)  How was Veronica related to Adrian, the one suffering in care in the Community?

First Veronica and Tony had relation but after the break up she had relation with Adrian but Adrian had physical relation with Sarah Frod ( Mother of Veronica ). She is old one and because of late age this relation one mentally weak boy born but after the death of Sarah and Adrian 's suicide Veronica take care of him as her brother not friend or lover and she spent her life behind taking care of him. 

(6)  Do you see any missing block – some dot which is not getting connected with the whole or dot missing to get full sense of the novel - in the plot of this psychological thriller? 

Many questions and query grown up when we read the novel. Because it is psychological thriller and whole story narrates by Tony and it is his memory and when we talked about our memory at that time we can't talk hundred percent true or fact that what we want to say and that's why we can't connect all the dots. Same way in this novel also we have question  that Why Sarah live alone? What about Robson's girlfriend? Why Adrian commit suicide though he had good intelligent power? Why Sarah has told bad things about Veronica to the Tony when he visited Veronica's home?  

(7)  Do you see any possible reason in the suicide of Adrian Finn? 

Julian Barnes not gave cl ester  clear reason behind the suicide of Adrian but we just say that it is happen because of guilt and shame of his affair with girlfriend's mother. May be he don't want to take  his responsibility or some other philosophical or psychological reasons behind it.

(8) In the light of new revelations, how do you read character of Veronica? Instinctive, manipulative, calculating, stubborn, haughty, sacrificial, trustworthy, good Samaritan?

In first part we find that she is very calculative, stubborn but in second part her character is completely contrast she is so kind, trustworthy , responsible, she sacrifice her life to taking care of his brother.

(9)  What do you mean by Unreliable Narrator? Is Tony Webster classifiable as Unreliable Narrator?

Yes, Tony is Unreliable Narrator, because he talks what ever it is his memory and time and again he deconstruct what he said. After checking the letter he come to know that he himself is responsible for the life of Adrian and Veronica and all this things.

Thanks.  

 

OD - Fiction and lies

Online Discussion : Fiction and Lies 2018

 What is fiction ?

                

Fiction is the classification for any story or setting that is derived from imagination—in other words, not based strictly on history or fact.^[1][2][3] Fiction can be expressed in a variety of formats, including writings, live performances, films, television programs, animations, video games, and role-playing games, though the term originally and most commonly refers to the narrative forms of literature (see literary fiction),^[4] including novels, novellas, short stories, and plays. Fiction is occasionally used in its narrowest sense to mean simply any "literary narrative".^[5]

A work of fiction is an act of creative imagination, so its total faithfulness to the real-world is not typically assumed by its audience.^[6] Therefore, fiction is not commonly expected to present only characters who are actual people or descriptions that are factually accurate. Instead, the context of fiction, not adhering precisely to the real world, is generally understood as being more open to interpretation.^[7] Characters and events within a fictional work may even be set in their own context entirely separate from the known universe: an independent fictional universe. (wekipedia)

Today an entire flourishing genre of television goes by the name “reality,” yet no one who watches it thinks it is genuinely real or not. Ex - Reality Shows. So in the Age of Post truth very difficult to trust or find on any particular reality or truth. Because not any single truth is ultimate truth, it is different from person to person. (Kirsch)

In literature fiction means,

 " Fiction was invented the day Jonah arrived home and told his wife that he was three days late because he had been swallowed by a whale"   - Gabriel Garcia Marquez

The writer is a craftsman, working with the tools of language to manipulate both truth and lie to reveal the greater truth. Writers are sculptors, working the stone with sharp chisels and hammers to remove the pieces that get in the way of the work of art beneath. So, literature is full of imagination and imagination is not pure something lies are there. But that is not only lies but through lie literature tell the truth. Truth of society and human. (htt)

 For Example - Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling , it is fantasy story. In which full of magic and lies, because in which very less reality or truth we find but though it gives good moral lessons and various reality of society like about politics, education system, problem of class and racism etc. So we can say that may be it is alternate truth.

Works Cited

(n.d.). Retrieved 3 5, 2018, from wekipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fiction

(n.d.). Retrieved from https://thebettereditor.wordpress.com/2013/08/31/lies-damned-lies-and-teaching-fiction/

Kirsch, A. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/15/books/lie-to-me-fiction-in-the-post-truth-era.html

 

Annual report of Gardening Committee

        Gardening Committee:

                                  

                                    By Megha Trivedi

“The glory of gardening: hands in the dirt, head in the sun, heart with nature. To nurture a garden is to feed not just the body, but the soul.”

                                                            By – Alfred Austin

We all know that trees played very vital role in our life. Without it we can’t survive.  That’s why we have to grow more trees around our area. As a good citizen also it is our responsibility that we have to care nature and planting more trees. So from this view we grew garden at Department of English under the guidance of Dr.Dilip Barad .

In department, we have tradition that various committee do various activities throughout the year. There are 24 members of both semesters in this committee. Here are some glimpses of all the activities that did in whole the year by gardening committee. We celebrated gardening day two times in every year and new batch planting minimum one tree as the memory of the year.

This time at 5^thAugust, 2017 we did memory tree plantation as part of Clean India Mission/Swachh Bharat. We have cleaned area around department of English, we also have re-arranged blocks so students can use it during recess. We enjoyed snacks together by sitting on blocks. Many students came department by cycles for the purpose of save environment. Then we all visited university tennis courts, gym and played tennis together sem – 1 and sem -3 students.

               

 Then 26^th January, 2018 celebrated Republic Day as the Gardening day. After attended Flag Hoisting ceremony, we worked to clean campus around the Department of English. We painted trunks of trees with Geru and Lime which all protect tree/plant trunks. We painted and designed all the pot also with geru. We put some pot birdhouse and feeders for birds in garden, because through these birds protects them in summer.

   

 Garden is the best place and in department’s garden we passed many sweet memories and happiest moments. Thanks to Dilip Barad sir for build up such a wonderful garden as a part of Department of English.