English language will continue to dominate us: Prof Punjabi

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SEMINAR ON POSTCOLONIALSM

Renowned author and Postcolonial scholar, Prof Aijaz Ahmad, on Tuesday delivered an extensive lecture on Post-colonialism at the University of Kashmir.

Prof Aijaz, who was the keynote speaker at a national-level seminar, spoke at length about the key issues pertaining to Post-colonialism like its place of origin, evolution and the discourse on the subject, which has attained immense importan

ce over the years.

The 3-day seminar titled “Postcolonial Theory and Literatures: Changing Perspectives and Trends” is organized by the varsity’s Department of English.

“The universe of discourse on post-colonialism is actually the countries like United States, Canada and Australia. It is from there that the discourse comes back to tell us how you should be thinking about your colonial past,” he told a gathering of academics and students.

He said the United States created most powerful institutions to dominate the discourse. “The United States has the most powerful universities and institutions that this globe has ever seen. That is essentially part of US’ attempt to dominate the discourse through the production of knowledge and information,” Prof Aijaz, who has worked in various universities in US and Canada, said.

He said after 1980, the issue of post-colonialism resurfaced alongwith many other “post-marked” words like post structuralism, post feminism, post modernism and post-foundationalism.

He said there was need to study the issues like the origin of the postcolonial theory and its objectives. “It is still unclear what is the objective and meaning of the word. Is it the marker of a period or what? And what is its objective? These are the very imporant questions. If it is the marker of a period, then in India it means 1947 or thereafter. With Postcolonilism, there are different moments in different parts of the world,” he said, terming the discourse as an “enormous agrandizment.”

In his presidential address, the KU vice-chancellor, Prof Riyaz Punjabi, asserted that there was need to have an “trans-disciplinary approach” to study the pheonomena of postcolonialism. “Techically, we still live in the post-colonial era,” he said, adding there was need to study the subject holistically.

Referring to langauges, Prof Punjabi said that English language would continue to dominate us. “It will continue to dominate us because of its potential to reach out to the world,” he said.

The Dean (Arts) and Head, Department of English, Prof A H Tak, said the department was committed to hold seminars and workshops on issues of vital importance. He presented a profile of the deparmtent, asserting that it has been revising and updating curriculum from time to time for the benefit of the student community.

The seminar director, Prof Mohammad Aslam, highlited the aims and objectives of the seminar. “Our aim is to undertand and explore this subject of post colonialism and its changing perspectivs and trends,” he said, adding the seminar aimed at understanding the impact of post-colonialism on langauges and literature.

Prof. Lily Want conducted the proceedings of the function while Mr Tasleem A War presetned the vote of thanks. The function was attended by senior KU officials and academics. Noted academic and former vice-chancellor of Uttkal Unviersity, Prof GK Das, is among the participants besides scores of delegates from different parts of India.

Pertinently, Aijaz Ahmad is Professorial Fellow at the Centre of Contemporary Studies, Nehru Memorial Museum and Library, New Delhi and is visiting Professor of Political Science at York Unviersity, Toronoto. He also works as an editorial consultant with the newsmagazine, Frontline and as a senior news analyst for The Real News Network.