Barishal University Journal of Arts and Humanities, vol 5, issue 1, 2024
The novel series Twilight by Stephenie Meyer is a modern-day fairy tale of a heroine meeting her ... more The novel series Twilight by Stephenie Meyer is a modern-day fairy tale of a heroine meeting her Prince Charming with a happily-ever-after ending. Isabella Swan is the central female character in the four books of the series, titled Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse and Breaking Dawn. The study argues that Bella as a seventeen-year-old teenager living in the twenty first century is seemingly free to make her own choices, but she is given a role traditionally mapped out for women who always prioritise everyone else's happiness over their own well-being. Bella falls in love with a vampire called Edward Cullen, but following the contemporary tradition of depicting attractive vampires, the mythopoeia of vampires is rewritten by Meyer in the story. The Cullens are handsome in appearance and charming in behaviour instead of mere deadly monsters as in the original stories. However, by bringing in theories from feminism and gender studies, this study showcases that Bella must compromise to find happiness in her relationship with Edward. The paper argues that her characterisation is smeared with gender stereotyping and the nature of their relationship is problematic considering the hero's maneuvering of different ways to control Bella's life.
Harvest: Jahangirnagar University Studies in Language and Literature, 2023
This paper argues that in our contemporary age, when Bangladesh as a low-lying coastal country of... more This paper argues that in our contemporary age, when Bangladesh as a low-lying coastal country of South Asia is threatened with the global climate change, bringing an ecological consciousness to approach poems written by the Bengali poet, Jibanananda Das is invigorating and rejuvenating. Das' poetry is famous for his ardent love for the natural flora and fauna of
Transnationalism generally denotes the interrelationships among the people of different nations a... more Transnationalism generally denotes the interrelationships among the people of different nations across borders. Theorists of transnationalism opine that with recent advanced technology and fast communication system greater inter-relationships among different nation-states is feasible. However, this research divulges that defining ‘transnationalism’ is a complex task. Some critics deny the necessity of a new theoretical term like ‘transnationalism’ and prefer to see it with the old lens of ‘diaspora’ and ‘globalisation’. This research intends to explore into the question of whether ‘transnationalism’ is synonymous with other correlative theoretical terms used to address issues of our global world as well as find out the aspects that constitute the theoretical knowledge of transnationalism.
NU Journal of Humanities, Social Sciences & Business Studies, 2015
The notion of cultural clash has come into focus recently as a consequence of the globalization o... more The notion of cultural clash has come into focus recently as a consequence of the globalization of the modern world although it has always been there in reality since there have been diverse ethnic groups possessing different cultures in the same and different countries since the prehistoric time. Generally, when one culture begins to get stronger, tries to assert itself over another culture, and the other culture starts to fight back in return to preserve its own cultural identity, then the cultural clash takes place. Writers from all over the world have been exploring this theme of how exposure to a different culture results in serious cultural clash, affecting in turn people's lives drastically, in their works. For this paper, we have selected two world renowned writers, Monica Ali (1967-), a Bangladeshi British writer, and Kiran Desai (1971-), an Indian author, from this sub-continent, as they have examined this idea of cultural clash and its impact on the lives of the major characters of their respective novels Brick Lane (2003) and The Inheritance of Loss (2006). The two novels have depicted graphically that exposure to another culture mainly results in loss of identity, alienation, and ambivalence regarding one's own cultural identity; however, side by side both the novels have also shown a few cases where it seems that knowing and living in a different culture can have positive results. This paper examines these issues in details.
is regarded one of the best authentic sources of life lived in close proximity to war, mostly bec... more is regarded one of the best authentic sources of life lived in close proximity to war, mostly because of his direct experiences of war and also for his unique, avant garde style of giving expression to those experiences. This paper focuses on the disastrous impact of the Great War on the lives and psychology of the characters of Hemingway as depicted in his two war novels A Farewell to Arms and The Sun Also Rises. It scrutinizes these novels and discusses various aftermaths of the Great War-loss of faith, subsequent chaotic situation, developing escapist habits, and physical injuries.
Journal of the Patuakhali Science and Technology University, 2017
The paper looks at Rosalind of As You Like It and Lady Macbeth of Macbeth who are generally consi... more The paper looks at Rosalind of As You Like It and Lady Macbeth of Macbeth who are generally considered to be two of Shakespeare's strongest female characters. In the Shakespearean world, Rosalind assumes strength and power through her male disguise. Without the disguise, she is stripped of her power and is almost entirely a subjugated, obedient woman even though she always keeps showing signs of being the most talented person among all the characters-both male and female-in the play. At the same time, Lady Macbeth's strength relies on her husband's ambitious mind and works through his love for her. But the moment Macbeth's ambitions are fulfilled, distance grows between them and Lady Macbeth becomes the opposite of strong. She turns into a helpless and crazy woman. If this is the picture of women in the canonical literature of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, this paper then turns its view towards the depiction of women in the literature of the twenty first century. It concentrates on the protagonist Katniss Everdeen of the trilogy The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins for detecting how far the depiction of female characters has evolved throughout centuries. Like Rosalind and Lady Macbeth, Katniss is a strong and influential character. She falls in love, hunts with arrows and overthrows the political regime of her country. But unlike Rosalind, she is never subjugated and although she is mentally shaken, her mind never gives in like Lady Macbeth. This paper attempts to show that in the literary world there is a continuous journey made by the women characters and at present they have come to the stage where the potential of Rosalind and Lady Macbeth are actualized into Katniss Everdeen.
In The Da Vinci Code Dan Brown merges the theory of 'the sacred feminine' and the Holy Grail to c... more In The Da Vinci Code Dan Brown merges the theory of 'the sacred feminine' and the Holy Grail to create a hybrid narrative against the homogenized version approved by the Roman Catholic Church. As stratagems for his narrative, he reinterprets a stream of core historical symbols and images. This gives the readers a scope to look at history in a new light. The aim of this paper is not to prove that the author's endeavor is to help unveil a noble truth; on the contrary, with the help of various criticisms put forth by Lyotard, Barthes, and Foucault, it argues that Brown has taken advantage of controversies concerning these touching phenomena to celebrate pluralistic views. The paper reasons that instead of feeling veneration for grand canonical texts, Brown subverts history and revels in creating an extension to the known areas of knowledge to resist the authoritative power of orthodoxical discourse.
Barishal University Journal of Arts and Humanities, vol 5, issue 1, 2024
The novel series Twilight by Stephenie Meyer is a modern-day fairy tale of a heroine meeting her ... more The novel series Twilight by Stephenie Meyer is a modern-day fairy tale of a heroine meeting her Prince Charming with a happily-ever-after ending. Isabella Swan is the central female character in the four books of the series, titled Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse and Breaking Dawn. The study argues that Bella as a seventeen-year-old teenager living in the twenty first century is seemingly free to make her own choices, but she is given a role traditionally mapped out for women who always prioritise everyone else's happiness over their own well-being. Bella falls in love with a vampire called Edward Cullen, but following the contemporary tradition of depicting attractive vampires, the mythopoeia of vampires is rewritten by Meyer in the story. The Cullens are handsome in appearance and charming in behaviour instead of mere deadly monsters as in the original stories. However, by bringing in theories from feminism and gender studies, this study showcases that Bella must compromise to find happiness in her relationship with Edward. The paper argues that her characterisation is smeared with gender stereotyping and the nature of their relationship is problematic considering the hero's maneuvering of different ways to control Bella's life.
Harvest: Jahangirnagar University Studies in Language and Literature, 2023
This paper argues that in our contemporary age, when Bangladesh as a low-lying coastal country of... more This paper argues that in our contemporary age, when Bangladesh as a low-lying coastal country of South Asia is threatened with the global climate change, bringing an ecological consciousness to approach poems written by the Bengali poet, Jibanananda Das is invigorating and rejuvenating. Das' poetry is famous for his ardent love for the natural flora and fauna of
Transnationalism generally denotes the interrelationships among the people of different nations a... more Transnationalism generally denotes the interrelationships among the people of different nations across borders. Theorists of transnationalism opine that with recent advanced technology and fast communication system greater inter-relationships among different nation-states is feasible. However, this research divulges that defining ‘transnationalism’ is a complex task. Some critics deny the necessity of a new theoretical term like ‘transnationalism’ and prefer to see it with the old lens of ‘diaspora’ and ‘globalisation’. This research intends to explore into the question of whether ‘transnationalism’ is synonymous with other correlative theoretical terms used to address issues of our global world as well as find out the aspects that constitute the theoretical knowledge of transnationalism.
NU Journal of Humanities, Social Sciences & Business Studies, 2015
The notion of cultural clash has come into focus recently as a consequence of the globalization o... more The notion of cultural clash has come into focus recently as a consequence of the globalization of the modern world although it has always been there in reality since there have been diverse ethnic groups possessing different cultures in the same and different countries since the prehistoric time. Generally, when one culture begins to get stronger, tries to assert itself over another culture, and the other culture starts to fight back in return to preserve its own cultural identity, then the cultural clash takes place. Writers from all over the world have been exploring this theme of how exposure to a different culture results in serious cultural clash, affecting in turn people's lives drastically, in their works. For this paper, we have selected two world renowned writers, Monica Ali (1967-), a Bangladeshi British writer, and Kiran Desai (1971-), an Indian author, from this sub-continent, as they have examined this idea of cultural clash and its impact on the lives of the major characters of their respective novels Brick Lane (2003) and The Inheritance of Loss (2006). The two novels have depicted graphically that exposure to another culture mainly results in loss of identity, alienation, and ambivalence regarding one's own cultural identity; however, side by side both the novels have also shown a few cases where it seems that knowing and living in a different culture can have positive results. This paper examines these issues in details.
is regarded one of the best authentic sources of life lived in close proximity to war, mostly bec... more is regarded one of the best authentic sources of life lived in close proximity to war, mostly because of his direct experiences of war and also for his unique, avant garde style of giving expression to those experiences. This paper focuses on the disastrous impact of the Great War on the lives and psychology of the characters of Hemingway as depicted in his two war novels A Farewell to Arms and The Sun Also Rises. It scrutinizes these novels and discusses various aftermaths of the Great War-loss of faith, subsequent chaotic situation, developing escapist habits, and physical injuries.
Journal of the Patuakhali Science and Technology University, 2017
The paper looks at Rosalind of As You Like It and Lady Macbeth of Macbeth who are generally consi... more The paper looks at Rosalind of As You Like It and Lady Macbeth of Macbeth who are generally considered to be two of Shakespeare's strongest female characters. In the Shakespearean world, Rosalind assumes strength and power through her male disguise. Without the disguise, she is stripped of her power and is almost entirely a subjugated, obedient woman even though she always keeps showing signs of being the most talented person among all the characters-both male and female-in the play. At the same time, Lady Macbeth's strength relies on her husband's ambitious mind and works through his love for her. But the moment Macbeth's ambitions are fulfilled, distance grows between them and Lady Macbeth becomes the opposite of strong. She turns into a helpless and crazy woman. If this is the picture of women in the canonical literature of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, this paper then turns its view towards the depiction of women in the literature of the twenty first century. It concentrates on the protagonist Katniss Everdeen of the trilogy The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins for detecting how far the depiction of female characters has evolved throughout centuries. Like Rosalind and Lady Macbeth, Katniss is a strong and influential character. She falls in love, hunts with arrows and overthrows the political regime of her country. But unlike Rosalind, she is never subjugated and although she is mentally shaken, her mind never gives in like Lady Macbeth. This paper attempts to show that in the literary world there is a continuous journey made by the women characters and at present they have come to the stage where the potential of Rosalind and Lady Macbeth are actualized into Katniss Everdeen.
In The Da Vinci Code Dan Brown merges the theory of 'the sacred feminine' and the Holy Grail to c... more In The Da Vinci Code Dan Brown merges the theory of 'the sacred feminine' and the Holy Grail to create a hybrid narrative against the homogenized version approved by the Roman Catholic Church. As stratagems for his narrative, he reinterprets a stream of core historical symbols and images. This gives the readers a scope to look at history in a new light. The aim of this paper is not to prove that the author's endeavor is to help unveil a noble truth; on the contrary, with the help of various criticisms put forth by Lyotard, Barthes, and Foucault, it argues that Brown has taken advantage of controversies concerning these touching phenomena to celebrate pluralistic views. The paper reasons that instead of feeling veneration for grand canonical texts, Brown subverts history and revels in creating an extension to the known areas of knowledge to resist the authoritative power of orthodoxical discourse.
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