Diana Dimitrova Libros

This book explores the representation of Hinduism through myth and discourse in urban Hindi theatre in the period 1880-1960. It discusses representative works of seven influential playwrights and looks into the ways they have imagined and re-imagined Hindu traditions. Diana Dimitrova examines the intersections of Hinduism and Hindi theatre, emphasizing the important role that both myth and discourse play in the representation of Hindu traditions in the works of Bharatendu Harishcandra, Jayshankar Prasad, Lakshminarayan Mishra, Jagdishcandra Mathur, Bhuvaneshvar, Upendranath Ashk, and Mohan Rakesh. Dimitrova’a analysis suggests either a traditionalist or a more modernist stance toward religious issues. She emphasizes the absence of Hindi-speaking authors who deal with issues implicit to the Muslim or Sikh or Jain, etc. traditions. This prompts her to suggest that Hindi theatre of the period 1880-1960, as represented in the works of the seven dramatists discussed, should be seen as truly ‘Hindu-Hindi’ theatre.

This book brings together several important essays examining the interface between identity, culture, and literature within the issue of cultural identity in South Asian literature. The book explores how one imagines national identity and how this concept is revealed in the narratives of the nation and the production of various cultural discourses. The collection of essays examines questions related to the interpretation of the Indian past and present, the meanings of ancient and venerated cultural symbols in ancient times and modern, while discussing the ideological implications of the interpretation of identity and “Indianness” and how they reflect and influence the power-structures of contemporary societies in South Asia. Thus, the book studies the various aspects of the on-going process of constructing, imagining, re-imagining, and narrating “Indianness”, as revealed in the literatures and cultures of India.

Western Tradition and Naturalistic Hindi Theatre is a critical study of the dramatic work of naturalistic Hindi playwright Upendranath Ashk (1910-1996). The book explores modern Hindi drama from its beginnings in the second half of the nineteenth century until the 1960s. During this period, proscenium Hindi theatre, which originated under Western influence, matured and thrived. In the years after Independence, there was a strong resentment of Western ideas and cultural influence. Because of political controversies with the British, «Western» influence also came to be understood as «non-Indian» in the sphere of literature. This resulted in a negative stance toward the naturalistic play of Hindi and those dramatists who adhered to it. Thus, this book is a contribution to the present-day cultural dialogue between East and West.

„Nichts ist so stabil wie der Wandel“ wird häufig behauptet und mit dieser A- sage impliziert, dass es Wandel stets gegeben habe. Ohne Frage ist dies richtig. Untersucht man allerdings die Geschwindigkeit des Wandels, so kann kaum - zweifelt werden, dass dieser sich beständig – und zwar primär in einer von den Menschen selbst zu verantwortenden Weise – beschleunigt. Die Gründe sind vielfältig; sie lassen sich aus der Globalisierung, aus dem gesellschaftlichen und technologischen Wandel, spezifisch auch aus veränderten Werten und gesteig- ten Ansprüchen von Kunden etc. ableiten. Für Menschen, die in Organisationen Leistungen zu erbringen haben, ist dies eine Herausforderung und vielfach auch ein kaum zu bewältigendes Problem. Beruflich relevantes Wissen, das sie – je nach Art ihrer Erwerbstätigkeit – in der Lehre, in Fach- oder Fachhochschulen oder gar an Universitäten erworben haben, veraltet rasch. Die Halbwertszeit des Wissens sinkt beständig; jene Wissensbestandteile und Erfahrungen, die gestern den Weg zum Erfolg ebneten, werden morgen – angesichts veränderter Bed- gungen – Weichenstellungen in den Misserfolg sein. Daraus ergibt sich nun schlüssig der Ruf nach einem „lebenslangen Lernen“. An der hohen Bedeutung dieser Forderung kann nicht gezweifelt werden.