The Novel and Change: Postgraduate Course by Prof. Avishek Parui | IIT Madras
Course Details
| Exam Registration | 272 |
|---|---|
| Course Status | Ongoing |
| Course Type | Core |
| Language | English |
| Duration | 12 weeks |
| Categories | English, Humanities and Social Sciences, English Studies |
| Credit Points | 3 |
| Level | Postgraduate |
| Start Date | 19 Jan 2026 |
| End Date | 10 Apr 2026 |
| Enrollment Ends | 02 Feb 2026 |
| Exam Registration Ends | 20 Feb 2026 |
| Exam Date | 26 Apr 2026 IST |
| NCrF Level | 4.5 — 8.0 |
The Novel and Change: A 12-Week Journey Through Literature and Society
How does a novel capture the pulse of an era? How does the evolution of this literary form mirror the seismic shifts in our societies, politics, and collective psyche? These are the central questions explored in the postgraduate course ‘The Novel and Change’, offered by Prof. Avishek Parui of the Indian Institute of Technology Madras.
This 12-week intensive course provides a rigorous theoretical and historical framework for understanding the novel not just as entertainment, but as a vital cultural document. It traces the genre's development alongside major social transformations, from the rise of imperialism and the anxieties of modernity to postcolonial identity and contemporary political desires.
Course Overview and Instructor Profile
Duration: 12 Weeks
Level: Postgraduate
Instructor: Prof. Avishek Parui, Assistant Professor in English, IIT Madras, and Associate Fellow of the UK Higher Education Academy.
Intended Audience: PG/PhD students and early-career faculty in English, Humanities, and Social Sciences.
Prof. Parui brings interdisciplinary expertise to this course, with research specializations in medical humanities, masculinity studies, memory studies, and postmodernism. His recent publication, Postmodern Literatures (Orient BlackSwan), informs the critical lens applied in this program.
Weekly Course Layout: A Thematic Journey
The course is structured to build a comprehensive narrative of the novel's engagement with change.
| Week | Focus & Primary Texts | Key Themes |
|---|---|---|
| Week 1-2 | Foundations: Robinson Crusoe; The 18th-Century Novel | Rise of the novel, white supremacy, territorialization, individualism. |
| Week 3-5 | 19th Century Transformations: Frankenstein; Great Expectations; Heart of Darkness | Feminist revisions, industrial society, class, imperialism, moral panic. |
| Week 6-8 | Modern & Indian Contexts: The Guide; Indian Social Changes | 20th-century anxiety, gender roles, nationalism, and social change in India. |
| Week 9-11 | Postcolonial Visions: Things Fall Apart; Nervous Conditions; One Hundred Years of Solitude; The Lowland | Imperialism, racism, violence, human rights, political desire, magical realism, diaspora. |
| Week 12 | Theoretical Frameworks | Role of critical theory in examining the novel as a socio-cultural artifact. |
Core Reading List
The course is built around close readings of seminal novels that have defined and challenged their eras:
- Daniel Defoe: Robinson Crusoe
- Mary Shelley: Frankenstein
- Charles Dickens: Great Expectations
- Joseph Conrad: Heart of Darkness
- R.K. Narayan: The Guide
- Chinua Achebe: Things Fall Apart
- Gabriel García Márquez: One Hundred Years of Solitude
- Tsitsi Dangarembga: Nervous Conditions
- Jhumpa Lahiri: The Lowland
Critical References and Scholarly Context
Students will engage with foundational and contemporary scholarship to deepen their analysis. Key references include:
- Ian Watt's seminal The Rise of the Novel.
- Cambridge Companions to the Eighteenth-Century and Postcolonial Novel.
- Ato Quayson's work on postcolonial literature.
- Ulka Anjaria's A History of the Indian Novel in English.
- Studies on gender, romanticism, and African American literature.
Why Study This Course?
This course is essential for anyone seeking to understand the profound dialogue between literature and the world. It moves beyond textual analysis to show how novels:
- Act as archives of collective emotion and psychological states.
- Interrogate power structures of race, gender, and empire.
- Document and catalyze social change.
- Serve as complex tools for understanding historical trauma and political desire.
Under the guidance of Prof. Parui, participants will gain a sophisticated, interdisciplinary toolkit for literary criticism, connecting classic texts to urgent contemporary debates. This course is not just a study of the novel's past; it's an investigation into how stories shape, reflect, and challenge the realities of our present and future.
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