Bengali Literature

"Bengali Literature" is a literary essay written by Bankim Chandra Chatterjee which denotes the body of writings in the Bengali language. The timeline of Bengali literature is divided into three periods: ancient (650-1200), medieval (1200-1800) and modern (after 1800). Chatterjee enlightens the story of the people of Bengali origin and their significance in the field of literature with a review of some writers that are worthy of acknowledgement among their peers.

The Book Is A Brief But Essentially Complete Survey Of Literary Activities In Bengali Since The Appearance Of The Speech. In The Introducing Chapters Of The Book Linguistic And Literary Affinities Of New Indo-Aryan Speeches Have Been Sketched And The Origin And Development Of The Bengali Language As Well As Of The Bengali Script Has Been Given In Outline.

Ignored by her well-meaning husband, Charulata falls in love with a high-spirited young cousin in The Broken Nest (Nashtaneer, 1901). Sharmila, in Two Sisters (Dui Bon, 1933) witnesses her husband sink her fortunes and his passion into his business – and her sister. And the invalid Neeraja finds her life slowly ebbing away as a new love awakens for her beloved husband in The Arbour (Malancha, 1934). Romantic, subtle and nuanced, Rabindranath Tagore’s novellas are about the undercurrents in relationships, the mysteries of love, the ties and bonds of marriage, and above all about the dreams and desires of women.

Art, literature, music and other intellectual expressions of a particular society are together regarded as the culture of that society. Ideas, customs and social behaviour of a particular people or society are also its ‘culture’. Contrary to what we think, it is not easy to describe ‘culture’, nor is it easy to write the cultural history. Writing the history of Bengali culture is even more difficult because Bengali society is truly plural in its nature, made even more so by its political division. The two main religious communities that share this culture are often more aware of the differences between them than the similarities. Nonetheless, the people remain bound by history and a shared language and literature. Ghulam Murshid’s Bengali Culture over a Thousand Years is the first non-partisan and holistic discussion of Bengali culture. Written for the general reader, the language is simple and the style lucid. It shows how the individual ingredients of Bengali culture have evolved and found expression, in the context of political developments and how certain individuals have moulded culture. Above all, the book presents the identity and special qualities of Bengali culture. The book was originally published in Bengali in Dhaka in 2006. This is the first English translation.

The [Oxford India] Anthology of Bengali Literature: Volume I (1861-1941) spans a period of 80 years and includes the writings of some of the most representative figures in Bengali literature. Offering a judicious selection of a vast number of writers, the anthology includes works belonging to a wide range of genres including poetry, short story, novel, memoir, and essay, among others. The chronological listing of works by authors enables the readers to develop a sense of evolution of the various genres and sub-genres across the late nineteenth and early to mid twentieth centuries, while savouring this veritable feast of material. The volume is divided into three sections. The poetry section begins with Michael Madhusudan Datta (1824-73), includes the works of Rabindranath Tagore, Sukumar Ray, Jibanananda Das, Kazi Nazrul Islam, Buddhadeva Bose, and Bishnu Dey, among others, and ends with Samar Sen (1916-87). The section on short fiction includes celebrated practitioners like Bankimchandra Chatterjee, Rabindranath Tagore, Abanindranath Thakur, and Sharatchandra Chatterjee, among several others. Rashsundari Devi, Debendranath Thakur, Jagadish Chandra Bose, and Indira Devi Chaudhurani are some of the names that figure in the section on prose non-fiction.

This is Volume V out of eleven that form a collection on India, its History, Economy and Society. First published in 1930, this book looks at the origin and development of Bengali Drama and contains matter for historians, as well as direct criticism of what the author considers to be genuinely dramatic in the literature of Bengal, past or present.