Colonizing The Realm Of Words: The Transformation Of Tamil Literature In NineteenthCentury South India

Details The Transformation Of Tamil Literary Culture That Came With Colonialism And The Encounter With Western Modernity. A True Tour De Force, This Book Documents The Transformation Of One Indian Literature, Tamil, Under The Impact Of Colonialism And Western Modernity. While Tamil Is A Living Language, It Is Also IndiaS Second Oldest Classical Language Next To Sanskrit, And Has A Literary History That Goes Back Over Two Thousand Yeainr On The Basis Of Extensive Archival Research, Sascha Ebeling Tackles A Host Of Issues Pertinent To Tamil Elite Literary Production And Consumption During The Nineteenth Century. These Include The Functioning And Decline Of Traditional Systems In Which Poet-Scholars Were Patronized By Religious Institutions, Landowners, And Local Kings; The Anatomy Of Changes In Textual Practices, Genres, Styles, Poetics, Themes, Tastes, And Audiences; And The Role Of Literature In The Politics Of Social Reform, Gender, And Incipient Nationalism. The Work Concludes With A Discussion Of The Most Striking Literary Development Of The Time-The Emergence Of The Tamil Novel. Sascha Ebeling Is Assistant Professor Of South Asian Languages And Civilizations At The University Of Chicago.