Talk Series 4- Eating Habits : Identity, Culture and Politics : Professor Somrita / 22- October -2021

 

 Introduction : Transnational and diasporic cultural configurations is an area of cultural studies which is currently noticeable for a series of trending researches on cultural explorations. The English department of Sacred Heart College, Thevara has initiated a talk series, exclusively for Postgraduate students on ‘Thinking Global South’, with an aim of giving deep insights to the upcoming scholars of this domain. The head of the English Department Dr Rajesh James introduced the audience to the need of these lectures series to encourage students to explore various emerging trends, to chase their passion and to climb up the career ladder in the domain of literature. The fourth lecture in the series was conducted on 22/10/2021 at 7.00 pm on the topic ‘Eating Habits: Identity, Culture and Politics’ by Somrita Urni Ganguly, Head of the Department and Assistant Professor of Maharaja Manindra Chandra College, Kolkata. Around 150 participants, including UG students, PG students, PHD scholars and faculties took part in the session Discussion

Professor Somrita gave an insightful lecture on the importance of food studies, not only as a means of survival but also as a pathway to explore culture. She further threw light on the politics of the eating habits and how it can inspire and strengthen the bonds between individuals, communities and even countries. She explained food in terms with art, anthropology, history, religion, politics, memory, poetry, allegory as well as sociology. After laying the background and context, Prof. Somrita explained how food culture has become a status quo. She discussed on food and culture in relation with tradition and nostalgia, rhetorical repertoire of aesthetics, identity and uniqueness.The major points proposed by Professor Somrita was about food fascism, notions of purity and impurity associated with food and the influence of media and other institutions on the monitoring of eating habits of people. The session was more informative as she went on giving interesting examples from everyday life, multiple cultures and media. She concluded her talk by evoking curiosity in the participants to delve into the world of food studies with the phrase ‘food encompasses within itself an entire universe.’ Representing the participants, Ashitha Raj of 2MA English responded to the talk by pointing out how Professor Somrita’s talk on ‘Eating Habits: Identity, Culture and Politics’ elucidated the pivotal role played by food in carving cultures and identities. 

Participants raised many questions regarding the scope of food studies in the globalised as well as in local cultural exhibitions. Faculty members of various institutions responded to the talk by putting forth the mission of further extension of the concept of the’ global south’. Finally, on behalf of the audience, Adithya Rajesh of 2MA English expressed gratitude towards Professor Somrita for the enriching session. She further thanked for the exemplary efforts in providing such insightful platforms to the Principal, the Department of English and other faculty members to help the students reach great heights of success.

 Conclusion : The session was enlightening and interesting as it opened a myriad of unexplored aspects related to food studies. Food, being an important cultural artefact and a powerful metaphor that signifies an intimacy with one’s roots , the session explored various aspects regarding food politics and the politics of food in the era of digitalization. The session was highly rewarding since it opened up the need to dismantle food from its regional and cultural identifications and see it as a powerful motif that unifies people. The session greatly inspired students to read, learn and explore more in the terrain of food studies. Recommendations Students expressed their gratitude and interest in such opportunities to explore beyond the canon constrained by the academic syllabus. They suggested to conduct more seminars, especially on fields like Film Studies, Eco-literature.

FInale of the Induction Program for Freshers- Talk by Fr. Bobby Jose Kattikad

The blessed moments with Fr. Bobby Jose: Hearing Fr. Bobby Jose's powerful and inspiring words was truly a blessing. His presentation was direct and lovely, emphasising the value of life and love. Lady Gaga's amazing song "Million Reasons" was introduced at the start of his session. "Let a million reasons try to pull you back, let them discourage you, let them make you feel like giving up, but there will always be a ' one good reason ' to keep you going and encouraged" is what I learned from his class. Fr. Bobby, too, had a simple message to share. He spoke of his love for literature and referred to our department as the heart of the campus. He believes that one must learn to "live," "love," and "let go." He implies that life is a lovely gift from God that you have been given. So, you must realise the value and passion of love, and you must be willing to let go of certain things in order to make it easier for yourself. His session was engaging and established in each of us a sense of divinity. I'm looking forward to meeting him again and learning more about his life and principles. I'd want to express my gratitude to the departmental heads for holding such a meeting for us. I'm glad to be a part of SH.❤️ Vysakhi Pillai

 

Induction Program by Teachers of the Department for Freshers: 20-22/2021: Feed Backs

The session by  Dr. Rajesh James 

For the first time ever we had a session with Rajesh sir , our dear HOD. He explained about the course, about the college, what must be done and what not. It was helpful in understanding that literature is far beyond what we thought. 

The session by Fr. Sabu Thomas

 

The bestest interactive session we had till the date was by him. It helped us to meet our new friends and their families. It indeed helped in lessening the shyness. Was a fun and informative time with him.

The Session by Dr. Tom C Thomas

- The class started by an interactive talk with Tom sir as we were giving a brief introduction about ourselves..Then he put forward the thought 'that by being good to others we are being good to ourselves'.Like Mahatma Gandhi said,each individual are unique and equal..ie,we are all part of God so we are connected to each other. Even though our potentials and characters are different we all have the essence of God within us.. God himself is wisdom. The next topic was about compassion. Sir defined about two types of compassion sympathy and empathy sympathy is something that makes and understanding or feeling from our own perspective but empathy is a lot more different .Empathy is putting ourselves in other person's shoes,thus understanding the actual feeling of that person. In other words,seeing ourselves in others is empathy.Only a person with compassion could become a true human being. Besides that of getting a high salary job or position it's important to be a good human being with a well determined ambition that would be a boon for other living beings..The talk about compassion and empathy made me think of the book-The Prophet by Khalil Gibran.In that book,he says: ''A person who gives with compassion is in the heart of God''..So, the ends of being a human is through the means of compassion to our society and all the living beings around us.This is what I've understood from the talk about compassion..These are some quotes that sir told in the session:*if there is one beggar in the world then all others are beggars, *As we concentrate on something we become that, *there is nothing outside the text, *if everything had a name,then there is no need of poets, *an extraordinary concentration with whole soul and heart can make a dream/aim come true which can also be a contribution to our society..

- Sir told a story of Abraham Lincoln,who rescued a Piglet drowning in a quackmire. The story gave a good lesson that ,someone's positions or whatever they are... that doesn't matter to give a hand of help to others...Our thoughts, our words and our deeds make us a better human being.Sir, then explained about the difference between texts and books..He said,In texts thoughts and ideas are woven together like a well knit cloth.When we read our mind comes to a holy communion with the book.Then sir spoke about culture that, culture itself is a manifested text.Sir inspired us and made us thoughtful by speaking about 'Creative Ideas'. He told us to create our own meanings/ideas/ thoughts,instead of swallowing the specific information..And now I can understand the importance of critical thinking as a literature student... And,when it comes to our lives..we are a grand mystery yet to be fully explored.We are not yet a complete product.Though we should unravel the mysteries of our life, beyond the frontiers..For that,we have to work relentlessly..Before concluding Tom sir said a quote..that inspired me a lot.''Death cannot kill you,if you are living a meaningful life''...Thank you sir for your words of wisdom...I'll forever be grateful for the great talk and good message you gave us....

- Today Professor tom c Thomas discussed about the Promethean encounter with language and culture. He told us about the   Greek titan God of fire, Prometheus who is known for his intelligence and for being a champion of humankind. He also affirmed that there is a Promethean spirit sleeping inside ourselves  and we have to find it and wake him up to achieve the great things in the world.  Then he told us about being a good person... Being good to others is the best ever thing you can do. He also told us about the word's by a German philosopher that " If there is one beggar in the world the  rest of the world are beggars too" . While speaking about poetry, he pointed out that being a poet  is that  identifying and discovering the hidden and unknown just like scientists. He also included the importance of concentration, that whatever you might be doing, it could be anything singing,dancing, drawing ...you should put your maximum concentration in it and try to become the best in that. Overall this was an amazing session. It taught us a lot and the best part is usually this kind of session s are boring to be honest but this was so informative and fun at the same time. Thank you  so much Tom sir for this great session.

Dr. Rajesh M

Dr. Rajesh sir's session was really beneficial in providing each of us with a clear understanding of how to approach literature as a study subject. On behalf of all of us, I'd like to express our gratitude for providing us with the guidelines we need to follow, as well as information on how to increase our vocabulary, correct grammar errors, and introduce the necessity of systematic study to make learning simpler. I'd like to highlight one of your quotes that has had a big impact on me: " Literature provides aesthetic pleasure." I agree with what you said, and many of us agree with your comments. People remember the effect of a great book for years rather than the pleasure of chewing a desserts for a few moments. Really happy to be in your session and thanking you for guiding us right from the first class.

Neenu Mary Francis

The morning session by Neenu ma'am introduced us to poetry which was something that I never found Interesting because I was never taught what the true essence of poetry actually is. And by explaining the three different definitions of poetry given by well acclaimed poets such as Dr Johnson, William Wordsworth and Matthew Arnold, she taught me that poetry never had and will never have one consistent definition, and that the only consistent thing in poetry is in it's purpose to provide pleasure and it's ability to evoke an emotion in both poets and readers. 

She also taught us about the different eras of English literature and how each era has something different to offer in terms of literature and literary artwork. She also gave us a brief introduction to the five forms of poetry- Epics, Lyric, Sonnet, Ode and dramatic monologue.

  Thank you for opening my eyes to how beautiful poetry is and can be. 

  I look forward to learning more from you ma'am.

- first session taken in the morning by Neenu mam was so informative and interesting , she gave us the interest and introduction to learn about poetry, purpose of literature,feeling and emotion . She taught us by mentioning various poets and writers such as , William Wordsworth, Samuel Johnson, Matthew Arnold. It helped me alot knowing about these new poeple and lot about poetry too Thank you miss for  being there for us .

Sonia Lucy

The last session was taken by Sonia mam,she introduced us about literary theory

She told us lot about the theories of literature, she also taught about various cultural specifities. She was able to teach and introduce us the fundamentals of literary theory ,I really enjoyed the class and it was a really nice interactive session too , Thank you Sonia mam.

Sunil KV

Sunil Sir's session : I'd love to express my gratitude to Sunil sir for introducing us to the world of fiction. He explained genres, types of fiction, the relationship between fiction and novel, different sorts of novels, and the evolution of fiction in the post Renaissance period and the growth of novels. Thank you for providing new concepts such as epistolary novel and illness narrative. We'll be able to use these in the future. In the future days, I'd like to be in your class.

-The First Session which was taken by Sunil sir was about the World  of fiction and all about it . he taught us the different genres of fiction which are peotry,drama,fiction and non fiction.He explained us the different types of fictions.He explained us all through various novels and its writers,its like he knew everything about Novels.

I am really encouraged to learn more about fiction,the session was very intresting.Thank you sir for such a nice session.

-Today's first session is about Fiction, 'The world about fiction' by Sunil sir. It was a interesting session. He explained to us types of fiction, what is a novel, and types of novel. Also he discussed about novel and it was a good session with you sir.Thank you so much sir.

Shijo Varghese

Shijo sir's session : Shijo sir's lesson taught us about the technical part of writing and editing. He described what literature is and how it may be explained right from the start. He completely agreed with the John Keats that literature had the ability to show ordinary things in new ways. He also emphasised how language maintains a strong bond with a person. We are a step closer to start our copy editing journey after the session. Thank you so much, sir, for your words of wisdom and encouragement.

- The Second session by Shijo sir, was about literature and internet. It was started by interactive and the rest of the class was comfortable. He taught us about literature, language etc. He also gave a basic introduction to copy editor. He taught well about our course... Thank you for your words sir.

Aravind R Nair

Aravind sir's session: I'd like to convey my gratitude to Aravind sir for hosting an interactive session in which we were able to express our interests and preferences. He did say something about literature, how to examine at an art work, and how important it is to feel a piece of art. He also emphasised the importance of perspective and how it differs from one individual to the next. He also went over the subjective and objective perspectives. Sir, the session was fantastic. We had the opportunity to express our passions and discuss them with the rest of the class. I'm excited to meet you. Sir, thank you very much.

-

The last Session was taken by Aravind Sir , i really loved how he taught us in a great interactive manner,his encouraging words was really good ,he mentioned that how we all are good observers.I loved how he wanted  to make a interactive session with all our interests and to express ourselves into those interests. it was truly wonderful how he made our class so interesting , I hope offline classes would be more amazing with Aravind sir.

ThankYou for extending our knowledge about literature:)

 

INDUCTION & BIDGE PROGRAM FOR FIRST YEAR BATCH 2021 DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH, SH COLLEGE, THEVARA 12/10/2021 to 22-10-2021

 

INDUCTION & BIDGE PROGRAM FOR FIRST YEAR BATCH 2021 DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH, SH COLLEGE, THEVARA 

Tuesday- FIESTA- WELCOMING PROGRAM 

 Staff Coordinator – Fr. Sabu Thomas Program 

o Anchoring - Sarang 

o Welcome - Sidharth 

o Address by Fr. Poulose Kidengen, Manager, SH College 

o Song by Aaryan 

o Address by Head of the Department Dr. Rajesh James 

o Felicitation by Parent of Rasha Saleel 

o Dance – Sanjana Saji Nair 

o Game + Ice Breaking 

o Music - Michael Jo Fernandes 

o Vote of thanks - Sandra C

 13/10/2021- Wednesday- Alumni with First Years

 Staff Coordinator: Sonia Lucy Program 

 Welcome: Aryan Shaji 

o Anchor: Sonia Lucy 

o Interactions by - Rajesh Panathody 

- Bhanusree S Kumar 

- Kripa Mathew 

- Sukanya 

 - Anakha Preeth 

o Q&A answer Session 

o Thanks: Sidhardh 

 20/10/2021- 6.30 pm: Talk by Prof. C.S. Jayaram 

Teacher Coordinator: Dr. Rajesh James 

 BRIDGE PROGRAM 20/10/2021- Wednesday 

8.30 -9.25 am Dr. Rajesh James Frontier Areas in Literature The lecture "Frontier Areas in Literary Studies" aims at exploring the emerging areas in literary studies. The lecture also tries to map comprehensively research and career possibilities in the domain. Notwithstanding the field's current progress, the lecture also attempts to refer to a number of research gaps in the domain in order to identify the future possibilities in/of Literary studies. 9.30- 11 am Fr. Sabu Thomas Goal Setting The session is meant to give the students a guidance in to their three years of degree course in the campus. It will inspire the students to “begin with the end in mind”. The program will be interactive and the students will be given chances to express their aspirations and goals in life. 11.30-12.30 pm Dr. Aravind R Nair Studying Literature in the age of information The session will introduce students to the modalities of studying literature in the current age where various information technologies moderate all forms of communication. The session will discuss both the philosophical and practical implications of what it means to be a contemporary student of literature. Some of the essential skills that a literature student should have to navigate multiple online data sources will also be explained. 6.30- 7.30 pm Dr. C.S. Jayaram Introducing Literatures: A Journey into the world of Letters This session is a masterclass to introduce students to the world of language and literature. The resource person is a retired teacher of the department and is well renowned in the area of literature and arts. 21/10/2021- Thursday Time Teacher Topic Content 8.30- 9.25 am Neenu Mary Francis Defining Poetry This session aims to unravel poetry as a form of literature by analyzing its definitions. It takes the students to analyse different poetic forms by placing them against particular historical periods in literature. 9.30-10.25 am Rajesh M An Overview of English Literature The session not only provides a clear and systematic overview of writers and their works, but also of important literary developments, trends and movements. The session also covers various genres of literature like poetry, Essay, Drama and Novel. The session will be comprehensible enough to instill interest in the newly joined students to pursue English for higher levels. 10.30-11.25 am Tom C Thomas The Promethean encounter with Language and Culture: Encounters with language and culture at graduate and postgraduate levels are bound to be critical, creative and, therefore, audacious. That’s what the term, Promethean' signifies. Language is not merely an instrument for communication, rather, it is constitutive of reality. Learners at the undergraduate level, are therefore expected to gear up to the next level of intellectual and emotional readiness to interrogate the quotidian definitions of the everyday reality and engage more spiritedly in the cognitive restructuring of everything we are tempted to deem as reality. It is this issue and theme that the session intends to address. 11.30- 12.25 pm Fr.Joseph Kusumalayam The Heartian DNA This session is to introduce the first years, the motto, vision and mission of the college. The “Heartian DNA” is based on unflinching faith in God, faith in oneself and relentless pursuit of excellence in curricular and non-curricular aspects. The campus culture of the college will be explained to the students. 22/10/2021- Friday Time Teacher Topic Content 8.30- 9.30 am Second Language Hour 9.30- 10.25am Sunil KV The World of Fiction In this session the students will be able to experience the rich and diverse world of fiction. They will be introduced the various evolutionary faces and trends of English Novel. 10.30- 11.25am Bijo N Mathew An Introduction to Copy Editing This bridge course is intended to introduce students to the rudiments of copy editing. It will equip the students with all the essential information regarding copy editing, as they enter into a new domain of knowledge. It will also cover the prospects and possibilities of this area of study. 11.30- 12.25 pm Sonia Lucy Literary Theory: an Introduction The session intends to familiarize the freshers with styles of literary analysis. The principles underlying critiquing a text would be introduced with examples from contemporary texts including films, poetry, novels etc. It would provide a deeper understanding of how to read a text and gain insights from it. 2-3 pm Shijo Varghese ICT & DTP: an Introduction This course intends to familiarize students with the digital editing tools. The course spans over two semesters and covers the basics of computing and ICT/DTP. Students will be introduced to some digital editing tools that are used by publishing houses. The course will also shed light on the future of e-learning and digital editing 25/10/2021- Monday Time Teacher Topic Content 9.30 -11 am Dr. K.M. Johnson Introduction to Humanities In this session, the students will be asked to ponder over certain relevant questions such as, why do you want to study humanities? How different disciplines developed? What are the characteristics of humanities? What is the subject matter of humanities? Which are the different disciplines which come under the purview of humanities? How are humanities different from natural sciences and social sciences? What can humanities offer you? Etc. 11.30 - 12.30 pm Interactive Session with the class Teacher 1.30 – 3.30 pm Common Gathering of the Department in the Marian Hall (Teacher in Charge: Dr. Rajesh James, Head of the Department) From 26th October 2021 Tuesday- Regular Academic Sessions

Induction day 3-Introducing Literatures: A Journey into the world of Letters: Dr. C.S. Jayaram: 20/10/2021

 

The iconic Jayaram sir's session was a blessing for all of us. His remarks were so compelling and tempting that I completely lost myself and entered the world of fantasy for just a moment. Anyone who enjoys writing could connect to what he said, "the world of imagination inspired me." He describes the different branches of literature, such as the media, the civil service, and copy writers, and says "No job is an alien work for English students.".He then goes on to remark about how much he enjoys the Safari Channel and the Sancharam programme.I was fascinated by his explanation of how art and literature can be taught. The literature has a tendency to take a positive attitude toward anything and everything in the world. How nicely he expresses his belief that this discipline promotes compassion and humanity. It has the ability to cleanse the soul, which is why the Greeks valued theatres. He then uses The Tempest, Shakespeare's best masterpiece, as an example. He tells a story of a mouse and the poetry that resulted from it. His passion for romanticism is boundless, and he constantly asks us to return to the romantics. He also discusses the significance of a quotation. "Any situation can be tackled by a quote," he says, which is fair.He concludes by describing how a book may re-energize a person, as well as the tale of a guy who wished to marry a widow and travelled to Paris to fetch her son. He did manage to convey that happiness is made up of simple and lovely things. For this, he claims that every silly thing can be turned into a lovely poem. The session had a significant impact on all of us, and it will undoubtedly be beneficial to all of us in the future. I'd like to express my gratitude to the department for providing us with such a fantastic opportunity. 

Vysakhi 

Freshers with Alumni - Induction Program Day 2

 

As part of the one week long orientation program for first year students, the Department of English, Sacred Heart College organised an Alumni meet on October 13 2021. The aim was to give the first year students a taste of what the college has to offer and what it truly means to be a Heartian. Aryan Shaji of second year BA English, welcomed the gathering and introduced the alumni Ms Sonia Lucy, Mr Rajesh Panhathodi, Ms Banushree Kumar, Ms Kripa Mathew and Ms Anakha Preeth. The function was presided over by Father Sabu Thomas. The former Heartians had nothing but fond and inspiring words to define their academics and the overall college experience and how the esteemed institution as well as the teachers had helped them above and beyond in reaching their true potential. They provided proof and reassurance of how Sacred Heart College and the English Department in particular can help the students to not only achieve their academic goals but also help to shape their futures for the better. The programme concluded after a short Q and A session and the vote of thanks delivered by Gouri R of second year BA English.

FIESTA- Freshers' Day 12/10/21

Report on freshers week (Day 1) 12/10/21 

 The program began at 6:30pm Fr. Paulose Kidengan, College Manager was the chief guest. HOD of English dept. - Dr. Rajesh James , other teachers of the department and Linu ma'am ,parent of Rasha Saleel was also involved in the program. Fr. Paulose Kidengan initiated the program with a pleasant speech about the college and as students how lucky we are to become a part of the sacred Heart college. And was continued by Dr. Rajesh James, (HOD of English department). He helped us to have a quick glance of the college, course and whole English department. And then linu ma'am, parent of rasha saleel who is also an English teacher talked about the course as a concerned parent and as a teacher, she also mentioned about the significance of the college. And later the program was carried on by the seniors, sidharth G, Sarang Ashokan and devika saju. Sarang Ashokan anchored the whole program in a wonderful way. And there was this great ice breaking session which really helped the juniors to getting to know the classmates and thier interests. The first years played a game based on movies which was hosted by devika saju, and it was really fun.