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Memory, Trauma and Affect: The Implicated Subject in Anuk Arudpragasam’s A Passage North

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Atri Majumder1 & Gyanabati Khuraijam2
1Research Scholar, Dept. of Management, Humanities and Social Sciences, National Institute of Technology Agartala, India, E-mail: atri.cal@gmail.com, https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2624-5703
2Assistant Professor, Dept. of Management, Humanities and Social Sciences, National Institute of Technology Agartala, India, E-mail: khgyan79@yahoo.com, https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2312-6787

Rupkatha Journal, Vol. 14, Issue 4, December, 2022. https://doi.org/10.21659/rupkatha.v14n4.14 
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Abstract

In A Passage North, Anuk Arudpragasam invades the consciousness of the protagonist to reveal the subliminal enmeshed spaces of the personal and the political. The distance between the traumatic events of the Sri Lankan civil war and the alienated individual who has apparently remained aloof, is obliterated through the refracted memories that have embedded the subject in the matrix of his country’s political history. The individual memory thus coalesces into the fabric of collective memory as the narrative unfolds. The concatenation of the traumatic realities and the sequestered psyche, untethers the individual from its ensconced private sphere and situates it within the macrocosmic and pervasive sociopolitical structure. The transmutation of subjectivity is attuned to the affective sites of collective trauma. The dichotomy of proximity and distance elucidated by the apprehensive reflections of the survivor is symptomatic of the subterranean intensities that elude corporeal presence and agency. The memories of the individual become resonant with the affective (un)lived experiences of traumatic violence, that deconstruct the tension of presence/absence, and consequently reconfigure the preconceived notions of subjectivity. The theoretical framework of this paper would foreground Michael Rothberg’s conceptualization of the implicated subject, to limn the trajectory of identities who are indirectly implicated in traumatic legacies. This paper argues that the trauma of the genocidal war and its aftermath is transcribed into affective memories, that bear the potential to reconstitute identity by recognizing and transcending the state of implication.

Keywords: memory, affect, trauma, implicated subject, identity, Sri Lankan civil war

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Spectres of Caste/Contagion: Death Anxiety and Caste Anxiety in U.R. Ananthamurthy’s Samskara

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568 views

G. Thiyagaraj1 and Binod Mishra2
1 Research Scholar at the Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, IIT Roorkee. ORCID: 0000-0002-4396-6062. Email: g._t@hs.iitr.ac.in
2 Professor at the Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, IIT Roorkee. ORCID: 0000-0003-2364-6405. Email: binod.mishra@hs.iitr.ac.in

Rupkatha Journal, Vol. 14, Issue 4, December, 2022. https://doi.org/10.21659/rupkatha.v14n4.13 
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Abstract

The article critiques the traversal politics of caste and contagion through a critical dissection of what comes as a primarily biomedical excess of the outbreak—the dead body. It elucidates upon the becoming of the dead body into an untouchable where its “right to die with dignity” is deferred. The article reasons this stigmatisation of the deceased as a result of anxiety ensued in the living population facing the outbreak crisis. Through a close textual reading of U.R. Ananthamurthy’s novel Samskara (1965), the article elaborates on the othering discourse of outbreaks and discusses the type of socio-immune response exhibited by a casteist body politic. The novel centres its narrative around a plague-stricken Brahmin community where the contested dead body of pestilence triggers an endless debate of humanistic morals and ethics. By equipping the Derridean lens of hauntology, the article reads Samskara as an outbreak narrative which informs about the social unpreparedness and indecisiveness expressed by caste groups. The article discusses two types of anxieties expressed in such a caste-based society, namely death anxiety and caste anxiety. It mediates how these anxieties are produced in inversion, creating a unique pattern of social instability and inertia with relevance to the socio-political discourse of India. The epiphenomenon of inverted anxieties in India is presented as a subverted narrative from the global patterns of anxiety charged by microbial invasions. Finally, the article examines how the dead regains spectral agency in order to reveal the social pathology of a community doubly infected with caste and contagion.

Keywords: Dead body, Contagion, Caste, Anxiety, Spectres and Outbreaks.

‘Healing the World with Comedy’: Anxiety and Sublimation in Bo Burnham’s Inside

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Ann Christina Pereira1 & Dr Sarika Tyagi2
1Research scholar, Department of English, Vellore Institute of Technology-Vellore. ORCID: 0000-0002-2555-4910. Email: ann.pereira9213@gmail.com;
2Professor, Department of English, Vellore Institute of Technology-Vellore. ORCID: 0000-0001-5144-9981. Email: tyagisarika27@gmail.com

Rupkatha Journal, Vol. 14, Issue 4, December, 2022. https://doi.org/10.21659/rupkatha.v14n4.12 
Abstract Full-Text PDF Issue Access

Abstract

Bo Burnham is a critically acclaimed American stand-up comedian and filmmaker. The usual themes in his works are the hypocrisy of artists, the commercialisation of art, and the role of social media in erasing the boundary between the public and the private. However, during the pandemic, he chose to focus on the theme of anxiety, a minor theme in his earlier works. Anxiety has been considered an integral part of modernity as discussed by Anthony Giddens and Zygmunt Bauman. In psychoanalysis, anxiety has been explained in a number of different ways. In current psychological discourse, anxiety is described as an unpleasant state of mind that can cause significant bodily and mental stress. The anxiety that Burnham experienced prior to the pandemic appears to have amplified during the pandemic. Two main types of anxiety are observable in the shows of Burnham—performance anxiety and existential anxiety. This paper seeks to understand Burnham’s show Inside (2021) using Anna Segal’s contribution to the concept of ‘sublimation’. We argue that in doing the show Inside, Burnham discovers a new way to acknowledge and channel his ‘depressive’ symptoms towards contemporary times, and he achieves sublimation in the process.

Keywords: Comedy, sublimation, anxiety, existential anxiety, modernity

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Narratives of Plague in Arab Societies through the Lens of Select Western Travelers

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467 views

Mashhoor Abdu Al-Moghales1, Abdel-Fattah M. Adel2, Suhail Ahmad3, Monir A Choudhury4, Abdul R. JanMohamed5
1Department of English, College of Arts, University of Bisha, Saudi Arabia. ORCID: 0000-0001-7984-5388. Email: mamohammad@ub.edu.sa
2Department of English, College of Arts, University of Bisha, Saudi Arabia.  ORCID: 0000-0001-7968-8167. Email: aadeal@ub.edu.sa
3Department of English, College of Arts, University of Bisha, Saudi Arabia.  ORCID: 0000-0001-6611-2484. Email: suhailahmed@ub.edu.sa
4Department of English, College of Arts, University of Bisha, Bisha, Saudi Arabia. Email: monirchy@ub.edu.sa.
5Department of English, University of California, Berkeley, USA. Email: abduljm@berkeley.edu

Rupkatha Journal, Vol. 14, Issue 4, December, 2022. https://doi.org/10.21659/rupkatha.v14n4.11 
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Abstract

To examine the narratives of plagues in Arab societies, the paper, along with the postcolonial perspectives, uses the concepts like ‘empathy’ or ‘detached concern’ to bring fresh and new understanding of the travel texts. It selected John Antes’ Observations on the Manners and Customs of the Egyptians, the Overflowing of the Nile and its Effects (1800) and Richard F. Burton’s Personal Narrative of a Pilgrimage to El-Medinah and Meccah (1857) for the study. The paper analyses their narratives to understand their approaches in describing the ‘native’ Arab societies. The key findings show that while Burton tends to construct the people and their culture as ‘the Other’ although his mode of presentation tends to follow a mode of ‘detached concern’, Antes is, on the other hand, more objective but stood by the plague-infected people in empathy. The findings show that these Western travellers considered the concept of predestination, lack of quarantine, lack of sanitation, mass gatherings during the plague, and the unscientific local treatments as the root causes of the spread of the plagues among the ‘natives’.

Keywords: Plague, Orientalism, Travelogues, Arab Land, Empathy, detached concern

Formation of Emotional Security of Students during the Period of Training in Conditions of Military Conflict

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476 views

Oleksii Petrovich Orlov
PhD, Assistant of World literature Department, V. G. Korolenko Poltava National University, Ukraine. ORCID: 0000-0002-2338-118X. Email: olexsiyorlov@gmail.com

Rupkatha Journal, Vol. 14, Issue 4, December, 2022. https://doi.org/10.21659/rupkatha.v14n4.10 
Abstract Full-Text PDF Issue Access

Abstract

Ukrainian teachers and students are now in an extreme situation of military conflict when the territory of the country is under constant air fire, and the line of hostilities stretches for 1500 kilometres. The purpose of the article is to analyze the extreme learning conditions of Ukrainian students and develop a strategy for optimal emotional relaxation by selecting fiction for reading and deepening artistic perception. Respondents’ data (120 students and 53 pupils) were collected, systematized, evaluated, and analyzed using systematic written surveys (Project Tuning methodology) and statistical analysis methods. Testing corresponded to three stages of conflict development: conflict deployment, escalation, and post-conflict phase. Pedagogical activity mirrors this parable but in the opposite direction. Fiction thematically and genre-wise at each stage plays the role of a protective shield, which draws the line between students’ own emotions and the feelings of literary heroes. Perception of artistic texts was aimed at 1) identifying visual, auditory, and tactile associations; 2) olfactory sensations; 3) the ability to build associative chains; 4) imagining literary heroes; 5) emotionally immersing yourself in the world of fiction. Comparison of one’s own emotional perceptions with those that caused anti-utopian works and fantasy literature prove the effectiveness of the chosen pedagogical hypothesis.

Keywords: extreme pedagogy, conflictology, an emotional parable of perception, artistic perception of literature, association.

The Phenomenon of Social Invisibility of Certain Ukrainian Citizens Categories during Crisis Periods

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451 views

Oksana Zhuravska1 & Olena Rosinska2
1Assoc. Prof., Faculty of Journalism, Borys Grinchenko Kyiv University, Ukraine.
ORCID: 0000-0002-4623-8933. Email: o.zhuravska@kubg.edu.ua
2Assoc. Prof., Faculty of Journalism, Borys Grinchenko Kyiv University, Ukraine.
ORCID: 0000-0003-4460-0668. Email: o.rosinska@kubg.edu.ua

Rupkatha Journal, Vol. 14, Issue 4, December, 2022. https://doi.org/10.21659/rupkatha.v14n4.09 
Abstract Full-Text PDF Issue Access

Abstract

Social invisibility is a complicated psychological and social phenomenon reflected by particular strategies of the society’s attitude to individual groups, their marginalization or “invisibility”, which is especially noticeable in the periods of crises. Ukraine has experienced revolutions, a partial territorial occupation, a pandemic and a large-scale invasion since 2013. The crises of these years influenced society’s life, its readiness or unreadiness to tolerate particular social issues. The analysis of the tendency in covering the issues concerning the LGBT community in the Ukrainian online media of Ukrayinska Pravda (UP), Gazeta.ua (G), Obozrevatel.com (Ob) during 2010 – the first part of 2022 based on statistical and content-analysis of publications gives a chance to prove that.

The research findings demonstrated that, in general, publication activities of the media do not demonstrate tendencies to increased amount of media content devoted to the problems of the LGBT community. The thematic range of publications is also relatively limited, its core is the issues of the Equality March organization and holding, social reaction to this event, world’s news and activity of local politicians.

The serious analytical publications concerning the problems of the LGBT-community are at the periphery of the themes. Stories of the LGBT-community representatives, including media persons who demonstrate positive examples of social adaptation, an issue of gender-based tolerance in the society, etc., remain beyond the attention of the editorial staff, observation of human rights, issues of the queer culture. The reasons for such a situation can relate to the editorial staff’s policy and influence on formation of the narrative in the country concerning the rights of the LGBT-community representatives.

The research of other top-rated media publications is also prospective not only with regard to quantity and themes, but also quality; in particular, compliance with journalist standards and ethical norms by the authors. That will allow reception of a more complete picture concerning the representativeness of the LGBT community’s problems in the country’s media environment and the specification of the indicators influencing their formation, as well as understanding mechanisms of social invisibility in media.

Keywords: LGBT, gender, media studies, social invisibility.

The Artistic Narrative in Times of War: NENKA project of Ukrainian Visual Artists

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447 views

Natalia Gurieva1 & Victor Manuel Reyes Espino2
1Department of Art and Enterprise, University of Guanajuato, Mexico. ORCID: 0000-0002-1366-1292. Email: n.gurieva@ugto.mx
2Department of Art and Enterprise, University of Guanajuato, Mexico. ORCID: 0000-0001-9309-6387. Email: vm.reyes@ugto.mx

Rupkatha Journal, Vol. 14, Issue 4, December, 2022. https://doi.org/10.21659/rupkatha.v14n4.08 
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Abstract

Art is deeply linked and contributes to the fundamental axes of culture, that is, norms and standards of behavior, national traditions, principles of life and value systems. During periods of social crisis, art is one of the most vulnerable components, but at the same time a powerful catalyst for creative processes, as well as an expressive vehicle for a critical view of the current situation. Particularly in times of war, artistic expression is presented with a powerful life-giving potential and allows to accurately express the enormous emotional tension of people, whose lives have been disrupted by death, pain, and destruction. This is the case of Ukrainian artists who, through visual exploration, build a complex narrative that seeks to interpret and express the pain and hope of what happened in their native country and which, since 2014, has been experiencing the ravages of war.

Keywords: Ukraine, Artist community, Contemporary image, Art to highlight Ukraine War.

Influences of Social Integrative Factors on Perception of Suicide among University Students in Southeast Nigeria

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444 views

Ngozi Udengwu1 & Dr. Michael O. Ukonu2
1Senior Lecturer, Department of Theatre and Film Studies, University of Nigeria, Nsukka. ORCID: 0000-0003-4966-5807. Email: ngozi.udengwu@unn.edu.ng
2 Senior Lecturer, Department of Mass Communication, University of Nigeria, Nsukka. ORCID: 0000-0003-4797-4884. Email: michael.ukonu@unn.edu.ng

Rupkatha Journal, Vol. 14, Issue 4, December, 2022. https://doi.org/10.21659/rupkatha.v14n4.07 
Abstract Full-Text PDF Issue Access

Abstract

The study interrogated university students’ perception of suicide in a social system where self-murder is seen as a taboo yet constantly on the increase. In light of the difficulty expressed in studies on detecting risky behaviour, we focused on the influences of social factors on the perception of the normality and preventability of suicide. We administered a 47-item questionnaire to 490 students from five universities in Southeast Nigeria. Frequencies, percentages, Pearson’s bivariate correlation coefficient and multivariable binary logistic regression were used to analyze data. We found a significant positive but weak relationship between the perception of the normality of suicide and the perception of the preventability of suicide. The majority of the respondents did not show a tendency to suicide but ironically acknowledged that the high prevalence of risk factors such as depression were expected and normal. Place of residence, being seen as deeply religious, and the class of study had a significant impact on the perception of the normality and preventability of suicide. We discussed the implications of our findings on social integration among students.

Keywords: Suicide, university, students, perception, risk factors

Psychological Trauma and Socio-Economic Burden of Girl-Child Marriage in Nigeria: Stephanie Linus’ ‘Dry’ as a Filmic Advocacy

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493 views

Mary-Isabella A. Chidi-Igbokwe1, Cindy A. Ezeugwu2, Cynthia Nwabueze3, Alphonsus C. Ugwu4 & Emeka Aniago5
1, 2, 3Theatre & Film Studies, University of Nigeria, Nsukka
4Mass Communication, University of Nigeria, Nsukka
5Theatre & Film Studies, University of Nigeria, Nsukka. ORCID id 0000-0003-3194-1463. Email: emekaaniago@gmail.com

Rupkatha Journal, Vol. 14, Issue 4, December, 2022. https://doi.org/10.21659/rupkatha.v14n4.06 
Abstract Full-Text PDF Issue Access

Abstract

The need to proffer solutions to the consequences of girl-child forced marriages in Nigeria has continued to draw scholarly attention within the ambits of sociology, history, law and human-right, women and gender studies, health, and psychology studies. However, studies examining the application of Nollywood films as advocacy texts in this regard are scarce. In response to this gap, this study examines interpretively Stephanie Linus’ ‘Dry’ as a filmic advocacy text, portraying the psychological trauma and the socio-economic burden of girl-child marriages in northern Nigeria. Our interpretive analyses utilize theories espousing how denial of childhood can become traumatic to the child-wives and eventually become a socio-economic burden to their family, community, and country. The key observation is that ‘Dry’ typifies a proper and efficacious utilization of film as an advocacy platform to interrogate and communicate matters relating to health and wellbeing revolving around girl-child forced marriages.

[Keywords: child-marriage, filmic advocacy, girl-child right, northern Nigeria, trauma]

Insecurity and Anxiety in Northeast Nigeria and Boko Haram Agenda Conspiracy Theories: Lake Chad Basin’s Oil and Water Polemics

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488 views

Felicia C. Abada1, Mary-Isabella A. Chidi-Igbokwe2, Chinedu Ejezie3, Nneka Alio4 & Emeka Aniago5
1Social Science Units, School of General Studies, University of Nigeria, Nsukka
2,4Theatre & Film Studies, University of Nigeria, Nsukka
3Political Science, University of Nigeria, Nsukka
5Theatre & Film Studies, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Nigeria. ORCID id 0000-0003-3194-1463. Email: emekaaniago@gmail.com

Rupkatha Journal, Vol. 14, Issue 4, December, 2022. https://doi.org/10.21659/rupkatha.v14n4.05 
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Abstract

In Nigeria and other nations with their territory being part of the Lake Chad Basin, anxiety is high and growing because Boko Haram’s “strident messages exacerbate intra-Muslim tensions and worsen Muslim-Christian relations in the region” (Thurston 2016: 5). In addition, because the agenda of Boko Haram appear jumbled and its sponsors indistinct, curiosity has led to the conceptualization of theories aimed at providing illumination. The study interpretively discusses how insecurity and anxieties in northeast Nigeria resulting from Boko Haram’s insurgency propel the articulation of several conspiracy theories explaining Boko Haram’s emergence, evolution and agenda, and the areas where lack of consensus subsists. The study classifies the theories into three categories, namely, the Freedom Fighter and Soldiers of Faith, Proxy Political Tool, and Islamic Caliphate Quest theories, and examines their suppositions and arguments to highlight the degree of plausibility. Substantially, the study expands the ‘Islamic Caliphate Quest’ theory to include the place of ‘oil’ and ‘water’ as likely variables that illuminate other trajectories.

Keywords: anxiety, Boko Haram, conspiracy theories, Lake Chad basin, oil, water

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