Flesh and Fish Blood: Postcolonialism, Translation, and the Vernacular (FlashPoints)

FlashPoints

by S. Shankar

In Flesh and Fish Blood Subramanian Shankar breaks new ground in postcolonial studies by exploring the rich potential of vernacular literary expressions. Shankar pushes beyond the postcolonial Anglophone canon and works with Indian literature and film in English, Tamil, and Hindi to present one of the first extended explorations of representations of caste, including a critical consideration of Tamil Dalit (so-called untouchable) literature. Shankar shows how these vernacular materials are often unexpectedly politically progressive and feminist, and provides insight on these oft-overlooked―but nonetheless sophisticated―South Asian cultural spaces. With its calls for renewed attention to translation issues and comparative methods in uncovering disregarded aspects of postcolonial societies, and provocative remarks on humanism and cosmopolitanism, Flesh and Fish Blood opens up new horizons of theoretical possibility for postcolonial studies and cultural analysis.

206 pages, Paperback

First published June 2, 2012

Reviews

[Marva · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an incredible work on turning the attention of postcolonilalism towards the vernacular, whose preoccupation with the transnational literature has made the theoretical domain itself one-dimensional. It explores the possibilities for conceptualizing a spectrum of postcolonialisms, the potential of translation and comparatism as a culture to bridge and rejuvenate humanism. Subramanian's Work is a must read for students of translation studies, postcolonial writings as well as comparative studies.

[Revanth Ukkalam]

Theory theory theory