The faculty and students from the Departments of Political Science and English in association with the American Corner, Bangalore and the American Library, US Consulate General, Chennai, began a two-day programme on multiculturalism here on Thursday.
The programme deals with article discussions and documentary screenings on multiculturalism in the United States and non-violent paths to social change.
“We are focusing on the culture of U.S. and comparing it with the Indian Culture. Here the department of US launched the Electronic (E) Journal which takes up an issue every month,” said Prof. Cheriyan Alexander, Department of English.
Talking about the e-journal, he added, “It is basically a collection of articles from different
sources of America which deals with a common subject.”
Various topics ranging from Gandhian principles to Martin Luther’s ideologies also raised questions during the discussion session. Issues as to how politics, economy and social set up influence culture were discussed. Students of PG English and Political Science presented differences between the majorities and minorities in India.
Abraham, of II M.A. English who started the presentation said, “We are trying to bring about an idea to define multiculturalism; but is it by language or by ethnicity is the question. There is a problem to promote multiculturalism because there is lack of media intervention for it to flourish.” A few articles on the role of religion in India and multicultural literature were also presented.
“Our main objective of this seminar is to generate informed awareness on the themes of e-journal and to stimulate a discussion on the subject,” said Prof. Jerome Nirmalraj, Department of Political Science.
Jyothsna, of II M.A. English, said, “We were here to inform about the Indian-American writing and discuss the various problems which could be faced living with two cultures. The problems of different types of literature were also spoken about and we tried offering possible solutions.”
Students also made presentations on the effects of non-violence used by Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther II and discussed as to how the non-violent movements pioneered in South Africa and India. During this session they spoke about the power of non-violence and how social changes could be brought through them.
“One of the things important today in a large academic institution is to bring about the concept of non-violence. It has become an important issue which could be seen in two aspects. There are some people who believe non-violence is no longer effective for social change. While the opposing view is expressed by the very fact that there are people who f
ollow the Gandhian ideologies and civil disobedience even in the U.S,” said Prof. Etienne Rassendren from Department of English.
- Sijo I MS Com
- Pics by Johnson II MS Com
Hats off to both departments for organising this event..St Joseph's should encourage and promote more beyond classroom education as this.Congratulations!Keep it Up!
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