Asia Travels: Pan-Asian Cultural Discourses and Diasporic Asian Literature/s in English

Asia Travels: Pan-Asian Cultural Discourses and Diasporic Asian Literature/s in English
Critical discussion on Pan-Asianism from literary perspectives is markedly absent in the academic field. Most works concentrate on either historical or political aspects. This book offers fresh perspectives in this respect. It is about travel, dwelling in travel, and sharing transnational solidarity with fellow travellers from the same continent – Asia. It is about going beyond national identity while on the route (in both literal and metaphorical senses) and discursive reflections regarding what it means to be ‘national’ and ‘transnational national.’ It speaks of the stories and histories of cultural links between individuals and communities from Asia and also of how they stand divided when differences emerge and commonalities recede to the background. These travellers’ narratives represent, to use James Clifford’s words, ‘different modes of dwelling and displacement,’ different ‘trajectories and identities,’ not only in the ‘postcolonial world of global contacts’ but also in the world of colonial regimes. It speaks of Pan-Asianism and diaspora and where these discourses intersect. The book analyses Pan-Asianist discourses of political leaders and writers such as Sun Yat-sen, Okakura Tenshin, and Rabindranath Tagore. It explores literary works of Maxine Hong Kingston, Amy Tan, Monica Sone, Hisaye Yamamoto, Ranbir Sidhu, Bapsi Sidhwa, Khaled Hosseini, Bharati Mukherjee, Jhumpa Lahiri and Manjushree Thapa. It also analyses how anthologies can play a positive role in respect of identity politics and politics of ethnic consolidation.

Author/Editor

Himadri Lahiri

Publisher

Birutjatio Sahitya Sammiloni

ISBN

978-81-953067-8-7

Publication date

1 Jan 2021 – 31 Dec 2021

Specialisation

Humanities

Theme

Literature
Globalisation
Gender and Identity
Diasporas and Migration

Region

Global Asia (Asia and other parts of the World)