(A Visit to Ancient Greece, Long Narrative Ahead)

The Department of English in Bangalore University is Very Good for pursuing MA. I say it is so because the teaching is great, not just good. When the teaching is great; attending the class is interesting. The Professors in the Department were very experienced and their subject knowledge in both theory as well as in prose/poetry/etc are good enough and that’s the thing that makes me feel good about the Department as a student of BU. In terms of teacher’s regularity, despite the fact that it is a government institution, I won’t be wrong to say that, the department functions like a private institution. Students were from various social backgrounds throughout India and also there are students who are foreign nationals. The university is split into two campuses and there are many colleges affiliated to it. It also act as a Parent University. Initially, it is a State University, while the other campus, a recently established one is a central university. There’s hostel for both men and women.

The professors were all very well-qualified ones, though, the institution’s infrastructure seems like it needs a little upgrades. By the way, I am not talking about other departments; I just know (at least, a little) the department where I have been there for two years. The teachers here are very committed and the word #thankyou is not just enough to thank them for their generosity, kindness and capability. It was such a good old days for me; I can recalled those many lovely classes; where a single lecture, lasts more than two hours; but it feels like it’s just a few minutes. May be I was submerged deep drown in the Sea of Literature.

Classes were been regularly taken; the cooperation and passions of our professors were very helpful to us as a student. Syllabi were well covered and we were given occasional Class Test on time interval. The teaching is not prioritising only on lecturing but also to Assignments and Presentations in general. These are a must for each and every students round and round throughout the academic/semester year and a student is likely to get two to three chances of paper presentations in the class despite the syllabus we have to cover and the number of students in the class. As usual, as a student, the more questions you ask, the better it is for you. Also, Professors were open to taking questions after the end of every classes. This is the yummy part of the department; teacher-student interaction are quite good as well.

In the completion of the course, which is on dissertation writings, the assigned supervisor were helpful, but you have to stick with them; meet them regularly.

In my first year, when I look back those old good days, I am so happy; because I feel like I was blown away by the class lectures throughout the semester, and I used to ask my friends, “…wow, doesn’t it like a Private Institution….! Thank God. I still remember my first day, first class— sitting in the class. A professor came in and start the class with Ancient Greek philosophy; where Aristotle, Plato, Sophocles, Euripides, etc and old legendary stories were discussed. The first two guys whom I heard of their name long before I am here but not know much about why history of philosophy remembers so well; except I thought, they were dudes of mind-teaser or idiots somewhere from Greece; somewhere in the buried history; since time immemorial,

Oh, they are not that dudes neither mind-teaser; they were quite interesting cause we have visited the ancient city of Corinth, Sicily, Athens, Sparta, Syracuse, etc and on the way back we came across the places where Trojan War and Troy were fought. Luckily, we also see the broken City of Zeus, the beautiful princess, the Helen of Troy, Phoebe, Aeschylus, Thebes, as well as the great warrior Achilles and many more. It was all in a day! …..becoming a Time Traveller indeed! Homer and his choirs sing well too, though, its long!

Later, we also came across, the one who proclaimed the dead of God, Nietzsche. Heidegger, who remind us our Being and Time, that myth guy Barthes, the ABC guy Levi Strauss. A guy name Saussure; who he was very cautious about Structure is somehow sound realistic. Also, comes across all the jacks, for example Derrida, a french man with his charming – luring romantic sweet voice, where his deconstruction from Structure seems like awesome and unbelievable; out of which what he called the freeplay is mind-blowing. At times, these are all very confusing! Sometimes, its like we are going in the open space, nihilism is really crazy but fun. : D

The other day, we talk to a lovely guy name Goethe, who was fascinating, Gogol’s ‘Over Coat’ seems like nice around St. Peterburg’s in Russia. The other guy such as Vladimir Nobokov, Tolstoy, Dostoevsky; they were all very juicy, sagacious and delicious.

_{Lolita, light of my life, fire of my loins. My sin, my soul. Lo-lee-ta: the tip of the tongue taking a trip of three steps down the palate to tap, at three, on the teeth. Lo. Lee. Ta. She was Lo, plain Lo, in the morning, standing four feet ten in one sock. She was Lola in slacks. She was Dolly at school. She was Dolores on the dotted line. But in my arms she was always Lolita.}

Vladimir Nobokov’s Lolita

Chaucer, Dickens, Austen, Achebe, Said, Frost, Matthew Arnold, etc they all make some points too. Cixious, de Beauvoir, Millet, seems like they were rebelling. Raymond Williams, Simon Durings, Standley Fish, Staurt Hall, Grimci, etc, have actually give factual info on cultural evolution. Thoreau, Emerson were very transcending. Geisha will be nice, if you were only rich. Hemingway, Twain, Sallinger, Faulkner seems like they were chasing American dreams. etc etc. Oh, damn it, two short years is gone in no time but as Coleridge said, I felt like we were down to the sunless sea: [Sunless Sea? Oh oh! don’t be scared, just quoting a deep Romantic imagination. : D]

Picture: Kubla Khan by S. T Coleridge.

Honestly telling, the Teaching here in the department is really good, In addition, if you really love literature, it will be nice and that itself will be an adding point for you. If you want to see the Syllabus, you can download it here: http://bangaloreuniversity.ac.in/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/PG-ENGLISH-SYLLABUS-20092016.pdf. I have compared the syllabus across various (India’s) university, it is not low at all. You can make a cross comparison for yourself with other varsity’s, if you want.

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It too had it downside though, I keep on saying how good it is as a department. (Now let me point out some points as a whole/BU as well as on the Department of English. The teaching here is good though there are not many extra curriculum activities in the department. Guest lectures, Seminars, Conference etc were very rare or just once or twice in a blue moon. Many student and even some staffs prefer to use local languages in many situation; Cling and clung noises (not upto JNU noises) prevails. You could also feel the presence of some sense of regionalism. Oh, those thing, forget it.

The management are not upto expectations, exam date, exam results, etc, takes time. There is no proper time table for exams and vacations. Things get late usually. There are library, gymnasium, lots of basket ball courts. There is no such student clubs in the campus. Outside the class room, in the huge campus, we don’t feel like student. If you can attend the so called prestigious colleges like Christ, which were very highly rated ones, infrastructures are good and student exposures were like awesome, plus DJ and events are held almost everyday. But let me tell you, as a student (of literature), I think we need more time on lecturings which we have here in the department while student exposures are equally important to some level being a student. If you are from a good enough- strict colleges, you might find huge differences on its variations. Finally and over all, it is not that bad.

By material and modernity, its ok, and the value of academic education, as mention earlier, is not at all low especially in the English Department because the department got well- qualified professors. My respect goes to them all 🙏

Hi Irene,

Thanks for reaching out to me. As far as I can, it is my pleasure to assist you. My apologies for the late reply 🙏.

Yes, as per the information you’ve got from Quora, I have attended BU during 2016–18, and I did wrote a review on Quora how I found the university.

I would say, all the professors were well equipped with subject knowledge on their own fields. They knew very well about the history of English literature from the inception, age by age till the 21st century from novels to poetry. They also have wide knowledge on literary theories from Plato till 21st century.

Most of the classes as far as I can say is interesting for the commitment of the teachers, in which, this somehow depends upon our level of calibre and personal interest in learning literature.

As usual, literature is always a broad subject from Brit Literature to Russian, American, Japan, German and even Indian writings, from Dante, Vladimir Nobokov, structuralism, modernism, historicism, and with some Biblical test, this again depends on y/our interest to pursue literature as a choice. My apologies, I can’t write it all of it here for sure.

Literature have amazed me and I believe I was submerged by the beauty of humen creativity, where expression in the form of writing is mesmerizing. BU as a government institutions do have it’s own demerits, but they, I think is just a lil thing, i meant to say that one would surely find the other side of it, just like in any other places. Lastly and finally, decisions is all yours. Over all, I would say it is good, especially the teachings. Try for another university as well. Thanks again for reaching out to me.

Best Wishes!!! God Bless.

#MyInkDom