Interiorization (Antassannivesha) - Essays On Literary Theory

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This book is a collection of the lectures I gave at the Kerala University International Centre for Kerala Studies under a fellowship scheme. They were published in various Malayalam journals at the time, and then as a book by the Kerala State Institute of Languages. They were translated into English by Professor Krishna Rayan, who also wrote a response of his own to the theoretical perspective outlined in the book. I am very happy that Dr. B. Ekbal, Vice-Chancel- lor of Kerala University, has agreed to publish this English translation.

Professor Krishna Rayan passed away on 1 August 2003. He was a great scholar, who in a series of books successfully tried to establish the relevance of ancient Indian poetics to the study of contemporary world literature. He was a fine person and a very good friend of mine. I wish to dedicate this book to his revered memory.

The International Centre for Kerala Studies (ICKS) was established by the University of Kerala in 1988 as a research institution to undertake serious studies on Kerala society, culture and state. The Centre has been fulfilling this task, ever since then, in a tri-fold manner: co-ordinating research activities having a bearing on Kerala of various sister Departments and Centres; undertaking its own research programmes; and publishing authentic studies by reputed scholars working in relevant fields.

ICKS has so far published five books in this series and this is the sixth one. Incidentally, this is also the second work of Prof. K. Ayyappa Paniker we are publishing. The earlier work was 'Kerala Contribution to Indian Writing in English: An Annotated Bibliography" (1998) which Prof. Paniker co-authored with N. Viswanathan.

The present volume - Interiorization - is a collection of lectures Prof. Ayyappa Paniker gave at this Centre under the visiting fellowship scheme. In his characteristic style and with chilling clarity the author has put across his ideas on the theme. We are really grateful to Prof. Paniker for the meticulous care with which he has crafted this work and, above all, for permitting us to publish the same. The enthusiasm shown by the Vice-Chancellor, Dr. B. Ekbal, and the helpful attitude adopted by the University Syndicate for publishing this work also deserve special mention here.