Department of English

Pondicherry University

Two day International Seminar on

New Feminist Writings:
Emancipation to Representation
9th & 10th March 2017

Organized by:
Department of English
Pondicherry University
Puducherry-605014
Host Department
Established in 1986 in Pondicherry University on the salubrious East Coast of India, the
Department continues to attract students and scholars from all over India for its M.A., and
Ph.D., programmes since its inception. With its special focus on Comparative Literature, it has
so far produced around 70 Ph.Ds and 340 M.Phils besides a massive exodus of PGs. The
Faculty of the Department with their diverse research areas and publications on topics of
contemporary relevance remain at the forefront of innovative research and erudition. The
Department also caters to the language and communication needs of students from other
departments, running special courses on language and communication skills and an add-on
PG Diploma in Professional Communication in English. The Department runs a Research and
Journal Alert Forum providing platform for students and Scholars to present their research
findings and creative talents.

A Two- day International Seminar has been envisioned by the Department of English to be
held on 9th & 10th March 2017. It will have its focus on New Feminist Writings:
Emancipation to Representation.

Objectives
The specific objectives of the Seminar are to (1) analyze the literary and cultural narratives in
relation to theories of new feminism, (2) think critically and explore the impact of new
feminism on contemporary life, (3) examine the social and political contexts within which
feminist action has occurred/does occur, (4) explore more fully how new feminists construe
inequality and how they attempt to remedy it, (5) validate a larger socio-cultural context and
avenue for understanding gender roles, motherhood and sexuality, and for exploring how
solidarities can be created from differences.

I measure the progress of a community by the degree of progress which

women had achieved.
-Dr. B.R. Ambedkar

Man treats a woman as his own property and not as being capable of
feelings, like himself. The way man treats women is much worse than the
way landlords treat servants and the high-caste treat the low-caste. These
treat them so demeaningly only in situations mutually affecting them; but
men treat cruelly and as slaves, from their birth till death.
-Periyar E. V. Ramasamy

Woman must write her self: must write about women and bring women to
writing...Woman must put herself into the text - as into the world and into
history - by her own movement.
-Helene Cixous
Theme
It is only during the 18th century-a period of intense intellectual activity that the struggle for
women's rights in the West began. All strands of feminism posit that the relationship of
inequality and oppression should be brought to an end. All feminist writings are monumental
compositions pleading for social order based on reason, granting equal treatment to both the
genders as rational beings and not merely one inferior to other. Feminist writings also present to
the readers the prototypical picture of average women who suffer at the hands of men and the
vicious patriarchal society. The feminist writers criticize the moral code of conduct of the
societies and their false values thereby surging ahead with an idea of emancipation. The
representation of women in literature was felt to be one of the most important forms of
socialization since it provided the feminists a unique and distinctive mechanism to change the
world by prompting gender equality and reducing sexism. Attempts were made to reconstruct
the image of woman by rewriting her history and reclaiming her obliterated world. Feminisms
are a response to perceived social injustice. Contemporary feminists, representing diverse
sexualities, strive to define sexuality in a way that reflects their experience, rather than
patriarchy's expectations.

The Seminar attempts to persuade the readers/participants to expand their understanding and
knowledge on new feminist discourses, thereby inviting them to take social action. Literature
promotes values of women's rights directly or indirectly. New Feminist literature aims to
transform the impact of the reading experience into a motivation for social action. The Seminar
also aims to place texts that keep women's rights at the core of its social liability. Every society
should become gender-egalitarian when the voices of all the genders are not only heard, but
incorporated into the making of a social system. The Seminar will examine how new feminist
literature has helped to create a paradigm shift from emancipatory politics to representative
praxis. It will focus on the ethical and political questions that arise from this discourse-shift in
contemporary works of literature from across the globe. It further investigates what literature
can hope to accomplish in the wake of escalating gender violence and examine the new kinds of
responsibility that these texts create in a globalizing world.

Thrust areas for Discussion:

1. Feminism-Theoretical formulations
2. Feminism in India-Literary responses
3. Eco-feminism
4. Dalit Feminism
5. Aboriginal Feminism
6. Body writing
7. Sexual Politics
7. Marxist feminism
8. Feminine stereotypes in Media and Literature
9. Queer feminism
10. Women in social media
11. Any other theme related to the main theme
Registration Fee:
Faculty Members: Rs. 1000
Students/Research Scholars: Rs. 500

Faculty members & Research Scholars of Pondicherry University are exempted from
registration fee.
Abstracts (with the Name, address, contact number and email id) are to be sent to the
Organizing Secretaries before 05th February 2017 by email.

Travel and Accommodation:

We hope that you will be able to take care of your travel and accommodation. However
accommodation will be arranged (payment to be borne by the participants) for outstation
paper presenters, if intimated in advance.

Working lunch and local hospitality will be provided.

Last Date for sending abstracts: 05th February 2017

Confirmation of acceptance: 07th February 2017
Full papers are to be sent before 20th February 2017
Full papers will be accepted for presentation only after strict anti-plagiarism checking.
Papers selected after peer review will be published by a leading publisher with ISBN number.

Chairperson : Dr. Clement S Lourdes, Associate Professor & Head

Organizing Secretaries : Dr. T. Marx & Dr. K. Reshmi

Members : Prof. Sujatha Vijayaraghavan

Dr. H.Kalpana
Dr. Binu Zachariah
Dr. Lakhimai Mili
Dr. S. Visaka Devi
Dr. Ujjwal Jana
Design: K.Thuyavarman, www.redruby.in

Address for Communication:

Dr. T. Marx, Associate Professor Dr. K. Reshmi, Assistant Professor
Department of English Department of English
Pondicherry University Pondicherry University
Puducherry-605014 Puducherry-605014
Seminar Help Line:
+91 94882 61468, 88838 09541
e-mail: puenglishseminar@gmail.com