It is easy in the Core Curriculum to feel content with having acquainted oneself with the tradition that is of primary concern, namely, thewestern. It is also understandable, but we should at least be aware of other kinds of classics that usually earn only a cursory treatment in this corner within the western corner. And in doing so, we should beware of the dangers that attend a view of the world and the cultures inhabiting it too provincially–something of which these days we desperately need much less. An article for The Guardian has sought various authors to share those books that despite their not belonging in the western tradition deserve a placeon each of our reading lists. One is R K Narayan’s magnus opus, Malgudi Omnibus:
“From Frantz Fanon to Li Ruzhen, international authors deserve more attention from universities. Photograph: Christopher Thomond.” Image for The Guardian.
Every literature student should have space on her shelf for the complete works of R K Narayan. Or at least for a Malgudi omnibus, the fictional town in which he set many of his novels, including Swami and Friends, The Bachelor of Arts and The English Teacher. Although Narayan has had Western champions, including Graham Greene and John Updike, his work is perhaps failing to find a younger readership. I teach on the creative writing MA and MFA courses at the University of Surrey, and will be playing my own small part in trying to keep his legacy alive on campus. What we can learn from Narayan ranges from his mastery of setting (Malgudi teems with life), his gently devastating comic technique, to his ability to tackle large issues (such as Indias sterilisation programme) with a light but keenly incisive touch.
It was discomfiting to realize how many of the books listed I have not read or of which I have not even heard.A reading list that will never be exhausted before I myself am exhausted thus grows larger, and yours might also after
Reading his full post at The Guardian
