Table of Contents
- Question 33: Earliest Indian Dramatist
- Question 34: Chronology of Sanskrit Poetics
- Question 35: Forms of Drama in Natyashastra
- Question 36: Sharankumar Limbale on Dalit Literature
- Question 37: New Historicist Reading of Dalit Writing
- Question 38: Homi K. Bhabha's Theorization of Nation
- Question 39: Chronology of Indian Diaspora Texts
- Question 40: Chronology of Key Theoretical Texts
Question 33
Who among the following is the earliest available Indian dramatist?
Bhāsa, one of the earliest celebrated playwrights, predates even Kālidasa, marking his presence well-known by the 1st century BCE, during the late-Mauryan period. Thirteen plays are attributed to him, dating to the first or second century CE. These works were lost to time until their rediscovery in 1913 by Ganapati Shastri.
Other Explanations:
- Kālidāsa: Flourished later, in the 4th to 5th century CE during the Gupta era, standing as ancient India's most esteemed poet and playwright.
- Bhavabhūti: An 8th-century scholar celebrated for his Sanskrit plays and poetry (like Uttararamacarita).
- Rajashekhara: A poet and dramatist of the 10th century, author of the Kāvyamīmāṃsā.
Question 34
Arrange the following texts chronologically:
A. Bharat's Natyashastra
B. Kshemendra's Aucityavicharacharcha
C. Bhamah's Kavyalankara
D. Kuntak's Vakroktijivitam
E. Anandavardhan's Dhvanyaloka
Choose the correct answer from the options given below:
The correct chronological sequence of these foundational texts in Sanskrit poetics is:
- (A) The Nāṭya Śāstra (200 BCE - 500 CE): Attributed to sage Bharata, this is the foundational treatise on performing arts and Rasa theory.
- (C) Bhamaha's Kavyalankara (7th-century): Celebrated for bringing to light the art of poetic embellishments (alankara).
- (E) Ānandavardhana's Dhvanyāloka (9th Century / 820-890 CE): Revolutionized poetic theory with the dhvani (suggestion) theory.
- (D) Kuntaka's Vakroktijīvitam (10th-century): Introduced the Vakrokti Siddhānta or the theory of Oblique Expression.
- (B) Kshemendra's Auchitya Vichāra Charchā (11th-century): Delves into the critical analysis of literary appropriateness (aucitya).
Question 35
How many major forms of drama have been described by Bharata in his manual of dramaturgy?
Bharata's Nāṭya Śāstra categorizes major drama into Ten Types (Rupakas).
This ancient Sanskrit manual on the performing arts, encompassing 36 chapters and over 6000 verses, delves into various aspects of performance art, including playwriting, stage design, acting techniques, and choreography. It also outlines the structure of a play through stages (Avasthas) like Prārambha, Prayatna, and Phalayoga, and details the four components of acting (Āṅgika, Vācika, Āhārya, and Sāttvika).
Question 36
Sharankumar Limbale argues that Dalit literature is unique because:
A. This brings out the Dalit reality which is liminal in time and space.
B. This has unique historical and ideological concerns.
C. This offers literary and cultural representations of marginalised and dispossessed people.
D. This brings out narratives and discourses of pity.
E. It uses disrespectful and offensive language towards revered figures.
Choose the most appropriate answer from the options given below:
According to Sharankumar Limbale (author of "Towards an Aesthetic of Dalit Literature"), Dalit literature is unique because it highlights Dalit reality, suffering, and societal slavery (A), operates with unique historical and ideological concerns aimed at social transformation (B), and offers representations of the marginalized and dispossessed (C).
Limbale strongly rejects traditional aesthetics (like Satyam, Shivam, Sundaram) as they historically benefited the upper caste. However, Dalit literature does NOT aim to bring out discourses of "pity" (D) but rather awareness, rebellion, and social justice. It also does not inherently aim to use "offensive language towards revered figures" as a primary identifying aesthetic (E); its language is authentic to its lived reality.
Question 37
Choose the correct option(s) in the New Historicist reading of Dalit writing:
(A) Dalit writing does not essentialise Indian society, culture and identity.
(B) Dalit writing has inflected the immanent metanarratives.
(C) There is no single location of Dalit writing.
(D) Dalit writing is only a political category.
(E) Dalit writing is not grounded in history.
Choose the most appropriate answer from the options given below:
Dalit writing refuses to essentialize Indian culture (A), disrupts and inflects established immanent metanarratives by offering alternative historical understandings (B), and emerges from diverse linguistic and regional contexts, meaning there is no single monolithic location of Dalit writing (C).
Why Other Statements Are Wrong:
Option (D): Saying Dalit writing is "only a political category" reduces its rich personal, cultural, and aesthetic dimensions.
Option (E): Claiming it is "not grounded in history" is entirely false. A New Historicist reading proves Dalit literature is deeply rooted in the historical experiences of caste oppression.
Question 38
Identify the correct option(s) in the theorisation of nation by Homi K. Bhabha.
A. Nation arises from similarities among people.
B. Nationalist representation is defined by ambivalence.
C. Nationalist representation engages with two contradictory modes of representation.
D. Nationalist discourses are split by a disruptive double-narrative movement.
E. Nation is a stable and fixed category.
Choose the most appropriate answer from the options given below:
Homi K. Bhabha's theories critically examine national identity in post-colonial contexts, proving that nations are highly unstable constructs:
B. Nationalist representation is defined by ambivalence: National identity is characterized by internal contradictions and tensions, especially in post-colonial societies.
C. Nationalist representation engages with two contradictory modes of representation: Formed in the "Third Space" of enunciation, encompassing both the colonizer's and the colonized's perspectives.
D. Nationalist discourses are split by a disruptive double-narrative movement: Bhabha suggests that nationalist discourses incorporate multiple narratives, resulting in a "disruptive temporality of enunciation."
Contrast with A and E: Bhabha directly refutes that the nation arises merely from similarities (A) or that it is a stable, fixed category (E). His concepts of hybridity and ambivalence show the nation is dynamic and contested.
Question 39
Arrange the following in the chronological order of the date/year of publication:
A. Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni's The Mistress of Spices
B. Anand Giridhardas's India Calling: An Intimate Portrait of a Nation's Remaking
C. V.S. Naipaul's India: A Wounded Civilisation
D. Bharati Mukherjee's Desirable Daughters
E. Salman Rushdie's Midnight's Children
Choose the correct answer from the options given below:
The correct chronological sequence is:
- (C) India: A Wounded Civilization (1977) by V. S. Naipaul.
- (E) Midnight's Children (1981) by Salman Rushdie.
- (A) The Mistress of Spices (1997) by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni.
- (D) Desirable Daughters (2002) by Bharati Mukherjee.
- (B) India Calling: An Intimate Portrait of a Nation's Remaking (2011) by Anand Giridharadas.
Question 40
Arrange the following in the chronological order of the dates of publication:
(A) Michel Foucault's The Order of Things
(B) M.K. Gandhi's Hind Swaraj or The Indian Home Rule
(C) Stephen Greenblatt's The Swerve: How the World Became Modern
(D) Donna Harraway's When Species Meet
(E) Tony Bennett's Formalism and Marxism
Choose the correct answer from the options given below:
The correct chronological sequence of these theoretical works is:
- (B) Hind Swaraj or Indian Home Rule (1909) by M.K. Gandhi.
- (A) The Order of Things (1966) by Michel Foucault.
- (E) Formalism and Marxism (1979) by Tony Bennett.
- (D) When Species Meet (2007) by Donna Haraway.
- (C) The Swerve: How the World Became Modern (2011) by Stephen Greenblatt.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is considered the earliest known Indian dramatist?
Bhāsa is considered the earliest celebrated Indian playwright, predating even Kālidasa. His works date back as early as the 1st century BCE to the 2nd century CE.
What is the "Vakrokti Siddhānta"?
Introduced by Kuntaka in the 10th century in his work Vakroktijīvitam, it is the theory of Oblique Expression, arguing that the distinctiveness of creative literature lies in its indirect or oblique phrasing.
How does Homi K. Bhabha define "Ambivalence"?
Bhabha uses ambivalence to describe the coexistence of conflicting views within a culture, showing that colonial and national authority is constantly renegotiated and never entirely fixed or stable.
What are the aesthetic values of Dalit literature according to Sharankumar Limbale?
Limbale argues that traditional upper-caste aesthetics (Satyam, Shivam, Sundaram) are inapplicable to Dalit literature. Instead, Dalit aesthetics are founded on human equality, social upliftment, liberty, justice, and fraternity.
