RELG-245 Stories of South Asia (3)

Storytelling is a time-honored tradition in South Asia, where tales of adventure and intrigue, such as those told in epic poems, allegorical fables, and parodic chronicles, have survived and thrived for centuries. Among the most popular topics of these persistent narratives are the struggles and successes of political actors in ancient and medieval India, whose efforts underlie the ethics impinging on the most pressing societal issues affecting South Asia today. In order to understand these modern political ethical problems better, this course identifies their ideological roots by delving into collections of stories that represent the politically charged genres of epic, allegory, and parody. In addition to examining the contents of these literary texts closely and situating them in their sociohistorical contexts, students consider how the texts’ implicit teachings continue to resonate even now on the Indian subcontinent and its surrounding areas, where political unity and stability in any respect can be precarious. AU Core Habits of Mind: Socio-Historical Inquiry.