Literature Desk :
Bangla literature in Arakan Towards the end of the Middle Ages, there was considerable cultivation of Bangla literature in the independent and semi-independent states on the borders of Bengal. Arakan became a tributary state of Gaud in 1430. For the subsequent 200 years the rulers of Arakan patronised Bangla language and literature. Among those who wrote poetry in Bangla under the patronage of the Arakan court was daulat qazi (about 1600-1638) whose Satimayna O Lorchandrani was the first Bangla romance. Daulat Qazi was unable to complete the poem which was later completed by alaol (c 1607-1680). Apart from padmavati, believed to be his finest poem, Alaol also wrote Saifulmulk Badiuzzamal, a Bangla rendering of a Persian narrative about the romance of prince Saifulmulk and the fairy princess Badiuzzamal. Arakan’s other poets include Maradan (about 1600-1645) who wrote Nasirnama, and quraishi magan thakur who wrote Chandravati, a fairy-tale narrative.
Late Medieval period (1700-1800) The close of the medieval period was in many ways a period of decline. The decline of the Mughal Empire, the inroads of the European trading powers and the establishment of the British halted the natural flow of literary creation. However, the tradition of Vaishnava literature, mangalkavya, and translation work continued. There was a great deal of influence of both the Hindu Puranas and Islamic thoughts. The main literary productions of the period include padavali and mangalkavya.
Padavali Padavali writers in the 18th century include Narahari Chakravarti, Natavar Das, Dinabandhu Das, Chandrashekhar-shashishekhar and Jagadananda. Their poems were, however, more full of ornamentation than meaning.
Mangalkavya’ Versions of Chandimangal continued to be composed, an important version being that by Ramchandra Yati written 1766-67. Interest also grew in Dharmamabgal, with several poets, including Ghanaram Chakravarti, Narasimha Basu, Manikram Gabguli, Ramkanta Ray and Sahadev Chakravarti, writing different versions. Mangalkavyas also started being composed about new deities, for example, Suryamabgal, Gabgamabgal, Shitalamabgal, Laksmimabgal, Sasthimabgal and Sarasvatimabgal. Special mention may be made of Durgadas Mukherjee’s Gabgabhaktitarabgini.
bharatchandra, perhaps the greatest poet of the 18th century, wrote Nagastak and Gabgastak in Sanskrit and, in Bangla, satyanarayaner panchali, Rasamavjari as well as Annadamabgal. Annadamangal contains eight episodes and three parts: Shivayan-Annadamabgal, Vidyasundar-Kalikamabgal and Mansimha-Annapurnamabgal. The character of Annada links the different parts although the main story is how Bhavananda’s fortunes were transformed through Annada’s blessings. Bharatchandra had originally planned to write an epic on the model of Kavikabkan’s Shrishrichandimabgal, but, bowing to the taste of the 18th century and the desire of Raja krishnachandra roy, he turned it into the story of Vidyasundar. As a result, Bharatchandra’s poem is a mangalkavya only in form. Although the poet was himself inclined towards Vaishnavism, he presented the deities as fun-loving human beings. Annadamangal influenced later poets in many ways; the poets of Kalikamangal copied it extensively.
Ramprasad and others In the artificial atmosphere of an age of decline, ramprasad sen (1721-1781) was an exception because of his sincere devotionalism and simplicity of language. Although he was reputed for his Shaktapadavali, he also wrote Vidyasundarkahini and Krsnakirtan. In the songs of Ramprasad the fierce Kali turned into a kindly mother. Some other poets of this genre were Radhakanta Mishra (perhaps the first poet of kolkata), Kavindra Chakravarti and Nidhiram Acharya of chittagong.
Folklore An important part of 18th century literature was oral literature,’ the main theme of which was love. Because this literature was unwritten it kept on changing, right up to the 19th century. In much folklore the main role is played by a woman. The most important folkore collections are maimansingha-gitika by Dinesh Chandra Sen and Purbabanga-Gitika by Chandrakumar De.
Modern period (1800- ) The modern period of Bangla literature is usually dated from the foundation of fort william college in 1800. The distinguishing features of Bangla literature of this period were: (a) the rise and development of powerful prose literature; (b) the influence of Sanskrit scholars on prose during the first half of the 19th century; (c) the influence of western literature; (d) the diversification of subjects; (e) the rise of periodical literature; (f) the elevation of colloquial language to the status of a literary language; (g) the development of new poetic genres. The writers of this period were inspired by the ideal of creating a universal, eternal and independent literature. There was also at this time a growing awareness that literature greatly influenced national life and that it was the finest measure of national character.
The modern period may be divided into six phases. In the first phase (1800-1850), the era of prose, Christian missionaries and Sanskrit scholars ushered in modernism through their prose writing. In the second phase, the era of development (1850-1900), Bengali writers, influenced by the west, created novels and poems that have stood the test of time. The third phase, the era of Rabindranath Tagore (1890-1930), was dominated by the poet, and, although shorter, was prolific. The very short fourth phase, the post-Rabindranath Tagore phase (1930-1947), from the era of Rabindranath Tagore to the partition of India, is regarded as a separate phase outside the Tagore influence. The fifth phase, the post-partition phase (1947-1970), saw the political division of Bengal and the bifurcation of Bangla literature into the literature of West Bengal and the literature of East Bengal/east pakistan. The six and latest phase is the Bangladesh phase.
Modern period: The era of prose (1800-1860) Bangla prose writing developed in the 18th century mainly for adminstrative and proselytising purposes. The first Bangla books were those by Christian missionaries. dom antonio’s Brahmin-Roman-Catholic-Sambad, for example, was the first Bangla book to be printed towards the end of the 17th century. The foreign rulers also felt the need to learn Bangla, leading to the compilation of dictionaries and the writing of books of grammar. The Portuguese missionary Manoel da Assumpcam’s bilingual dictionary, Vocabolario em idioma Bengalla, e Portuguez dividido em duas partes, was printed in Roman script from Lisbon in 1743. nathaniel brassey halhed wrote the first Bangla grammar, A Grammar of Bengal Language (1776), to help the English learn Bangla. The book was printed in 1778 from Hughli Press, and bangla script was used in its examples and quotations. For administrative purposes law books in Bangla were needed. This is why a number of law books were translated and published at this time. Forster became well known particularly for his cornwalisi code (1793) and Shabdakos (1799). Although these are not original works, they give an idea of the nature of Bangla prose in the 18th century.
william carey (1761-1834) came to Bengal for missionary work but became famous as the pioneer of Bangla prose. In 1800 he published Mathi Rachita Mabgal Samachar, a Bangla translation of the bible, from serampore mission. He later joined Fort William College and devoted himself to writing textbooks. Fort William College had been established in Kolkata in May 1800 to prepare English civil servants for their administrative duties. One of their subjects was the local language. However, the absence of proper Bangla texts posed considerable difficulties. A team of Bangla scholars led by Carey accordingly began writing textbooks in Bangla. This is how a planned form of Bangla language developed. Other scholars who helped the development of Bangla prose were ramram basu, Golaknath Sharma, mrityunjay vidyalankar, tarinicharan mitra, rajib lochan mukhopadhyay , Chandicharan Munshi and Haraprasad Roy.
Textbooks Although Fort William College helped develop Bangla prose through the preparation of Bangla textbooks, later textbooks were written at the initiative of calcutta school-book society (established 1817). Some of its main writers were ramkamal sen (1783-1844), radhakanta dev (1783-1867), and Tarinicharan Mitra (1772-1837). Most of their books were didactic. Other textbooks were written by teachers of serampore college, including Felix Carey (1786-1822), John Clark Marshman, and John Mack. Some Bangla writers of the time such as krishna mohan banerji (1813-1885) also wrote textbooks.
While these textbooks were concerned with subject matter rather than with the literary quality of writing, they form a valuable addition to Bangla prose writing. By constructing a language that could communicate modern ideas to Bengali readers, they helped develop Bangla prose, often by acquiring words and terms from other languages.
Raja Rammohan Roy (1772/4-1833) also contributed to the further development of Bangla prose. Some of his well-known books are translations: Vedanta Grantha (1815), Vedantasar (1815), Kenopanisad (1816) and Ishopanisad (1816). His original books include Bhattacharyer Sahit Vichar (1817), Gosvamir Sahit Vichar (1817), Sahamaran Virodhi Pustika, Sahamaran Visay (1828), gaudiya vyakaran (1833) etc. The main themes of these books are religious and didactic.
Many of Rammohan’s attempts at reform were opposed by people such as Mrityunjay Vidyalankar, Radhakanta Dev, Ramkamal Sen, Kashinath Tarkapanchanan, bhabanicharan bandyopadhyay (1787-1848), and primarily the Christian missionaries of Serampore. Rammohan’s supporters included Ramchandra Vidyavagish, Prince dwarakanath tagore (1794-1846), Prasannakumar Thakur, Tarachand Chakravarti (1806-1857), Chandrashekhar Dev, Gourikanta Bhattacharya, Gouramohan Vidyalankar, and Rev. Krishna Mohan Banerji. The propaganda war between Rammohan’s supporters and opponents generated writings, later nicknamed ‘Dvairath Dvandva’ or combat between two charioteers, which fed the periodical journals and the newspapers, at the time the most important medium of Bangla prose.
Bangla literature in Arakan Towards the end of the Middle Ages, there was considerable cultivation of Bangla literature in the independent and semi-independent states on the borders of Bengal. Arakan became a tributary state of Gaud in 1430. For the subsequent 200 years the rulers of Arakan patronised Bangla language and literature. Among those who wrote poetry in Bangla under the patronage of the Arakan court was daulat qazi (about 1600-1638) whose Satimayna O Lorchandrani was the first Bangla romance. Daulat Qazi was unable to complete the poem which was later completed by alaol (c 1607-1680). Apart from padmavati, believed to be his finest poem, Alaol also wrote Saifulmulk Badiuzzamal, a Bangla rendering of a Persian narrative about the romance of prince Saifulmulk and the fairy princess Badiuzzamal. Arakan’s other poets include Maradan (about 1600-1645) who wrote Nasirnama, and quraishi magan thakur who wrote Chandravati, a fairy-tale narrative.
Late Medieval period (1700-1800) The close of the medieval period was in many ways a period of decline. The decline of the Mughal Empire, the inroads of the European trading powers and the establishment of the British halted the natural flow of literary creation. However, the tradition of Vaishnava literature, mangalkavya, and translation work continued. There was a great deal of influence of both the Hindu Puranas and Islamic thoughts. The main literary productions of the period include padavali and mangalkavya.
Padavali Padavali writers in the 18th century include Narahari Chakravarti, Natavar Das, Dinabandhu Das, Chandrashekhar-shashishekhar and Jagadananda. Their poems were, however, more full of ornamentation than meaning.
Mangalkavya’ Versions of Chandimangal continued to be composed, an important version being that by Ramchandra Yati written 1766-67. Interest also grew in Dharmamabgal, with several poets, including Ghanaram Chakravarti, Narasimha Basu, Manikram Gabguli, Ramkanta Ray and Sahadev Chakravarti, writing different versions. Mangalkavyas also started being composed about new deities, for example, Suryamabgal, Gabgamabgal, Shitalamabgal, Laksmimabgal, Sasthimabgal and Sarasvatimabgal. Special mention may be made of Durgadas Mukherjee’s Gabgabhaktitarabgini.
bharatchandra, perhaps the greatest poet of the 18th century, wrote Nagastak and Gabgastak in Sanskrit and, in Bangla, satyanarayaner panchali, Rasamavjari as well as Annadamabgal. Annadamangal contains eight episodes and three parts: Shivayan-Annadamabgal, Vidyasundar-Kalikamabgal and Mansimha-Annapurnamabgal. The character of Annada links the different parts although the main story is how Bhavananda’s fortunes were transformed through Annada’s blessings. Bharatchandra had originally planned to write an epic on the model of Kavikabkan’s Shrishrichandimabgal, but, bowing to the taste of the 18th century and the desire of Raja krishnachandra roy, he turned it into the story of Vidyasundar. As a result, Bharatchandra’s poem is a mangalkavya only in form. Although the poet was himself inclined towards Vaishnavism, he presented the deities as fun-loving human beings. Annadamangal influenced later poets in many ways; the poets of Kalikamangal copied it extensively.
Ramprasad and others In the artificial atmosphere of an age of decline, ramprasad sen (1721-1781) was an exception because of his sincere devotionalism and simplicity of language. Although he was reputed for his Shaktapadavali, he also wrote Vidyasundarkahini and Krsnakirtan. In the songs of Ramprasad the fierce Kali turned into a kindly mother. Some other poets of this genre were Radhakanta Mishra (perhaps the first poet of kolkata), Kavindra Chakravarti and Nidhiram Acharya of chittagong.
Folklore An important part of 18th century literature was oral literature,’ the main theme of which was love. Because this literature was unwritten it kept on changing, right up to the 19th century. In much folklore the main role is played by a woman. The most important folkore collections are maimansingha-gitika by Dinesh Chandra Sen and Purbabanga-Gitika by Chandrakumar De.
Modern period (1800- ) The modern period of Bangla literature is usually dated from the foundation of fort william college in 1800. The distinguishing features of Bangla literature of this period were: (a) the rise and development of powerful prose literature; (b) the influence of Sanskrit scholars on prose during the first half of the 19th century; (c) the influence of western literature; (d) the diversification of subjects; (e) the rise of periodical literature; (f) the elevation of colloquial language to the status of a literary language; (g) the development of new poetic genres. The writers of this period were inspired by the ideal of creating a universal, eternal and independent literature. There was also at this time a growing awareness that literature greatly influenced national life and that it was the finest measure of national character.
The modern period may be divided into six phases. In the first phase (1800-1850), the era of prose, Christian missionaries and Sanskrit scholars ushered in modernism through their prose writing. In the second phase, the era of development (1850-1900), Bengali writers, influenced by the west, created novels and poems that have stood the test of time. The third phase, the era of Rabindranath Tagore (1890-1930), was dominated by the poet, and, although shorter, was prolific. The very short fourth phase, the post-Rabindranath Tagore phase (1930-1947), from the era of Rabindranath Tagore to the partition of India, is regarded as a separate phase outside the Tagore influence. The fifth phase, the post-partition phase (1947-1970), saw the political division of Bengal and the bifurcation of Bangla literature into the literature of West Bengal and the literature of East Bengal/east pakistan. The six and latest phase is the Bangladesh phase.
Modern period: The era of prose (1800-1860) Bangla prose writing developed in the 18th century mainly for adminstrative and proselytising purposes. The first Bangla books were those by Christian missionaries. dom antonio’s Brahmin-Roman-Catholic-Sambad, for example, was the first Bangla book to be printed towards the end of the 17th century. The foreign rulers also felt the need to learn Bangla, leading to the compilation of dictionaries and the writing of books of grammar. The Portuguese missionary Manoel da Assumpcam’s bilingual dictionary, Vocabolario em idioma Bengalla, e Portuguez dividido em duas partes, was printed in Roman script from Lisbon in 1743. nathaniel brassey halhed wrote the first Bangla grammar, A Grammar of Bengal Language (1776), to help the English learn Bangla. The book was printed in 1778 from Hughli Press, and bangla script was used in its examples and quotations. For administrative purposes law books in Bangla were needed. This is why a number of law books were translated and published at this time. Forster became well known particularly for his cornwalisi code (1793) and Shabdakos (1799). Although these are not original works, they give an idea of the nature of Bangla prose in the 18th century.
william carey (1761-1834) came to Bengal for missionary work but became famous as the pioneer of Bangla prose. In 1800 he published Mathi Rachita Mabgal Samachar, a Bangla translation of the bible, from serampore mission. He later joined Fort William College and devoted himself to writing textbooks. Fort William College had been established in Kolkata in May 1800 to prepare English civil servants for their administrative duties. One of their subjects was the local language. However, the absence of proper Bangla texts posed considerable difficulties. A team of Bangla scholars led by Carey accordingly began writing textbooks in Bangla. This is how a planned form of Bangla language developed. Other scholars who helped the development of Bangla prose were ramram basu, Golaknath Sharma, mrityunjay vidyalankar, tarinicharan mitra, rajib lochan mukhopadhyay , Chandicharan Munshi and Haraprasad Roy.
Textbooks Although Fort William College helped develop Bangla prose through the preparation of Bangla textbooks, later textbooks were written at the initiative of calcutta school-book society (established 1817). Some of its main writers were ramkamal sen (1783-1844), radhakanta dev (1783-1867), and Tarinicharan Mitra (1772-1837). Most of their books were didactic. Other textbooks were written by teachers of serampore college, including Felix Carey (1786-1822), John Clark Marshman, and John Mack. Some Bangla writers of the time such as krishna mohan banerji (1813-1885) also wrote textbooks.
While these textbooks were concerned with subject matter rather than with the literary quality of writing, they form a valuable addition to Bangla prose writing. By constructing a language that could communicate modern ideas to Bengali readers, they helped develop Bangla prose, often by acquiring words and terms from other languages.
Raja Rammohan Roy (1772/4-1833) also contributed to the further development of Bangla prose. Some of his well-known books are translations: Vedanta Grantha (1815), Vedantasar (1815), Kenopanisad (1816) and Ishopanisad (1816). His original books include Bhattacharyer Sahit Vichar (1817), Gosvamir Sahit Vichar (1817), Sahamaran Virodhi Pustika, Sahamaran Visay (1828), gaudiya vyakaran (1833) etc. The main themes of these books are religious and didactic.
Many of Rammohan’s attempts at reform were opposed by people such as Mrityunjay Vidyalankar, Radhakanta Dev, Ramkamal Sen, Kashinath Tarkapanchanan, bhabanicharan bandyopadhyay (1787-1848), and primarily the Christian missionaries of Serampore. Rammohan’s supporters included Ramchandra Vidyavagish, Prince dwarakanath tagore (1794-1846), Prasannakumar Thakur, Tarachand Chakravarti (1806-1857), Chandrashekhar Dev, Gourikanta Bhattacharya, Gouramohan Vidyalankar, and Rev. Krishna Mohan Banerji. The propaganda war between Rammohan’s supporters and opponents generated writings, later nicknamed ‘Dvairath Dvandva’ or combat between two charioteers, which fed the periodical journals and the newspapers, at the time the most important medium of Bangla prose.
