Of Women, Outcastes, Peasants, and Rebels: A Selection of Bengali Short Stories (Volume 1) (Voices from Asia)

Until now the large body of socially focused Bengali literature has remained little known to Western readers. This collection includes some of the finest examples of Bengali short stories—stories that reflect the turmoil of a changing society traditionally characterized by rigid hierarchical structures of privilege and class differentiation. Written over a span of roughly ninety years from the early 1890s to the late 1970s, the twenty stories in this collection represent the work of five authors. Their characters, drawn from widely varying social groups, often find themselves caught up in tumultuous political and social upheaval.The reader encounters Rabindranath Thakur’s extraordinarily spirited and bold heroines; Manik Bandyopadhyay’s peasants, laborers, fisherfolk, and outcastes; and Tarashankar Bandyopadhyay’s rural underclass of snake-charmers, corpse-handlers, stick-wielders, potters, witches, and Vaishnava minstrels. Mahasweta Devi gives voice to the semi-landless tribals and untouchables effectively denied the rights guaranteed them by the Constitution; Hasan Azizul Huq depicts the plight of the impoverished of Bangladesh. The Living And The Dead / Rabindranath Thakur -- The Punishment / Rabindranath Thakur -- The Girl In Between / Rabindranath Thakur -- Haimanti / Rabindranath Thakur -- Letter From A Wife / Rabindranath Thakur -- The Witch / Tarashankar Bandyopadhyay -- Variation On :the Witch: : An Excerpt / Tarashankar Bandyopadhyay -- The Unlucky Woman / Manik Bandyopadhaya -- A Tale Of These Days / Manik Bandyopadhyay -- The Old Woman / Manik Bandyopadhyay -- A Female Problem At A Low Level / Manik Bandyopadhyay -- Paddy Seeds / Mahasweta Devi -- Dhowli / Mahasweta Devi -- The Funeral Wailer / Mahasweta Devi -- Strange Children / Mahasweta Devi -- The Witch-hunt / Mahasweta Devi -- Giribala / Mahasweta Devi -- The Daughter And The Oleander / Hasan Azizul Huq -- In Search Of Happiness / Hasa Azizul Huq -- Through Death And Life / Hasan Azizul Huq -- A Day In Bhushan's Life / Hasan Azizul Huq. The Living And The Dead / Rabindranath Thakur -- The Punishment / Rabindranath Thakur -- The Girl In Between / Rabindranath Thakur -- Haimanti / Rabindranath Thakur -- Letter From A Wife / Rabindranath Thakur -- The Witch Tarashankar Bandyopakhyay -- Variation On The Witch : An Excerpt / Tarashankar Bandyopadhyay -- The Unlucky Woman / Manik Bandyopadhyay-- A Tale Of These Days / Manik Bandyopadhyay -- The Old Woman / Manik Bandyopadhyay -- A Female Problem At A Low Level / Manik Bandyopadhyay -- Paddy Seeds / Mahasweta Devi -- Dhowli / Mahasweta Devi -- The Funeral Wailer / Mahasweta Devi -- Strange Children / Mahasweta Devi -- The Witch-hunt / Mahasweta Devi -- Giribala / Mahasweta Devi -- The Daughter And The Oleander / Hasan Azizul Huq -- In Search Of Happiness / Hasan Azizul Huq -- Through Death And Life / Hasan Azizul Huq -- A Day In Bhushan's Life / Hasan Azizul Huq. Edited, Translated, And With An Introduction By Kalpana Bardhan. Translated From Bengali. Includes Bibliographical References. The young widow Kadambini had stayed on in the extended family of Sharadashankar-babu, her husband's elder brother, who was a small landlord in Ranihat village.