DEH Public Talk on Dostoevsky and Tagore
The Department of English and Humanities at the University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh organized a Public Talk on “Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoyevsky and Rabindranath Tagore: The Litterateurs, Illustrators and Artists” by Prof. Dr. Debal Dasgupta on September 28, 2022. Recipient of the Russian State Highest Award for contribution in the fields of Language, Literature and Cultural Studies, Prof. Debal Dasgupta is currently a member of India's National Assessment and Accreditation Council and the Principal Investigator and Coordinator of India's EPG-PATHSHALA, the online portal of MA, pen to the entire world. He retired from the Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda, India after teaching and research for 44 years, and is currently also the President of the Indian Association of Teachers of Russian Language and Literature. Prof. Dasgupta, apart from his academic pursuits, is a director of plays with 48 full length plays staged in different parts of India and Moscow.
Prof. Dasgupta spoke about Tagore's unique style of illustrations and his portrayal of a vast set of characters, caricatures, grotesque beings, and mythological deities, all brought to life through his play on words. Dostoyevsky's drawings are equally expressive and he successfully presented the state of mind the characters were in. While Tagore had a more aesthetic approach to his works, Dostoyevsky, in his sketch of Raskolnikov, the protagonist of Crime and Punishment in particular, attempted to portray individuality and exhibit his character in a spontaneous manner. It is important to note that Tagore created meaningful expressions on purpose.
At the end of the lecture, Prof. Dasgupta engaged in a discussion with Professor Shamsad Mortuza, Special Advisor to the Board of Trustees; Professor Kaiser Haq, Dean of the School of Arts and Humanities; and students.
The program, which was well attended by students and faculty members of ULAB as well as guests, had begun with a welcome address by Ms. Arifa Ghani Rahman, Associate Professor and Head of the Department.
Report by Sahar Islam (193013008)
