Human Rights and Indian Literary Communities

Human Rights and Indian Literary Communities explores the relation between literature, the public sphere and the notion of personhood as understood through the concept of human rights in India. While discussing the challenges of social equality, the universal notion that everyone is a rights-bearing person, and rule of law in a postcolonial society like India, it outlines the historical trajectories, geographies and social processes that go into the making of human rights.

This edited collection presents various interpretations of the concept of literary communities, highlighting their indispensable role to the demands of human rights discourse. Each chapter analyses narratives as told in various media and environments - from the public sphere and the Constitution to archival letters, novels, poetry and short stories, as well as documentary and feature films. Contributions from human rights and literary scholars and researchers also adopt an intersectional lens, discussing the micro-histories of the anti-colonial struggle, debates within the queer movement, and the relationship between religion and rights. Wide in scope, this book adopts a sharp focus on the capacity of literary communities to collectively equip those with rights with empathy and care.

By demonstrating how a rights-bearing person is written, not simply constructed, into being, this comprehensive text is an ideal resource for researchers of literary, legal, and postcolonial studies.