My ARIA project, entitled 鈥淓nchanted Imaginative Geography: The Literary Production of Space in South Asian Writing,鈥� centers on the literary production of space in the creative process of travel-writing. My supervisor, Professor Sandeep Banerjee, is currently researching the impact of the Cold War on the literary, cultural, and theoretical worlds of Bengali, Hindi, and Anglophone writing from India, Bangladesh, and Pakistan. Prior to the beginning of my internship, he had conducted preliminary research at the archives of the Congress for Cultural Freedom (CCF) at the University of Chicago, and I was tasked with sorting, cataloguing, and organizing the archival materials, which included images of letters, notes, pamphlets, ephemera, and photographs.
From this began my interest in the different ways that writers would describe the Himalayas鈥攆or some, the mountains were a form of home and brought about a sense of patriotic affiliation; some individuals believed that they formed a romantic landscape that led one to spiritual epiphanies; other writers framed the Himalayas as a reminder of nature鈥檚 cruelty by describing the treachery of their travels, etc. I wished to understand the reason for these divergencies in perspective, especially considering that these were all accounts about the same mountains, and to ultimately reconcile all of these writings into a singular signified space. Furthermore, I wanted to uncover the literary process of creating space through the metaphysical medium of writing, which begged the question: how does one imbue signification in a space? My experience doing research outside of a classroom context prior to ARIA was limited to the English Honours thesis, and through that, I learned how to properly plan out a significant research project and the most effective ways to read and write research papers. I felt ready to take on a larger project, and after sharing this interest with Prof. Banerjee, who was also my Honours supervisor, I decided to apply to ARIA. I wanted to gain more experience with professional academic research and, through that, decide whether or not I would be fit to further pursue an academic career through graduate studies.
Upon my acceptance as an ARIA recipient, I prepared myself for a somewhat isolating summer insofar as my supervisor was travelling to India, which made it challenging to have regular meetings with each other, and research is a traditionally solitary experience. I was pleasantly surprised to see that the ARIA organizers had planned multiple events where I could interact with other students. The ARIA Introductory Meeting at Thomson House remains a highlight of my ARIA experience, because it allowed me to meet other ARIA recipients that I now call my good friends. It was so fascinating to discuss their projects, and to inquire on the different methods of research that they were engaging in. We kept in touch through social media (some of them travelled for their research project), and it was fulfilling to see their projects come to life as well. On a more technical aspect of my ARIA experience, my research has led me to read Jacques Derrida鈥檚 writings on language鈥檚 system of signification and, through literary deconstructionism, I have discovered a new angle through which I can analyze literature. I am excited to move beyond New Criticism and to engage with works of art through different theoretical approaches, and I am grateful to my internship for giving me the proper space to explore other means of literary criticism.
The only challenge that I encountered over the research over the summer are ones that I had already encountered during my Honours thesis鈥攄espite writing a detailed outline of what I wanted my project to be, I continuously diverged from the original plan. Ideally, my research would be divided into three sections: 1) research, 2) planning, and 3) writing. That said, I found myself going back to research after entering the 鈥榩lanning鈥� phase, and re-planning arguments after commencing the writing process. My inability to follow through with the expectations that I had set out for myself was frustrating, but鈥攊n retrospect鈥攅ssential to my academic growth. Going back and forth between researching and writing allowed me to explore aspects of my subject that I would have otherwise ignored. Following that logic, I believe that ARIA has changed the way I approach research, and I have greatly enjoyed the experience overall. It has successfully convinced me to apply to a Master鈥檚 program at 91社区. I would also like to thank my donor for contributing to my project and for offering me the opportunity to experience ARIA.
