by Julia Gledhill
Najnin Islam is an Assistant Professor in the English Department. She focuses on Global Anglophone and Postcolonial Literatures. She received her Ph.D. from the Department of English at the University of Pennsylvania. Prior to that, she received an M.Phil. from the Center for Studies in Social Sciences, Calcutta and her B.A. and M.A. degrees from Jadavpur University, India.
Q: Hello! Would you briefly introduce yourself and your field of study?
A: I’m Najnin Islam, I’m joining the English department this year. Before coming to CC, I was finishing grad school at the University of Pennsylvania. Broadly speaking, I teach Global Anglophone literature and Postcolonial literature. As that relates to my research, I focus on South Asian and Caribbean literature. So, mostly looking at transnational connections between South Asia and the Caribbean, labor migration, commodity movements, and issues like that.
Q: What made you want to specialize in Global Anglophone and Postcolonial literature?
A: Well, in my undergrad I was trained in English literature. So, I had the opportunity to read very widely. I was reading Renaissance literature at the same time I was reading Postcolonial literature, all of that, and I feel like it’s just how my interests were shaped. I think that played a major role in my decision to study Global Anglophone has to do with the kind of literature I was reading but also my general interest in looking at global cultures, as well as a range of connections between different geographical locations.
Q: So, is there a class you’re particularly excited about teaching?
A: I’m excited about all four that I’m going to teach. In Block 2 I’m teaching a class called Tales of Travel. We’ll be looking at travel narratives about places like Africa, a couple on South Asia, then, the Caribbean. And part of what the course is trying to understand is, how do we define travel narratives? What are the characteristics of travel narratives? But also, start that conversation with something as old as Columbus’ diaries!
We will start with Columbus’ diaries, but then bring in contemporary forms of travel narratives. The travel industry is booming, and different ways of narrativizing travel are also shifting. But, the interesting thing is, starting with texts like Columbus’ diaries up to contemporary times it is actually possible to see certain kinds of continuities in ways different places and people are described, and to what effect. Those are some of the broad questions we’ll be dealing with in Block 2.
In Block 4 I’m teaching Introduction to Literary Theory, which is required for students who want to major or minor in English. Apart from the requirement, I think it’s an interesting class because it really gives you the tools to read literature, and interpretation of literature has changed over time. The way I’m imagining this class, Introduction to Literary Theory, is having a conversation with students about different methods of reading literature.
In Block 5 I’ll be teaching Introduction to Postcolonial Literature and Theory, which is my field of expertise.
In Block 7 I’ll be teaching a class called Caribbean Voices which I’m very excited about because I think this will be one of those courses where I really get to talk about Caribbean literature, which is one of my areas of specialization. We’ll be looking at some old narratives from the Caribbean and about the Caribbean, and then bring it to more contemporary writing by Caribbean authors. What are the kinds of concerns they’re talking about? How are they managing in the Caribbean islands?
Q: These sound like great classes. People are going to be really stoked about them! Thanks so much for your time.
A: Thank you, I’m excited about them! We’ll see how they go!
Post-colonial studies offer students world framing. Are you interested in understanding how the world functions outside of your own specific geographical location? Do you want to understand how power dynamics in this world function? Do you want to understand why some countries continue to be called developing nations, while some are not? These are some very important political questions that inform the life we live. If you are invested in understanding those structures of power and contributing to undoing those unfair structures of power, try Postcolonial studies!
