The Myriad of Meanings in Literary Culture Studies

The stances and outlooks, slants, and vantage points diverge to assert that Cultural Studies view life as fragmented, multiple, where meanings are hybridized and contested, i.e., identities that were more or less homogeneous in terms of ethnicities and patterns of consumption, are now completely hybrid. Culture Studies is constituted through experience, which involves representation – the consumption of signs, the making of meaning from signs, and the knowledge of meaning. This Indo-Bangla collection The Myriad of Meaning is no exception.

In Cultural Studies, representation is a key concept and denotes a language in which all objects and relationships get defined, a language related to issues of class, power, and ideology, and situated within the context of "discourse". The Myriad of Meanings, an Indo-Bangla edition of Literary and Cultural studies, involves an array of shimmering images of thoughts and discourses: be they in the dualism of nature and civilization by Jarin Tasneem Shoilee, in the philosophical approach of finding the inextricable bond between culture and civilization by Jaideep Mookherjee, in seeking happiness through philosophical religiosity by Samayita Bhattacharjee, in tracing psycho-social isolation through marginalization by Soma Dutta, in approaching Nature as a social player by Odrija Das, in interpreting beauty, sublimity and aesthetics from a stream-of-consciousness perspective by Nabhoneel Gangopadhyay, in deconstructing socio-cultural order by Kamalika Majumder, in finding the reassuring roots of feminism by Rishakhi Chakraborty, in interweaving environmental imageries with socio-political set up by Aishow Rozario, in capturing elements of ethnography and psychoanalysis through dissociation of society from culture by Aaloy Gangopadhyay, or in the fact-finding revelations of the tribal community by Lalti Dutta, in associating subaltern within the shifting spectrum of Historiography by Simool Sen, in viewing linguistic fluidity as a cultural component by Rabita Rahman, in elucidating the Renaissance of Bengal from an etymological frame of reference by Sarbartha Mukhopadhyay and in explicating the cultural impact of the Bhakti and Sufi movement by Kunal Roy. Even the collection includes Avik Gangopadhyay's ingressing standpoint on the crisis of consciousness within the transcreative psyche, Ahmed Tahsin Shams' culturally responsive pedagogical approach, and Koel Mitra's historiographical attitude towards writing in the digital age and the effect of copyright on digital content.

Ahmed Tahsin Shams has recently joined the Center for the Study of Languages and Cultures, the University of Notre Dame, the USA as a Visiting Faculty from Bangladesh. His background is versatile in teaching. He started his career with journalism, and therefore with immense experience in writing, he focused on teaching English for Academic Purposes (EAP); precisely, he is known for tutoring effective drills to develop academic and creative writing skills. After contributing as Assistant Editor in Bangladeshi national dailies, completing his B.A and M.A in English and English Literature respectively from the University of Dhaka, he joined as Lecturer in the Department of English at Notre Dame University Bangladesh in March 2016. His expertise grew as an interdisciplinary theorist for courses like Eco-criticism and Literature, Translation Studies, Literature in Visual Media, and Language through Literature that shape his research interests. Additionally, he has been working in the field of audio-visual communications since 2010 and that paved the way to practice technology-based methods effectively in teaching English as a second language. In this regard, he presented an array of articles and scholarly speeches in many academic events held nationally and internationally. Shams is a published academic author, editor, critic, translator, filmmaker, and poet. His debut poetry book, "Theo 101", was published in 2015 by Antivirus Publication (Liverpool, England). He has translated and co-authored five books and has published other titles as an independent author, including "English 2nd Paper for Higher Secondary Certificate Program", published by Bangladesh Open University (Open School) in 2017, "Preema Donna: An Infinite Journey" published by Cosmos Books in 2019, and "Sajjad Arefin's Poesy Tales" published by Blank Voices and Lulu Press, in 2021. He can be reached at ashams@nd.edu.