Alexander Street: Literature, Drama, and Performing Arts

Singapore Slang

Singapore was a British colony until 1963 and became an independent nation in 1965.  They are the world's 17th wealthiest nation by GDP.  It would be interesting to compare the writings of India to Singapore.  While the Indian economy is growing, there is still a massive amount of deeply entrenched poverty.  (Not to mention myriad class intracacies/issues.)  What similarities might arise when comparing the post-colonial literature of both nations?  Do regional post-colonial economies demonstrate similar characteristics in terms of device, subtext, and theme in their literature?  It is a tempting question that must be approached by avoiding  generalizations about either tradition.  Heck, even attempting to say what constitutes a 'tradition' is dangerous. (Saving the canon debate for another day.)  Still, details can be extracted and context deepened simply by asking a question, responding in good faith, reading, and thinking.  Here are some books in our database from Singaporean authors.

The City of Forgetting: The Collected Stories of Gopal Baratham, by Gopal Baratham. (Times Books International, Singapore, 2001). 384pp.
Abraham's Promise, by Philip Jeyaretnam. (Times Books International, Singapore, 1995). 178pp.
They Do Return...But Gently Lead Them Back, by Catherine Lim. (Times Books International, Singapore, 1983). 119pp.

The Unknowns

Our database is loaded with heavyweights from the world of literature.  But the greatest satisfaction comes from finding absolute gems in any one of our products.  The old saw "there is something for everyone" should be improved to "remain curious."  The sheer multitude of works and authors in the database absolutely rewards digging for gold.  The student/scholar who comes to the table looking for information on X or corroboration of Y is more than welcome, but why not thumb around a little and look outside your area of focus.  Volume broadens context.  Sure, there is going to be a lot of wading but what better exercise for the intellectually adventuresome.  It is very rare, to me, to look at just about any work of art without even the smallest sense of sympathy for the artist's effort, goodwill, or even propagandistic/ideological goal.  Moved to act, they created.  They shared.  Bringing good faith to interfacing works of art is vital in the learning process.  Jadedness, narrowness can make you overlook what does not readily slide into your world-view.  Take some time to look around.  At the database.  At the world around you.