Krishnamohan
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Following
MA in English (language), SV University (Graduated 1990)8y
What are some of the good books or novels which can be read in the sociology genre, apart from books we read for sociology as an optional?
“Sociology Themes and perspectives” by Haralombos, “ Sociology A guide to problems and Literature” by TB Bottomore are two eminently readable books. “ The Nagas in the nineteenth century” by Verrier Elwin, Haimendorf’s “The naked Nagas, The Raj Gonds of Adilabad “ are not just sociological texts, but deeply resonant works of art depicting with fascinating detail the empathetic study of a people from very close quarters.
Sister Carrie by Theodore Dreiser is a novel in the realistic mould about America at the turn of the century. Mark Twain’s Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beeches Stowe, Gone with the wind by Margaret Mitchell, To kill a mocking bird by Harper Lee, Roots by Alex Haley, The Citadel by AJ Cronin, Coolie and Untouchable by Mulk Raj Anand, Chemmeen by T Siva Sankara Pillai, Dead Souls by Nikolai Gogol, The Home and the World by Rabindranath Tagore, Things fall apart by Chinua Achebe, Ghasiram Kotwal and Silence the court is in session by Vijay Tendulkar are apt examples to see how the literary strand is deftly and delicately merged with the more serious social and ethical questions on hand in literary works.
But can novels or books escape the domain of sociology or society since Literature is nothing more than a reflection of society. Ibsen’s “ A Doll’s House”’ the first modern play had more of the of the social and moral in it along with the artistic because the impact it created then has been indelible and survives even to date.