UG English Students’ Seminar on ‘Detective Fiction’

the second chapter of the Students’ Seminar was organized by The Department of English, The Bhawanipur Education Society College, in the Jubilee Hall from 11AM to 4 PM. The topic “Detective Fiction” was selected for the students of UG semesters III and V and a call for papers was circulated.

Detective Fiction as a genre has made significant contributions to literature and popular culture. The seminar sought to address the multiple approaches to critically examine the said contributions and provide a forum for vital discussions. Paper presenters submitted original, well researched papers focusing on culture, gender dynamics, the subaltern, morality, psychological reasoning, and narrative structures in popular Detective Fiction. Further, the interactive question-answer round also opened grounds for deliberations which allowed students to put forth thought provoking insights to defend their papers. Several presenters also prepared engaging PowerPoint Presentations that worked seamlessly with their reading.

Following the success of the first chapter, Ms. Neetisha Jha and Ms. Chitrangada Deb of the Department of English, convened the Students’ Seminar with enthusiastic support from the teachers and the students of the department. The Head of the Department, Dr. Gargi Talapatra declared the Seminar open with her encouraging welcome note. The papers presented were judged by a panel of judges, Prof Tathagata Sen and Prof Ananyya Banerjee. Students of UG Semesters III and V were selected to present papers on a wide array of characters from the world of Detective Fiction, exploring classics like Sherlock Holmes, Hercule Poirot, Miss Marple, Feluda, Byomkesh as well as delving into modern adaptations of the famous sleuths. The papers were single authored and co-authored, and were presented in two sessions, with a quiz on detectives conducted by Mr Soumyajit Chandra. Each session was followed by a Q/A round. At the end of the sessions, the winners were announced: Anwesha Saha (1st), Souparno Roy (2nd), co-presenters Tiyash Mukherjee and Puranjani Bera (3rd) and Bhavna Jagnani (4th). The seminar came to an end with a vote of thanks and conveners’ concluding address. The papers from this seminar were published in the second volume of ‘Thoughtspell’, the students’ magazine of the department.