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Sanjayan had prophetic vision: Panicker

By Our Staff Reporter

KOCHI DEC. 8. The greatest irony about Sanjayan could perhaps be that he who was considered a conservative during his time could now be read as a progressive thinker, said K. Ayyappa Panicker, poet and critic here on Saturday.

Delivering the valedictory address at a two-day national seminar organised by the Sahitya Akademi and hosted by the 6th International Book Fair Committee at Ernakulathappan grounds, Dr. Panicker said that Sanjayan's contributions as a critic remained to be explored fully. More stress should be given to analyse Sanjayan as a provocative genius.

"Sanjayan's works become contemporary partly due to the evolution of our literary sensibilities. He was a philosopher with prophetic vision. But Sanjayan was categorised as a conservative in his times, probably due to his political stand," he added.

"Even while excelling as a teacher of English, Sanjayan succeeded in identifying the quality of Malayalam literature. In comparison, most of our language teachers at present are still after European sensibilities," Dr. Panicker said.

Efforts should be made to study Sanjayan with reference to his period as well as the contemporary one. Unlike Sanjayan's treatment, satire of the present lacked innocent humour and was loaded with more personal insults, Dr. Panicker said.

In his presidential address, M. K. Sanu said that Sanjayan's works could be treated as philosophical because he had constantly interacted with his contemporary realities with his sharp wit.

"This aspect of Sanjayan gets highlighted as we live in an age bereft of logic and rational thinking. Best humour always has a tint of philosophy and a tragic sense as its undercurrents. These principles held good for Sanjayan's works," he said.

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