First ever visit to India, and Kakatia University, at city of Warangal
| First visit to India thanks to United Airlines and |
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| ThaiAirways in Bangkok |
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| The new livery of the United-Continental Airlines merger |
I should like to thank both United Airlines and its Star Alliance
partner, Thai Airways in Bangkok, for making this visit to Kakatiya University possible. United
Airlines got me to Bangkok, and thereafter, I have relied upon Thai Airways. I am grateful to all who made my first-ever
visit to India possible. It must be shared with my readers and visitors that as a former Air Force Flight Engineer,
who trained at Travis Air Force Base, California, under the professional guidance of United Airlines pilots, they are among
the very best in commercial aviation. It should be noted that cute, young, flight attendants and slick advertising do
not fly airplanes.From the ground staff at the airport in Bangkok, to the inflight staff in both directions, as
well as Customer Service Representatives in Hydrabad, India, the service and flights on Thai Airways were so incompreble
as to merit special mention. The Thai Airways banner cannot but lightly capture what a passanger experiences.
As I first waited for take-off, until I landed, everything from the flight safety video to the meal service were like "a
dream within a dream." My deepest graditutde to all for making this trip possible. I was fortuante to have
three flights on an Airbus 300-600 from which to select.
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| Professor Rathnam, his office, with fresh flowers |
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| Vice Chancelor B. Rathnam, PH. D., in his office of Kakatia University, extended a welcome to Brill |
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| Above Dean of Faculty of Arts, Professor Damodar, Chair of the Dep't of English |
In the above photograph of Professor Rajeshwar and the Dean of the School of Foreign Languages, Professor Damodar, we are seen taking a few minutes before class to review
the exhibits that accompany my chapters of how Poe constructed and populated his story, "The Murders in the Rue Morgue,"
and his poem, "The Raven." Professor Rajeshwar will give a paper at an international conference on language
at Claremont University, near Pomona, California, in April. He, like all his teaching and administrative colleagues,
have an extraordinary bibliography and resume of writing and teaching.
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| Two new Ph. D. Professors who escorted Brill |
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| View of some of the students in Prof. Rajashwar's class |
| The Atlantic Literary Review |
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| Why I went to India! |
This is the page for my
first visit to India. The ancient city of Warangal, where Katatia University has existed since India's Independance,
lies some two-to-three hours south of Hyderabad, on the South-east of the country. Long before I made this trip
I had learned of The Allan Line of Shipping having a fleet of maritime ships that sailed to East India. Whether his
ships were contracted to convey cargo for the East India Company or not I do not know. This side of the Allan-Poe connection
requires specific research that is beyond the scope of my interests in Poe's Scottish Connections. Nevertheless, Kenmotsu
and I were informed that ships of the Allan Line did sail to that remote part of the world, as is evident with the names of
his ships. The point here is that even with access to modern, passenger jet aircraft, and a fair knowledge of
Asia, getting to Hyderabad from Bangkok was a difficult venture. Three hundred years ago, when the East India Company
began its constant feed of British government and military staff--well, that is what the information found only in great novels is
for. The experience of this trip gave but a hint of the difficulty ancient maritime shipping encountered. More narrative text regarding this and other related
subjects will be entered soon. This page is "under construction." The Modern Language Association's
Style Sheet states that writers should use the Times
New Roman font; however, for my ease of reading, I use Arial.
The photos below are of the young ladies of the class. They were exceedingly quiet during my presentations. In
contrast of their behavior, when I taught at a college in the San Francisco area, I could not get the First Year female students
to be quiet! Students in Asia are a dream to teach, as they are so polite and respectful of their teachers and professors.
The first three photographs are, at the bottom, the Vice Chancellor of the University, Professor Venkat Rathnam. In
the center photo, two new Ph. D.s, and new Professors of the Department of English, Kiran and Yakaiah, who acted as my guides
to ancient, local historical venues. On top are Professor Rajeshwar, Dean of the Faculty of Arts, and Professor of English,
as well as Professor G. Damodar, with Brill. About ten years ago Professor Rajeshwar invited Brill to submit something
of his research project to him for possible publication in the English Department's academic journal, The Atlantic Literary
Review, featured on another page. That publication ten years, or more ago, resulted in several well known Poe scholars
making comments about our project, and some of which comments appear on the, "What Others Are Saying,"
pages.
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| Some of Professor Rajashwar's female students. |
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| Some of Professor Rajashwar's female students. |
Often I was asked by these university students about my personality, "Why
are you so happy?" During my visits with universities around the world I remembered my training in U. S. Navy Basic
Training: "Each of you are an ambassador for America. Act in such a way that makes America proud of your
visit to another country." But it is more than that. I painfully remember how hard that I tried as an undergraduate,
first at American River Community College, in Sacramento, California, followed by the severely difficult courses as an
Upper Classman, at the University of California-Davis, and thereafter, in Graduate and Law School. Dyslexia is an invisible
learning disability, and no one could know the pain that I felt during each day or each class, through nearly two decades
of school. When I am teaching or giving papers, or in a situation at Kakatia University, I imagined myself sitting
in the seats with the students, and empathizing with any difficulty they may have with English as a Second Language,
and then trying to comprehend what I had written of Poe in Scotland. There was no "after lecture" responsility,
and I was enjoying being with these fine young scholars of English landguage and literature. I would not want to be
a young American competing against them for the same job.
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| Some of Professor Rajashwar's female students. |
The text below represents the biographical information
that Professor Rajeshwar prepared for the Dean of the Department of English, as well as other staff and students. Prof.
D. Ramakrishna, who wrote his Dissertation for the Ph. D. on textual analysis of Poe's work decades ago, and Brill, are
seen reviewing the combined Allan-Burns-Galt-Poe Family Tree, with chronological juxtaposition of dates and Parishes
of the families. Brill explained to the Professor that the chart covers the 100 years of the families' intermarrying,
as well as the 10 mile radius of their births and homes. Professor Ramakrishna has published four books on Poe, and
was a personal friend of Poe Studies Association personalities, such as professor Burton Pollin, and long-time Edgar
Allan Poe Review Editor, Professor Barbara Cantalupo, at Pennsylvania State University. Professor Ramakrishna remains
a highly active Poe scholar, and respected professor of the Kakatia University, emeritus. Three of his titles
are: 1. Explorations in Poe (Academic Foundation, New Delhi); 2. Perspectives on Poe; 3. The
Craft of Poe's Tales. All appear out of print. Nevertheless, I was able to find two of his titles at www.abebooks.com, and have since ordered them. His most recent work, completed while at a university in Australia, as a guest Lecturer
and Scholar, will be available soon. The professor has been retired from Kakatia University since 2000, but remains
an active link of literary authority for the Department of English ever since. Professor Rajeshwar extended this writer
the opportunity of a visit in Professor Ramakrishna's home, and he is but one of several accomplished Poe scholars with whom
he retains a professional connection.
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| Professor Ramakirshna in his home with Brill, reviewing the Poe in Scotland Family Tree. |
Professor Rajeshwar, who is the Dean of the Department of Arts, as well as a
professor in the Department of English, took the photograph of Professor Ramakrishna and Brill during an afternoon visit to
the professor's home. Professor D. Ramakrishna retired from Kakatia University years ago, but has remained in demand
as a Guest Lecturer at other universities around the world, and has continued to work on his interests in the life and writing
of Edgar Allan Poe. Professor Ramakrishna graciously showed Brill the vast library that he has accumulated over decades
of research and teaching in English, which includes that which he did on Poe for his Dissertation. Professor Ramakrishna
has published three titles on Poe: Explorations in Poe, Craft of Poe's Tales, and Perspectives in Poe,as
well as innumerable articles, essays, and scholarly papers. Brill immediately searched abebooks.com for these titles,
and managed to buy two of them. Explorations in Poe is on a "want list." [This book has finally
been ordered, after the third attempt, via abebooks.com, and will be at Kenmotsu's residence by 17 January 2012!] The Professor
has a considerable bibliography of his published works, many on Indian writing in English, as well as other subjects.
Professor Ramakrishna's library has that look of an ancient collection of classics, as well as containing every volume of
the student of English Language and Literature. Moreover, he has a considerable, personal collection, like Professor
Hogg's in Irvine, Ayrshire, of autographed copies of other Poe scholars who admired the Professor's research and scholarship
on Poe. This writer was deeply honored to be invited for a visit with the Professor, who reviewed the Poe Family
Treethat Brill and Kenmotsu developed during their project in Scotland. An abebooks.com or Google
Search of Professor Ramakrishna will probide the complete list.
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