The Department of English and Humanities of BRAC University on Thursday organised a day-long conference titled 'Remapping Dickens for the Contemporary World' to celebrate the bicentenary of birth of the author.
Various academic papers on different dynamics of the author and his works were presented in the morning session while the afternoon session highlighted his influence on current students into writing fiction and capturing photos of the street children of Bangladesh.
Prof Firdous Azim, Chairperson of the Department of English and Humanities, presented a paper, titled 'Dickens in his own time and latter adaptations and critical examinations of his works as well as the relevance of his realistic approach towards socio-economic conditions of the world today'.
Prof Azim talked about how Dickens' novels upheld the Victorian social scene in juxtaposition with the Victorian bourgeoisie ideologies.
"His representation of the working class documented the sufferings the industrial revolution had brought to them, often making him a social commentator, complimenting his contemporary journalist, Henry Mayhew's documentation of the London labour and London poor," she believes.
Her paper gave the audience a holistic understanding of Dickens' context and helped them gain insight into his resonances today.
The second half of the day awarded the winning students, who participated in the writing and photography contest based on the street children of Dhaka.
This part of the conference acknowledged the influence of Dickens' Oliver Twist on their writing and photography in capturing their social reality.
Organisations working with the street children of Dhaka like UNICEF, UCEP and JAAGO also took part in this session to give the audience a better understanding of their condition today.
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