Why ‘Can The Subaltern Speak’ Is Trending?
Renowned Columbia professor and literary critic Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak has come under fire after a video of Spivak repeatedly correcting an audience member’s pronunciation during a recent lecture at Jawaharlal Nehru (JNU) surfaced online.
In a now viral video, Spivak can be seen engaging in a heated exchange with Anshul Kumar who asked a question after the lecture concluded. Interrupting him several times, Spivak corrected his pronunciation of W.E.B. Du Bois, an American sociologist and Black civil rights activist.
Kumar, a Founding Professor and Chairperson of the Centre for Brahmin Studies, took to his social media clarifying that his question to Spivak was about her claims of being a middle class and pointing out her familial connections with figures such as Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar, a social reformer and a prominent campaigner for Hindu widow remarriage.
Referencing Spivak’s one of the most famous works, Can the Subaltern Speak (2009), which emphasises that the voices and agencies of the marginalised are systematically silenced by patriarchal and a consumerist society, Kumar highlighted the irony of the incident. Sharing the video, he wrote that Spivak “had the audacity to interrupt me thrice on my pronunciation of Du Bois. Can the Subaltern Speak?”
In the video, Spivak can be heard correcting his pronunciation and saying, “If you’re going to talk about the man who is perhaps the best historian sociologist of the last century and this is supposed to be an elite university, then please take the trouble to learn how to pronounce his name.”
When Kumar tried to ask his question again and responded with, “If you’re done with the trivialities…” Spivak interrupted again and criticised him for being rude to an elderly woman, leading to the moderator intervening and urging Kumar to keep his questions “short and crisp.”
When Kumar again mispronounced Du Bois, Spivak responded sharply once again correcting him. Spivak then moved on to ignore his question after Kumar reacted angrily and the moderator moved on to others.
Look at sheer disgusting&Condescending brahminism of bengali Brahman academic Gayatri Chakraborty spivak,who”s hosted inJNU surely by some savarna left professor.When she faced critical question onBrahminism by young scholar,she interrupted&Started making fun of his pronunciation pic.twitter.com/o4wAiKS4eO
— Subhajit Naskar (@subhajit_n) May 21, 2024
Reacting to the viral incident, writer Meena Kandasamy criticised Spivak for bullying Kumar over his pronunciation in a hall filled with people. “You slip in the right pronunciation, gracefully, when you repeat the same thing, move on, and focus on the content of what is being said. That”s what a committed, dedicated teacher does. Only dogmatic religious zealots believe that mispronunciation of holy names/verses can alter their meaning,” she wrote.
She added, “To snub someone over their pronunciation, in a hall filled to the brim with people, shows insecurity, pettiness, and the unwillingness to be magnanimous.”
Kandasamy also recalled her own experience with the literary writer where she claimed to have been bullied as well. “My first and only experience with her was five minutes of being bullied.” She added that she did not want to say anything because “such a petty person does not deserve any more of our attention.”
Bullying someone over their pronunciation is just not done. You slip in the right pronunciation, gracefully, when you repeat the same thing, move on, and focus on the content of what is being said. That”s what a committed, dedicated teacher does. Only dogmatic religious zealots…
— Dr Meena Kandasamy (@meenakandasamy) May 21, 2024
