1. Mapping Diversities in Victorian Literature:
The New Paper 6 SLM as Teaching-Learning Aid
Dr Oindrila Ghosh
Assistant Professor in English & Coordinator/Jt. Editor BDP EEG Paper 6
Netaji Subhas open University

2. EEG 6 ‘The Victorians’: A Broad Overview
Module 1 – The Victorian Scene
Unit 1 – Society, Culture and Politics
Unit 2 – Victorian Poetry
Unit 3 – Victorian Prose – Fictional and Non Fictional
Module 2 – Reading Victorian Poetry
Unit 1 – Tennyson: Ulysses, Break, Break, Break 
Unit 2 – Arnold: Dover Beach, To Marguerite
Unit 3 – Browning: My Last Duchess, Porphyria’s Lover
Module 3 – Reading Victorian Prose
Unit 1 – Dickens: David Copperfield
Unit 2 – Hardy: Far From the Madding Crowd
Unit 3 – Carlyle: The Hero as Poet
Module 4 – Victorian Women Writers
Unit 1 – Charlotte Bronte: Jane Eyre
Unit 2 – Elizabeth Barrett Browning: I Thought Once;
Emily Bronte: No Coward Soul
Unit 3 – Christina Rossetti: A Dirge; A Birthday

3. Objectives Enshrined in the New SLM: The Blue Print
The Syllabus revision Committee and the Faculty had laid down these basic objectives for themselves while formulating the New SLM: 1) The SLM would be as learner-friendly as possible 2) It should contain a section on the history of literature , made as lucid, informative and methodical as possible--- inclusion of a colourful timeline chart at the back of the SLM being a new addition 3) Use of media and resources to cut the monotony of the black and white printed SLM 4) Inclusion of shorter texts in the SLM to encourage textual acquaintance

4. Objectives Enshrined in the New SLM: Its Implementations
Paper 6 ‘The Victorians’ has implemented the following features:
1)A compact style of narrating the historical, social, legal and literary achievements of the age.
2) Use of colored and black and white images to acquaint the distant learner with important personages, events and art of the period
3) Generous use of ‘activity for learners’ boxes to act as summing up, and also a simulation of classroom engagement.
4) The select texts have been included and in a font which is both attractive and stands out from the monotony of the rest of the print.
5) An innovative inclusion has been the inclusion of the photographs of the important writers in the syllabus, while introducing their texts---as a means to create an awareness in the learners.
6) Extra information, which is extra-textual, but necessary for learners of literature, has been provided in long text boxes.

5. Some Illustrations

9. Allocations and Time-Management
PCP session 1
Introduction to the historical, social and cultural backgrounds and Victorian Poetry
PCP Session 2
Tennyson and Arnold’s Poetry---identifying similar strands in thought and Victorian intellectual traits
PCP Session 3
Poetry of Robert Browning
Pcp Session 4
Introduction to Victorian Non fictional prose
Thomas Carlyle
PCP Session 5
Introduction to Victorian Fictional Prose
Charles Dickens
PCP Session 6
Thomas Hardy
PCP Session 7
Charlotte Bronte
PCP Session 8
The Women Poets

10. Thomas Hardy’s Far From the Madding Crowd

11. The New SLM as Teaching-Learning Aid: The Case of Teaching Thomas Hardy’s Far From the Madding Crowd Module 3 Unit 2
Introducing Hardy and highlighting his singularity in the Victorian Literary Representations of Women and morality
Introducing Hardy’s Wessex: With Map and Text box enclosed, highlighting the mixture of Real and Fictitious Places, drawing examples with Local Regional novelists Like Tarashankar Bandopadhyay
Involve Students in narrating sections of the plot---if not then summarise it with algorithmic diagrams of characters and events
Brief Mention of Background to Title, publication history, along with Victorian public tastes and how the Fanny Robin sub-plot was disliked by the initial Editor
Explain the important themes with suitable examples from texts to make the session lively---asking students who have read to make own contributions

12. The ‘Fallen Woman’ Motif In Dickens and Hardy
Emily in David Copperfield
Fanny Robin in Far From the Madding Crowd
Thus, highlighting the Position of women in Victorian England and hence highlighting how Hardy’s vision was unique in creating such strong, independent and memorable female characters like Bathsheba Everdene.

13. Drawing Learner’s attention to a World outside the Novel: Art, Illustrations, Film Adaptations

14. Some Suggestions
1) Showing sections of Film adaptation (1967) available on Youtube to create an indellible impact on learner. Link:
2) Encouraging Learners to read the Novel by making them read out select sections, identified by the Counsellor, in class, with inputs about voice and tone modulation.
3) Where and when ICT facilities are available at the study centres, Counsellors are requested to make use of them to add to the instructional ingredients contained in the refurbished SLM.

15. Thank You!