Glimpses of universal truth through wall magazines
JU Correspondent
How literature contributed to human evolution and present day civilisation is inscribed in the history, tradition and culture of every nation. This is the topic on which a group of students of English Department, JU have focused while working on their wall magazine which was on display recently. Discrimination has always been a setback to the advancement of human civilisation. We often forget that despite the different colours of our skin, or physical features, we are all equal. The wall magazine by the students, titled "One Blood" on this issue, tried to remind us that everyone's blood is red. Using red light from behind the wall magazine they tried to represent the colour of blood while use of black and white symbolised the conflict regarding the colour of skin. At the Bank of Niger by the 31st batch represented the struggling history of two main African tribes. The lifestyle of Ibo and Yoruba, including their birth, marriage and death ceremonies, was presented on the magazine along with their cultural history, heritage, culture and tradition. They also symbolically represented the tribes' beliefs and myths. With the famous dialogue from Shakespeare "The world is a stage" the 33rd batch in their wall magazine titled "Theatre" depicted the various types of theatre across the world, including the interesting folk form of Jatra which is an open air show. "Gullivers Travels" is another rare and alternative piece of wall magazine, which was made three dimensionally. The first few chapter of the romance after Gulliver reached the land of Lilliput is presented on the wall magazine. The background of the romance is also mentioned on the magazine by the 32nd batch. The students of the 34th batch worked on the famous pairs found in the legends and myths of different countries. On the magazine titled "Romantic Myths", they focused on couples such as Adam and Eve and Radha-Krishna. They also tried to discover the similarity between myth and legend. The students of the 29th batch dealt with "World Epic" from Greek to Bangladesh. With iron made mask and different war weapons they revealed that chivalry that was one of the main characteristic of the epics. "The students made an impressive effort beyond the contemporary idea of a wall magazine. The sorrow, happiness, belief and culture of different nations described in literature was beautifully presented on the magazines, " said Sabbir Ahmad Chowdhury, lecturer of the English department. The wall-magazine exhibition is an event of "English Week" organised by the department and began on September 24. The Daily Star is the media partner of the programme.
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