Ranjini Obeyesekere

Position
Lecturer Emerita
Education

Ph.D. University of Washington 1968

Bio/Description

Interests
Literature and Society, Colonialism, Women in the Third World; South Asia

Short Bio
Ranjini Obeyesekere taught for several years in the Literature and Society Program of the Department of Literature at the University of California, San Diego. Her teaching and research focus on literary works, specifically of the South Asian area, their sociopolitical impact, and the insights they provide into the society and culture. Her publications include Sinhala Writing and the New Critics, An Anthology of Modern Sri Lankan Writing (coeditor), Jewels of the Doctrine, and articles on ritual drama and performance. She has also published translations of Sri Lankan poetry and fiction. At Princeton, Dr. Obeyesekere taught a course on colonialism and South Asian culture, using literary works to highlight specific issues.