C. D. Narasimhaiah

Born in Closepet (present-day Ramanagara) of Ramanagara district[5] in the south Indian state of Karnataka on 21 May 1921[6][7][8] to a shopkeeper, Narasimhaiah graduated from the University of Mysore and did his higher studies at the Universities of Cambridge and Princeton before joining Maharaja's College, Mysore as a professor of English literature in 1950.[3] He became the principal of the institution in 1957 and worked there till his superannuation in 1962. In between, he served as a Fulbright visiting professor at Yale University for the academic year 1958–59 and after his retirement from Mysore University, served the University of Queensland as a visiting professor in 1963. Later, joining with a few like-minded personalities, he founded Dhvanyaloka Centre For Indian Studies, a centre for promoting studies on Indian culture and arts, in 1979.[9] He also served as the resident scholar of International Research Centre, Bellagio (1968) and as a consultant to East-West Centre, Hawaii for two terms (1974–75 and 1987).[3]

Narasimhaiah, the first patron of Asian origin of the Association of the Study of Australia in Asia (ASAA),[10] published several books on literature, culture and arts,[11] the abridged version of Discovery of India of Jawaharlal Nehru, published in 1981 by the Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund is the most notable among them.[12] Jawaharlal Nehru: A Study of His Writings and Speeches,[13] The writer's Gandhi,[14] The Human Idioms (Three lectures on Jawaharlal Nehru),[15]The Swan and the Eagle: Essays on Indian English Literature,[16] Raja Rao,[17] Makers of Indian English literature[18] and The Flowering of Australian Literature[19] are some of the other books published by him.

Narasimhaiah was married to Ramalakshamma and the couple had a son, C. N. Srinath who co-wrote some of his books, and a daughter. He died in Bengaluru, at his daughter's house, on 12 April 2005,[6] at the age of 83, survived by his children; his wife had preceded him in death.[3] His life is documented in an autobiography, N for Nobody: Autobiography of an English Teacher, published in 1991, as a part of New world literature series.[20]

The Government of Karnataka awarded him the Rajyotsava Prashasthi, the second highest civilian honor of the State in 1987.[7] He received the Padma Bhushan, the third highest civilian honor in the country from the Government of India in 1990.[4] The University of Mysore conferred the degree of DLitt (honoris causa) on him in 2001 and the University of Bangalore followed suit in 2005.[21] He held the fellowships of several institutions which included Indian Institute of Advanced Studies (1968), Leeds University (1971–72), Texas University (1972–73 and 1975–76), Peradeniya University, (1979) and Flinders University (1980).[3] Theory in Practice: Essays in Honour of C.D. Narasimhaiah is a book published in honor of Narasimhaiah, in 2001,[22] and "C.D. Narasimhaiah's Contribution to Post-Colonial Literary Criticism" is a study of his writings.[21]

• C. D. Narasimhaiah (1960). Jawaharlal Nehru: A Study of His Writings and Speeches. Rao and Raghavan.
• C. D. Narasimhaiah (1963). F.R. Leavis: some aspects of his work. Rao and Raghavan.
• C. D. Narasimhaiah; University of Mysore. Dept. of Post-graduate Studies and Research in English (1966). Literary criticism: European and Indian traditions. Dept. of Post-graduate Studies and Research in English, University of Mysore.
• C. D. Narasimhaiah (1967). The writer's Gandhi. Punjabi University.
• C. D. Narasimhaiah (1967). The human idioms: three lectures on Jawaharlal Nehru. Blackie.
• C. D. Narasimhaiah (1970). Indian Literature of the Past Fifty Years, 1917-1967. Prasaranga, University of Mysore.
• Closepet Dasappa Narasimhaiah (Anglist); S. Nagarajan; Indian Council for Cultural Relations (1971). Studies in Australian and Indian Literature: Proceedings of a Seminar. Indian Council for Cultural Relations.
• C. D. Narasimhaiah; United States Educational Foundation in India (1972). Students' Handbook of American Literature. Kalyani Publishers.
• C. D. Narasimhaiah (1973). Raja Rao. Arnold-Heinemann India.
• Jawaharlal Nehru; Closepet Dasappa Narasimhaiah (1981). The Discovery of India. Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund.
• Closepet Dasappa Narasimhaiah; C. N. Srinath (1981). The Flowering of Australian Literature. Literary Criterion.
• C. D. Narasimhaiah (1986). The function of criticism in India: essays in Indian response to literature. Central Institute of Indian Languages.
• C. D. Narasimhaiah (1987). The Swan and the Eagle: Essays on Indian English Literature. Indian Institute of Advanced Study. ISBN 978-81-208-0327-5.
• C. D. Narasimhaiah (1 January 1990). The Indian Critical Scene: Controversial Essays. B.R. Publishing Corporation. ISBN 978-81-7018-599-4.
• C. D. Narasimhaiah (1990). An Anthology of commonwealth poetry. Macmillan India.
• C. D. Narasimhaiah (1991). N for Nobody: Autobiography of an English Teacher. B.R. Publishing Corporation. ISBN 978-81-7018-682-3.
• C. D. Narasimhaiah (1995). Essays in Commonwealth Literature: Heirloom of Multiple Heritage. Pencraft International. ISBN 978-81-85753-06-5.
• C. D. Narasimhaiah (1977). Moving Frontiers of English Studies in India. S. Chand.
• C. D. Narasimhaiah (January 1978). Awakened conscience: studies in Commonwealth literature. Sterling.
• C. D. Narasimhaiah; C. N. Srinath; Coomi S. Vevaina (1997). Negotiating Differences: Aspects of Contemporary Canadian Literature. Dhvanyaloka.
• C. D. Narasimhaiah (2000). The Vitality of West Indian Literature: Caribbean and Indian Essays. Dhvanyaloka.
• C. D. Narasimhaiah (2000). Makers of Indian English literature. Pencraft International. ISBN 978-81-85753-34-8.
• C. D. Narasimhaiah (1 January 2001). Jawaharlal Nehru: The Statesman as Writer. Pencraft International. ISBN 978-81-85753-41-6.
• C. D. Narasimhaiah (1 January 2002). English Studies in India: Widening Horizons. Pencraft International. ISBN 978-81-85753-51-5.
• C. D. Narasimhaiah; Satish C. Aikant (1 January 2004). Critical spectrum: essays in literary culture : in honour of Prof. C.D. Narasimhaiah. Pencraft International. ISBN 978-81-85753-64-5.