Centre of Linguistics and English,
School of Language, Literature and Culture Studies, (SLLCS)
Jawaharlal Nehru University (J.N.U.),
New Delhi-110067. India.

Phone: 91‑11‑26704665 (work); 91‑11‑26184997 (home).

Fax: 91‑11- 26742580

E-mail:   manjali@mail.jnu.ac.in ; fmanjali@yahoo.com

Nationality: Indian 

Research interests:

• Ethics, Aesthetics and Linguistics

• Philosophies of Discourse 

• Poetics and Politics of Language

• Metaphors in Cultural Discourse 

• Philosophy of Image  

• Topologico-Dynamical Models of Language and Cognition.

Long-term Fellowships:

* Visiting Fellow at Maison des Sciences de l’Homme, Paris, and Département de philosophie, Université de Marc Bloch, Strasbourg, France, for six months, from July to December, 2003. (Research project: Language and Subjectivity in Post-structuralist Theories.)

 

* Fellow-in-residence at Indian Institute of Advanced Study (IIAS), Shimla, for 18 months, from May 1998 to October 1999. Research project: A Linguistic and Cognitive Theory of Narrative.

 

Title of the research monograph prepared: Literature and Infinity. (Published by I.I.A.S., Shimla, 2001.)

Academic Qualifications:

1987-89: 

Post-doctoral research at the département de linguistique, Université de Paris-IV, Sorbonne, in association with Professor Bernard Pottier.

 

Also, élève libre under Professor Jean Petitot in Centre d’analyse et de mathématique sociales, Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales, Paris, 1988-89.

 

This research was pursued with the aid of a Scholarship from the Ministry of Human Resource Development, Government of India, New Delhi.

         

      Research monograph prepared: Nuclear Semantics - Towards a Theory of Relational Meaning (published in 1991).

 

1986:

Ph.D. in Linguistics at Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. Thesis title: Elements of Spatial and Temporal Relations - A Semantic Study of Malayalam.  (Supported by a Research Fellowship of the University Grants Commission, India).

    

1980:  

M.A. in Linguistics, at Jawaharlal Nehru University.

 

1977:  

Post-graduate Diploma in Journalism, from the Indian Institute of Mass Communication, New Delhi.

 

1976: 

      B.Sc. with Chemistry (Main) and Physics and Mathematics (Subsidiaries) at Calicut University.

Teaching Experience:

2006-till present 

Professor in the Centre for Linguistics, SLLCS, J.N.U., New Delhi.

 

1998-2006:

         Associate Professor in the Centre for Linguistics and English, SLLCS, JNU, New Delhi.

 

1989-1998:

Assistant Professor in the Centre of Linguistics and English, SLLCS, JNU, New Delhi.

 

1986-87:

Lecturer (Temporary) in the Department of Linguistics, Delhi University.

Virtual Institute:

Member of the founding faculty of the Cyber Semiotics Institute on World Wide Web (WWW) with sites in Toronto, Vienna and U.K.

Site: http://www.chass.utoronto.ca/srb/csi/~Manjali

Online course offered during 1997‑98:

Dynamical Models in Semiotics / Semantics.

Titles of Lectures:

1. From Discrete Signs to Dynamic Semantic Continuum

2. Catastrophe Theoretic Semantics: Towards a Physics of Meaning

3. Karaka Theory of the Indian Grammarians

4. Force Dynamics in Language and Cognition

5. Dynamics in Narrative Structures

6. Metaphors in Grammar

7. Body, Space, and Metaphorical‑Cultural Worlds.

8. Dialogics, or the Dynamics of Intersubjectivity

Publications:

Books Authored, Edited and Translated:

(translated) Philosophical Chronicles. Translation of the French book Chroniques Philosophiques by Jean-Luc Nancy. New York: Fordham University Press. 2008. 

Language, Discourse and Culture: Contemporary Philosophical Perspectives. New Delhi: Anthem Press, 2007. 

Literature and Infinity. Shimla: Indian Institute of Advanced Study, 2001. 

Meaning, Culture and Cognition. New Delhi: Bahri Publications, 2000.

Nuclear Semantics — Towards a Theory of Relational Meaning.  New Delhi: Bahri Publications, 1991. 

(edited) Poststructuralism and Cultural Theory: The Linguistic Turn and Beyond. Allied Publishers, New Delhi, 2006. 

(edited) Nietzsche: Philologist, Philosopher and Cultural Critic. Allied Publishers, New Delhi, 2006. (This book is reviewed in Journal of Indian Council of Philosophical Research, vol. 24, 1, 2007, pp.  252-53) 

(edited). Language, Culture and Cognition. New Delhi: Bahri Publications, 1998. (Also published as a special issue of International Journal of Communication, Vol. 7, 1997.) 

(edited).  Language and Cognition. New Delhi: Bahri Publications. 1993. (Also published as a special issue of International Journal of Communication, Vol. 2, 1992.) 

(edited). Language, Society and Discourse.  New Delhi: Bahri  Publications. 1992 (Also published as a special issue of the journal Language Forum, Vol. 17, Dec. 1991.)    

(translated) Morphogenesis of Meaning (Translation of the French book Morphogenèse du sens by Jean Petitot; Paris: PUF, 1985).  Berne: Peter Lang. 2004. 

Research Papers and Articles (since 1990):

“The Body of Sense, the Sense of Body,” in: Revista Italiana Filosofia Linguaggio (Italian Journal of Philosophy of Language – ISSN 2036-6728) of vol. 2, 2010 (Corpo e linguaggio, Body and Language). (95-122) 

« Résistance de l’oubli et l’écriture de la mémoire dans un roman postcolonial indien : Sur les rives du fleuve Mahé » In : Histoire de l’oubli en contextes post-socialiste et post-colonial. (ed.) P. Vauday et al. Koper: Založba Annales. 2009 (381-393). 

“Time, Language and the Destruction of Power,” in: Journal for Cultural Research 13 nos. 3–4: 297-307. October 2009.  

“Culture and Politics in the novel On the Banks of the River Mahe,” in: International Journal of Dravidian Linguistics vol. 38, June 2009 (155-172). 

“From the Actual to the Virtual via Metaphorical Cultural Worlds,” in: University of Mumbai Journal of Language & Literature Studies, vol.1, no.1. (168-191), 2008. 

“Translation and Imagination,” in: Translating Power (ed.) Saugata Bhaduri, New Delhi: Katha. 2008 (186-196).   

“Translator’s Foreword,”  in Philosophical Chronicles by Jean-Luc Nancy, Fordham University Press, New York: Fordham University Press. 2008. 

“Between Pragmatics and Deconstruction: Wittgenstein, Bakhtin, and Derrida,” in: Assam University Journal – Humanities and Social Sciences, vol. 3, no. 1. (1-14), January 2008. 

“Notes from the Linguistic Underground,” International Journal of Dravidian Linguistics, vol. 36, no. 2 July 2007. (193-196) 

“On the Indeterminacy of Context,” International Journal of Dravidian Linguistics, vol. 36, no. 1, January 2007 (179-186). 

“Politics and Aesthetics of Being,” Yearbook of the Goethe Society of India 2006: Schiller, Aesthetic Education and Globalization. New Delhi: Mosaic (26-40) 

“What is ‘Living’ and What is ‘Dead’ in Language?” in F. Manjali (ed.) Nietzsche: Philologist, Philosopher and Cultural Critic. New Delhi: Allied Publishers, 2006 (173-85). 

 “Ethics, Events, Truths,”  in F. Manjali (ed.) Post-structuralism and Cultural Theory: The Linguistic Turn and Beyond. New Delhi: Allied Publishers, 2006 (160-69). 

“Derrida: Language and Philosophy,” in: Trajectory of French Thought, vol. 2. New Delhi: French Information Resource Centre, 2006 (47-57). 

“Deconstructing Community: Jean-Luc Nancy on Writing and Sense,” Journal of the Interdisciplinary Crossroads, Vol. 2, No. 2, August 2005 (307-320)  

“Nietzsche, Derrida and the Deconstruction of European Linguistic Modernity,” Yearbook of the Goethe Society of India 2005: ‘Rethinking Europe.’ New Delhi: Mosaic. (81-107); Also in: International Journal of Dravidian Linguistics, vol. 35, no.1, January 2006 (143-165).  

“Translator’s Introduction,” in Jean Petitot, Morphogenesis of Meaning. Berne: Peter Lang, 2004. (1-7) 

“Derrida and Nāgārjuna: Ethical Dimensions,” in S.K. Sareen and M. Paranjape (ed.) Śabda. Text and Interpretation in Indian Thought. New Delhi: Mantra. 2004. (145-53) 

“Philosophy, Literature and the Discourse of Purity” in: Journal of the Interdisciplinary Crossroads, Vol. 1, No. 1, April, 2004. (143-53)  

“Jean-Luc Nancy: from ‘Being’ to ‘Being-in-common’” in: Trajectory of French Thought. New Delhi: French Information Resource Centre. 2004 (7-14).  

“Roy Harris and Integrational Linguistics,” in International Journal of Dravidian Linguistics, Vol. 33, no. 1, January 2004.  (71-80) 

“Metaphor and Space,” in VISIO, International Journal of Visual Semiotics, Vol. 6, No. 2-3, 2001 (149-63) This paper has also appeared in (i) H.S. Gill (ed.) Signification in Language and Culture. Shimla: Indian Institute of Advanced Study. 2002. (233-50) (ii) Isabel Marcos (ed.) Dynamiques de la ville: Essais de sémiotique de l’espace. Paris: L’Harmattan, 2007. (235-56)

“Linguistics and Postmodernism,” in International Journal of Dravidian Linguistics, Vol. 30, No.1, 2001.  (59-68).

“Infinite Narration” in R.P.Singh (ed.) Reason, Dialectic and Postmodernism.  Faridabad: Om Publications, 2001. (143-57) 

“Discourse and Subjectivity,” in International Journal of Communication, Vol. 10, 1-2 (2000): 1-11. 

“Lacan, Derrida and the Vicissitudes of the ‘Sign’” in International Journal of Dravidian Linguistics Vol. 29, 1 (2000): 125-134.

This paper has also appeared in Semiotics of Language, Literature and Cinema (ed.) H. C. Narang. New Delhi: Books Plus. (118-129) 

“Force Dynamics Model of Sentence Meaning” in Indian Journal of Applied Linguistics, Vol. 26, No. 1 (2000): 5-20. 

“Bhasha, Shakti, evam Bahulata,” in D.S. Naveen and S.K. Misra (ed.) Uttharadhunikata: Kucch Vicar. New Delhi: Vani Prakashan. 2000. (22-28) (Hindi version of the paper “Language, Power and Plurality”; see below). 

“Dialogics or, the Dynamics of Intersubjectivity,” in International Journal of Dravidian Linguistics Vol. 28, 2 (1999): 127-134.

This paper has also appeared in the web journal Texto! (www.msh-paris.fr/texto/ ) 

“Proppian Folkoristics: From Morphology to Morphogenesis,” in J. Handoo and R. Kvideland (eds.) Folklore: New Perspectives. Mysore: Zooni Publications. 1999. (263-76)  

“Writing, Infinity and Dialogicality,” in Summerhill IIAS Review, Shimla, June 1999.  

“Bhartrhari,” and “Catastrophe Theory” articles in P. Bouissac (ed.) Encyclopaedia of Semiotics. New York: Oxford University Press. 1998 (pages 75-77 and 110-112 respectively) 

“Metaphors in Grammar,” in: International Journal of Dravidian Linguistics, vol. 27-2, 26-40, (1998); this paper has also appeared in International Journal of Communication Vol. VII, 1-2: 223-245 (1997). 

“Culture and Semantics,” in Studies in Humanities and Social Sciences Vol. V (Summer 1998), 49-55. Shimla:  Indian Institute of Advanced Study. Also appeared:

1. on the Web journal, Texto! (www.msh-paris.fr/texto/ ) July 1998;
2. as “Introduction” in Manjali, Language, Culture and Cognition.  

“Force Dynamics, Case structures, and Prototypicality,” in International Journal of Dravidian Linguistics, vol. 27, 1: 83-100 (1998).

This paper has also appeared in Language Forum Vol. XXIII, No. 1-2: 123-145 (1997). 

“On the Spatial Basis of Conceptual Metaphors.” This paper has appeared:

1. on the Web Journal Texto!, December, 1996. (Website, http://www.msh-paris.fr/texto/ )
2. In International Journal of Communication Vol. VII, 1-2: 157-167 (1997). 

“Sentence Meaning as Dynamic Gestalts: Semantic Archetypes and Karaka Theory,” in International Journal of Dravidian Linguistics Vol. 26, 1: 71-88 (1997).

This paper has also appeared in Studies in Humanities and Social Sciences, Vol 3, 1: 71-78, January, 1996. Shimla: Indian Institute of Advanced Study. 

“On the Ontological and Cognitive bases of the Karaka Theory,” in International Journal of Communication, Vol. 5, Special Issue on Indian Theories of Language and Knowledge, 1995 (195-206). 

“Perspectives in the Semiotics of Objects,” in Indian Journal of Applied Linguistics, Vol. 21, 1, Jan.-June, 1995: 45-55. 

“Language, Power and Plurality - A Note on Deleuze and Bakhtin,” in Indian Journal of Applied Linguistics, Vol. 21, 2: 91-96, 1995.  

“Dynamic Semiotics or the Case for Actantial Case,” in Semiotiques (Paris) Vol. 5-6, 1994  (85-97). 

 “Computer, Brain and Grammatical Theory,” in International Journal of Communication, Vol. 4: 56-67, 1994.

“On Difference(s),” in V. Maurya (ed.) Postmodernism - A Discussion. New Delhi: Kalinga, 1994 (118-129). Also, in Language, Society and Discourse (ed.) F. D. Manjali. New Delhi: Bahri Publications. 1992 (115-125).  

“Spatial and Topologico-dynamic Conceptions of the Grammatical Case,” in International Journal of Dravidian Linguistics, Vol. 21-1, Jan. 1992. (Pp.68 - 85). Also in H.S. Gill (ed.), Structures of Signification, Vol. III. New Delhi: Wiley Eastern, 1993. 

“Ontology and Meaning: Some Considerations on the Category of Case,” in Aligarh Papers in Linguistics  (mimeographed) Jan. 1992. (1-25); also in, F.D. Manjali  (ed.) Language and Cognition, New Delhi: Bahri Publications. 1993.    

“Linguistics and Narratology: Structuralist Perspectives,” in Indian Journal of Applied  Linguistics, Vol. 19-1, 1993.   (97-110) 

“The Transcendental Schema and Language,” in International Journal of Communication, Vol. 1, No. 2, 1991. (54-65)     

“What is ‘Cartesian’ in Linguistics?” in International Journal of Dravidian Linguistics, Vol. 19, Jan. 1990. (63-79) 

“Time and Modality in Discourse Semantics,” in Indian Journal of Applied Linguistics, Vol.16, No.2, 1990. (4-25)  

“Structuralism and Topology,” in Language Forum Vol. 16, 1990. (25-32) 

Newspaper Articles:

*  “Cultural Systems - Parameters of Cognition,” in The Statesman, Calcutta and New Delhi, May, 11, 1996.

 

*  “Language and Power: Breaking Open New Pathways,” in The Statesman, Calcutta and New Delhi, 7th March 1995.

*  “The Words of War,” in The Hindu, 6th June 1993.

Book Reviews and Discussion:

Review of Roland Lardinois and Meenakshi Thapan, (eds.) Reading Pierre Bourdieu in a Dual Context: Essays from India and France. In Contributions to Indian Sociology, Vol. 43, 3. 2009. 

“The Stories of English,” discussion with David Crystal, Rukmini Bhaya-Nair and Manish Chand in BIBLIO: A Review of Books vol. X, Nos. 1 and 2, 2005. 

Review of Rajendra Singh (ed.) Grammar, Language, and Society (Sage, New Delhi, 1997) in International Journal of Dravidian Linguistics, Vol. 28, 1. (1999).  

“Reading Undecidabilities,” review of Thomas Keenan's Fables of Responsibility – Aberrations and Predicaments in Ethics and Politics, Stanford University Press (Series: Crossing Aesthetics), in Summerhill IIAS Review, Vol. 4, No. 2, November, 1998. 

“Beyond the Confusion of Tongues,” review of Umberto Eco’s The Search for the Perfect Language (1995) in Summerhill IIAS Review, Vol. 3, No. 1, Feb. 1997. 

Review of Sémantique Générale by Bernard Pottier (1993), in International Journal of Dravidian Linguistics, Vol. 25-1, Jan. 1996. 

Review of Language and Society by J. Lele and R. Singh, in Sociological Bulletin, 1992. (186-88)

Translations (Articles only):

“The Eternal Return and the Thought of Death,” translation of an article in French by Marc Crépon, in F. Manjali (ed.) Nietzsche: Philologist, Philosopher and Cultural Critic. 2006 (51-60).  

“An Experience of the Heart,” translation of Jean-Luc Nancy’s essay, in F. Manjali (ed.) Nietzsche: Philologist, Philosopher and Cultural Critic. 2006 (19-23).  

“The ‘there is’ of Sexual Relation” translation of Jean-Luc Nancy’s book-length essay. (to appear)  

“Speaking About Art,” translation from French of Jean-Luc Nancy’s article, to appear in F. Manjali (ed.) Post-structuralism and Cultural Theory. The Linguistic Turn and Beyond. 2006 (37-44). 

“Between Story and Truth,” translation from the French of Jean-Luc Nancy’s article. In, The Little Magazine. July-August, 2001 (5-7). 

“Modelisation: Formalization or Mathematization? The Appeal of a Morphodynamic Approach to Language,” translation from the French, of Jean Petitot's paper. In, Journal of School of Languages: Structures of Signification, Vol. 3, 1993. (700-710) 

“Concepts, Noemes and Universals,” translation  from the French of Bernard Pottier's paper. In F.D. Manjali (ed.) 1993. Language and Cognition. 

“Problems of Cognitive Semantics,” translation from the French, of article by François Rastier, in F. D. Manjali (ed.) 1993. Language and Cognition.   

“Imaginary, Real, Symbolic,” translation from the French, of Catherine Clément’s article, in F. D. Manjali (ed.) Language, Society and Discourse. (1992) 44-54. 

“Why Connectionism is Such a Good Thing,” Translation from the French, of Jean Petitot’s paper, in PHILOSOPHICA 47 (1991, 1). (49-79)