LAHORE: English language comes to Pakistan as an opportunity as well as a challenge, enabling people, on the one hand, to connect to the world and adapt to the idea of universality, while on the other hand, challenging a large number of under-privileged segments of society to invest time, energy and resources to first understand and then be part of the mainstream professionals to fully compete in the market.

This was one of the conclusions of the day-long symposium, titled “Humanities in English: Literature, Language, Linguistics and Criticism” arranged by the Faculty of Humanities and the Department of English at the Forman Christian College (FCC) in collaboration with the British Council on Thursday.

The symposium covered critical theoretical, conceptual and practical aspects of English language learning and its applicability in the socio-political and educational context. The discussions and researches ranged from the state of English language usage in Pakistan to the topics as interesting as the truck art.

Speaking at the inaugural session, FCC Rector Dr James Tebbe discussed the importance of humanities in an academic world where science was predominant.

FCC Faculty of Humanities Dean Dr Waseem Anwar said, “Our purpose is to provide opportunities for engaging in research, exploration and innovation. We discussed how to promote research in English language and literature, and why.”

While some speakers critically explored how language and literature could be used as tools of oppression and colonisation, others highlighted the opportunities of emancipation and progress by embracing hybrid identities.

Prof Dr Waqas Khwaja of Agnes Scott College in Atlanta, Georgia, talked about colonial oppression in language and culture. Former Punjab University English Department chairperson Prof Shaista Sirajuddin had a conversation with Dr Waseem Anwar about English literature and teaching in Lahore.

Presentations included a session on literary theory and technology, followed by a related session on critical theories and practices in literature.

Dr Yaqoob Bangash, Qalandar Memon and Anita Saleem spoke about the connections between language and history, language and politics, and language and psychology in a dialogue on “English beyond Humanities”. Speakers in the next session shared their research on English language teaching and linguistic discourses in Pakistan.

The event ended with a roundtable talk on “English for All”. The talks were followed by a cultural evening and the annual Humanities Harmony Dinner.