HL0201 SINGAPORE LITERATURE AND CULTURE
Aug-September 2013
Course Description
This course will explore the work of writers or filmmakers who represent alternative histories and
voices in Singapore's literary and historical narratives in relation to more mainstream
representations of Singapore culture. We begin by examining a popular history of Singapore before
looking at forgotten myths and histories. We will consider how certain narratives are preferred and
remembered over others and look at efforts to revive these narratives from the margins.
By the end of the course, students will have completed close readings on a range of local poems,
short prose, plays, films and historical narratives. Students are advised to read the required readings
before each lecture and to attend the session prepared to discuss the readings.
Core texts you will need to buy:
All three texts will be available at Yunnan Bookstore. For publication details, refer to the Course Schedule below.
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Haresh Sharma, Off Centre, 2006.
Singai Ma Elangkannan, Flowers at Dawn, 2012.
Andrew Koh, The Glass Cathedral, 1995.
Core readings on EdveNTUre: Refer to the Course Schedule below for more details.
 Selections from: Sejarah Melayu, 1821.
 Poems from Alfian Sa'at, A History of Amnesia, 2008.
 Range of Merlion poems.
 Selections from: Frank Swettenham, Malay Sketches, 1895.
 Selections from: Alfian Sa'at, Malay Sketches, 2012.
 Selections from: Johann S. Lee's Peculiar Chris, 1992; Ng Yi-sheng, SQ21: Singapore Queers in
the 21st Century, 2007 and Leona Lo, From Leonard to Leona: A Singapore transsexual's
journey to womanhood, 2007.
 Range of poems and short prose about forgotten spaces and places.
Core films: Refer to the Course Schedule below for more details.
 Omar Rojik, Singapura dilanggar todak, 1962.
 Djinn(Ong Lay Jinn), Perth: The Geylang Massacre, 2004.
Course Assessment
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Quiz 1-3 [MCQ and short answer questions] 15%
Presentation [Group presentations based on readings] 10%
Coursework Essay (1500 words): 25% due on Week 5, 9 September 2013.
Final Exam [essay questions]: 50%
Course Instructor
Dr Jinat Rehana Begum ( jinatrb@ntu.edu.sg)
A list of secondary readings will be made available via EdveNTUre.
Course Schedule: Key questions & Required readings
Week 1
12 Aug
Introduction
Myth or history?
Week 2
19 Aug
 Are narratives from Sejarah Melayu 'stories' rather than 'histories'?
 How have these narratives influenced or shaped Singapore's national identity?
 Have other narratives been given more precedence over these?
Required reading: See EdveNTUre for selections from:
Leyden, John, trans. Malay Annals (Sejarah Melayu). Kuala Lumpur: Silverfish Books, 2012.
Creating and recreating mythologies
Week 3
26 Aug
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How are myths manipulated to create an identity?
What role do myths play in the construction of national identity?
What necessitates the creation of new mythologies?
Do the Merlion poems establish the Merlion as an enduring and important national symbol?
 What do recent efforts to recover forgotten myths suggest?
Required reading: See EdveNTUre for selections from:
Selection of Merlion poems including:
Edwin Thumboo, 'Ulysses by the Merlion,' Lee Tzu Peng, 'Merlion to Ulysses, Felix Cheong, The
Obligatory Merlion Poem.
Selections from: Alfian Sa'at, A history of Amnesia, Ethos, 2008.
Poems: Islanders, Hang Nadim Speaks, Badang Speaks, Radin Mas Ayu Speaks [56-64].
Forgotten films. Early Singapore productions at Jalan Ampas.
Week 4
2 Sept.
 How does the retelling of an old myth give younger members of a community access to collective
memory?
 How does the retelling of the old myth reflect new concerns?
 In what capacity is this myth/film remembered?
Required viewing:
Omar Rojik, dir. Singapura dilanggar todak(Swordfish attack on Singapore), Shaw Bros. Malay
Film Productions, 1962.
Available in full on YouTube: http://youtu.be/0bE5WosP6Tk English subtitles will be made available via EdveNTUre.
Coursework Essay due on Week 5, 9 September 2013.
Essays must be submitted personally, in hard copy. 
Week 5
9 Sept.
A colonial history
 What strategies do travel writers use to convince readers that their account is authentic?
 How do apparently objective empirical accounts validate the authenticity of a history and culture?
 In what ways are these accounts entrenched in the culture and identity of a nation?
Required reading: See EdveNTUre for selections from:
Frank Swettenham, Malay Sketches, 1895.
Complete e-text available: http://archive.org/details/malaysketches00swetgoog
An alternative history
Week 6
16 Sept.
 What is Alfian Sa'at's purpose in reviving Swettenham's title and adopting a similar form?
 How does this apparent mimicry subvert the earlier narrative?
 Are these sketches effective in recovering and reinstating forgotten/marginalised narratives?
Required reading: See EdveNTUre for selections from:
Alfian Sa'at, Malay Sketches. Ethos, 2012.
Singapore literature in translation
 What is familiar and local about Singai Ma Elangkanan's Flowers at Dawn?
Week 7
23 Sept.
 In what ways are the language and themes of the novel both familiar and unfamiliar?
 Does Flowers at Dawn offer an alternative reading of the past?
Elangkanan, Singai Ma, Flowers at Dawn, Vaikarai Pookkal (1990). Trans. A.R. Venkatachalapathy.
Singapore: Epigram, 2012. HSS library: PL4758.9.I356F644; also available in most branches of the NLB.
Week 8
Recess week 30 September–6 October 2013
At the margins: mental illness
Week 9
7 Oct.
 What are the tensions inherent in representing marginalized voices to a mainstream audience?
 How is language and allusion used to construct a recognizably Singaporean text?
 How do the specific geographical and historical settings in the play inspire recognition and empathy
in the readers/audiences?
Sharma, Haresh. Off Centre. Singapore: The Necessary Stage, 2006.
HSS library: PR9570.S53S531F;also available in most branches of the NLB.
Tan, Alvin, dir. Off Centre. Writ. Haresh Sharma. Singapore: The Necessary Stage, 2007. DVD to be
made available at NTU libraries.
Coming-out stories. Gender issues, gay literature in Singapore.
Week
10
14 Oct.
15th Hari
Raya Haji
 How are the protagonist's experiences recognizably Singaporean and mainstream?
 How do the characters in the novel respond to the pressures of having to conform to social, cultural
and religious norms?
 In what way can Koh's novel be seen as an attempt to create a cultural space and identity for gay
men in Singapore?
Andrew Koh, The Glass Cathedral. Singapore: Epigram books, 2011.
HSS library PR9570.S53K79g; also available in most branches of the NLB. E-text available at:
http://imas.nac.gov.sg/UploadFiles/GGEvalManuscript/GGEvalManuscript_20111114140923PM.pdf
Coming-out stories. Gender issues, gay literature in Singapore.
Week
11
21 Oct.
Week
12
28 Oct.
 How does gay literature in Singapore articulate concerns that relate to both the marginalized and the
mainstream?
Required reading: See EdveNTUre for selections from: These readings are subject to change.
Johann S. Lee, Peculiar Chris, 1992.
Ng Yi-sheng, SQ21: Singapore Queers in the 21st Century,2007.
Leona Lo, From Leonard to Leona: A Singapore transsexual's journey to womanhood, 2007.
At the margins: the discontented and the quitters
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How does this film reflect Singaporean sensibilities?
Why is migration Harry's only option?
Does Harry's dream of migration alienate him from a Singaporean audience?
Can a film that reflects the seedier aspects of life in Singapore be admitted as a cultural product of
the nation?
Djinn, Ong Lay Jinn, dir. Perth: The Geylang Massacre, Singapore: Working Man Film Productions,
2004.
forgotten spaces and places
Week
13
4 Nov.
Week14
 How does a collective memory of a space/place contribute to a sense of national identity?
 In what ways have writers in Singapore responded to rapid changes in the local landscape?
Required reading: See EdveNTUre for selections from: These readings are subject to change.
Lee Tzu Peng, Blue Print.
Wong Yoon Wah, The New Village and the Attap house
Gregory Nalpon, The Rose and the Silver Key
11 November
Conclusion/Revision