https://doi.org/10.67147/literariness.v1i3.107
Yarning in Bethimaran: Exploring Au/orality as Epistemology in Indigenous Life-writing
AMRUTHASHREE R.
Research Scholar
Institute of English
University of Kerala, Thiruvananthapuram
DR. LAKSHMI PRIYA N.
Assistant Professor of English
University of Kerala, Thiruvananthapuram
Abstract: This paper examines Bethimaran, the autobiographical work of the Ravula writer Sukumaran Chaligatha from Kerala, to propose the concept of sonic epistemology as an interpretive framework emerging from Indigenous life-writing practices. While Indigenous autobiographical narratives are often read through models that privilege indigeneity, self-representation, ecological relations and the collective, this study begins from the premise that such frameworks are inadequate for engaging with texts shaped by oral traditions and relational modes of knowing. Through a close reading of Bethimaran, the paper argues that Sukumaran Chaligatha’s life narrative foregrounds an epistemology that is both sonic and embodied. His writing draws on oral storytelling practices not merely as a stylistic feature, but as a way of knowing grounded in voice, listening and lived interaction. The text recreates the dynamics of oral communication within print by invoking a speaking voice and an implied listener, producing a sense of performance and shared presence while engaging with the text.
By conceptualizing sonic epistemology as a framework attentive to voice, listening and embodiment, the paper demonstrates how Bethimaran transforms autobiography into an acoustic and participatory event. Thus, in this context, meaning does not unfold through linear narration alone but emerges through relational engagement and the affective resonance of sound, a concept that has potential in reviewing the ocular-centric modes of representation and documentation. This reorientation challenges the dominance of visuality in literary knowledge production and calls for alternative modes of reading that are responsive to indigenous epistemologies. Situating this argument within a South Asian context, the study contributes to ongoing discussions in Indigenous studies, life-writing and decolonial humanities by foregrounding narrative practices that unsettle conventional assumptions about form, knowledge and representation.
Keywords: Sonic Epistemology, Yarning, Adivasi Life-Writing, Ravula Paatu-Parachil (Song-Storying), Decolonial Documentation
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