Often misjudged as a mere entertainer, Priestley has not received a just and due recognition as a serious Time-writer endowed with a poetic vision, from literary critics, and consequently, hardly any comprehensive critical work, putting all his Time plays and Time novels into focus, has appeared so far. The present book fills this gap and makes a thorough critical study of all his Time works with a view to bringing out his solid and enduring contribution to British drama and fiction.
This book highlights, in a felicitous manner, the unique place of J.B. Priestley as a Time-writer: he stands distinguished as the only major writer who treats the Time theme in a non-Bergsonian (psychological) way and in two major forms of literature, viz. fiction and drama. It focuses vividly and effectively on how Priestley’s Time works give a peep into the Great Unknown. Priestley considers Time philosophically, whereas most other writers treat Time psychologically. The book encapsulates the Priestleyan Time philosophy which is life’s philosophy itself as it is expressed imaginatively and creatively.
It is established, in no uncertain terms, how Priestley’s message to mankind is clear and loud: the tick-tocking clock Time does not and cannot snuff out man’s life because of the continuance of consciousness into the next order of Time and that man’s life on earth is worth living and wonderful. The book shows how Priestley’s writings hold out a hope for mankind by solving the Sphinx question hurled at him by Time.
It is a delightful and thrilling experience for the reader to go through the adventurous world of Priestley’s philosophy embodied in his fiction and plays as discussed in this book. The book shall be useful to students and teachers of English literature, and researchers in this field.
R.K. Kulkarni did his B.A. in English from Vijay College, Bijapur, and M.A. in English literature from the Karnatak University, Dharwad and has been awarded Ph.D. by the same University for his dissertation on J.B. Priestley.
Dr. Kulkarni taught English for more than three decades in different colleges of the B.L.D.E. Association, Bijapur, and retired in 1999 as the Head of the Department of English, S.B. Arts & K.C.P. Science College, Bijapur, and for three years he lectured at the P.G. Department of English in the Karnataka State Women’s University, Bijapur. Presently, he is teaching at the P.G. Department of English Studies of the B.L.D.E. Association under the Karnatak University, Dharwad.
Dr. Kulkarni is a rare teacher who happily combines erudition and able teaching for which he is loved and admired by his students and colleagues. A scholar in English, Sanskrit and Kannada, he has delivered lectures at various educational and cultural organizations and Institutions on literature and life, and literature and cultural values, apart from participating in seminars, symposia and academic discussions. He believes in eclecticism in literature and therefore holds that for a meaningful research in literary domain, due place should be given to the interdisciplinary study of language, literature, history, philosophy and spiritualism. He brings his wide learning and deep understanding of literature to bear on the writing of his book J.B. Priestley: A Traveller in Time.
