MEG-15 Block 7 Summary | Literature and Culture: Exchanges-2
- Last Updated On October 20, 2025
Table of Contents
Here you will get the detailed summary of IGNOU MEG 15 Block 7 – Literature and Culture: Exchanges and Negotiations-2.
We have provided the summary of all units starting from unit 1 to unit 3.
Prepare Faster
Prepare Better
Unit 1 – Shifting Perspectives
Unit 1 of IGNOU MEG-15 Block 7 focuses on how perspectives in literature shift across cultures, times, and interpretations. The unit explains that retellings and adaptations often challenge traditional narratives by presenting alternative viewpoints, emphasizing marginalized voices, or reimagining familiar stories.
It examines how authors use shifting perspectives to question dominant ideologies, reinterpret historical events, and explore psychological, ethical, or cultural complexities. By analyzing these variations, the unit highlights the dynamic nature of storytelling and how literature serves as a space for cultural negotiation and dialogue, where meanings are contested and reshaped across generations.
Prepare Faster
Prepare Better
Unit 2 – Pratibha Ray’s Yajnaseni: The Story of Draupadi
Unit 2 of IGNOU MEG-15 Block 7 focuses on Pratibha Ray’s novel Yajnaseni, a retelling of the Mahabharata from Draupadi’s perspective. The unit examines how Ray gives voice to Draupadi, one of the epic’s central yet traditionally sidelined characters, highlighting her emotional depth, moral dilemmas, and struggles in a patriarchal society.
The novel reinterprets the epic’s events through Draupadi’s eyes, emphasizing themes of female agency, justice, and personal integrity. By centering her perspective, Ray challenges conventional readings of the Mahabharata, foregrounding gendered experiences and ethical questions. The unit situates the novel within the broader trend of retellings that reclaim marginalized voices, illustrating the transformative potential of narrative shifts in literature.
Prepare Faster
Prepare Better
Unit 3 – Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni, The Palace of Illusions
Unit 3 of IGNOU MEG-15 Block 7 focuses on Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni’s The Palace of Illusions, another modern retelling of the Mahabharata from Draupadi’s perspective. The unit explores how Divakaruni blends myth, imagination, and historical context to create a feminist narrative that gives Draupadi agency and voice.
The novel delves into Draupadi’s internal world, portraying her passions, fears, and ambitions while reinterpreting the epic’s major events. Divakaruni’s narrative highlights themes of identity, power, love, and destiny, offering a fresh lens on well-known characters and episodes. The unit emphasizes how the work exemplifies the cross-cultural and contemporary significance of retelling, showing how ancient stories can be reshaped to resonate with modern readers and address contemporary issues.