திணைப்பாகுபாடு: சங்க இலக்கியத்தின் மேட்டுக்குடிப் பார்வைகளும் உழைப்பாளர் வர்க்கத்தின் எதார்த்தங்களும் - ஒரு மேலாராய்ச்சி

Tinai Classification: The Elite Perspectives of Sangam Literature and the Realities of the Working Class – A Meta-Analysis

Abstract

Sangam literature is a historical treasure trove that records the lifestyle of the ancient Tamils. The Tinai classification found within it is based on land, time, and emotional states. However, the Tinai classifications formulated by commentators over time often conflict with the inner meaning of the poems and the sentiments of the common people featured in them. Specifically, the depictions of the working class in the poems of Purananuru and Akananuru have been used merely as tools to celebrate the victories of the dominant class (kings). This article re-reads the Tinai theories of the Tolkappiyar period and re-examines the Tinai classification based on the socio-historical perspectives of scholars such as V. Suba. Manickam, Pulavar Kuzhandhai, Kailasapathy, and K. Sivathamby. The primary objective of this article is to examine how the anxieties of common people, the pace of labor, and the miseries of the battlefield have been reduced within the Tinai definitions set by the elite. Furthermore, this article explores in detail how the similes and images employed in Sangam poems document the social existence of the working people, and how they have been overlooked by the power structures of the dominant class.