---
EN 101C: Indian Classical Literature
Ramayana – Valmiki
Ayodhya Kanda
Rama — Prince of Ayodhya; ideal son and heir to the throne
Sita — Wife of Rama; symbol of virtue and devotion
Lakshmana — Rama's loyal brother
King Dasharatha — King of Ayodhya; father of Rama
Kaikeyi — Dasharatha's wife; causes Rama's exile
Kausalya — Rama's mother
Sumitra — Mother of Lakshmana
Bharata — Rama's brother; refuses kingship
Shatrughna — Bharata's loyal brother
Manthara — Kaikeyi's maid; instigates exile
Vashistha — Royal priest and advisor
Sumantra — Royal charioteer
Yuddha Kanda
Rama — Warrior hero fighting Ravana
Ravana — King of Lanka; antagonist
Hanuman — Devotee of Rama; messenger and warrior
Sugriva — King of monkeys; Rama's ally
Vibhishana — Ravana's righteous brother
Kumbhakarna — Ravana's mighty brother
Indrajit (Meghnad) — Ravana's son; powerful warrior
Angada — Monkey prince and envoy
Mandodari — Ravana's wife
---
Mahabharata – Vyasa
Sabha Parva
Yudhishthira — Eldest Pandava; embodiment of dharma
Bhima — Pandava of strength
Arjuna — Master archer
Nakula & Sahadeva — Twin Pandava brothers
Draupadi — Wife of the Pandavas
Duryodhana — Leader of Kauravas; antagonist
Shakuni — Duryodhana's uncle; mastermind of dice game
Dhritarashtra — Blind king of Hastinapura
Vidura — Wise counselor
Krishna — Divine guide and protector
Virata Parva
Arjuna (Brihannala) — Disguised as dance teacher
Yudhishthira (Kanka) — Court advisor
Bhima (Ballava) — Cook
Nakula (Granthika) — Horse keeper
Sahadeva (Tantripala) — Cowherd
Draupadi (Sairandhri) — Maid to the queen
King Virata — Ruler who shelters Pandavas
Kichaka — Commander who harasses Draupadi
Uttara — Prince of Virata
---
Natyashastra – Bharata Muni
(Theory text — roles are conceptual)
Bharata Muni — Author of dramatic theory
Rasa — Aesthetic emotion experienced by audience
Bhava — Emotional states expressed by actors
Sthayi Bhava — Dominant emotion
Vibhava — Cause of emotion
Anubhava — Expression of emotion
Vyabhichari Bhava — Transitory emotions
---
Abhijnanasakuntalam – Kalidasa
Dushyanta — King; hero of the play
Shakuntala — Heroine; daughter of a sage
Kanva — Sage; Shakuntala's foster father
Durvasa — Sage whose curse causes separation
Anasuya & Priyamvada — Shakuntala's friends
Sarvadamana (Bharata) — Son of Shakuntala and Dushyanta
Matali — Charioteer of Indra
---
Mrichchhakatika – Sudraka
Charudatta — Poor Brahmin; noble hero
Vasantasena — Courtesan; heroine
Sansthanaka — Villain; brother-in-law of the king
Maitreya — Friend of Charudatta
Aryaka — Revolutionary who becomes king
Madanika — Maid of Vasantasena
---
Kadambari – Banabhatta
Chandrāpīḍa — Prince; central hero
Kadambari — Heroine
Mahashveta — Friend of Kadambari
Pundarika — Chandrapida's close friend
King Tarapida — Chandrapida's father
Patralekha — Companion of Chandrapida
---
EN 102C: European Classical Literature
Iliad (Book I) – Homer
Achilles — Greatest Greek warrior
Agamemnon — Leader of Greek forces
Patroclus — Achilles' close companion
Briseis — Achilles' war prize
Chryseis — Priest's daughter taken by Agamemnon
Chryses — Priest of Apollo
Hector — Trojan hero
Apollo — God who sends plague
Thetis — Achilles' mother
Zeus — King of gods
---
Oedipus Rex – Sophocles
Oedipus — King of Thebes; tragic hero
Jocasta — Queen; Oedipus' wife and mother
Creon — Jocasta's brother
Tiresias — Blind prophet
Laius — Former king of Thebes
Chorus — Theban elders
---
The Pot of Gold – Plautus
Euclio — Miser obsessed with gold
Lyconides — Young lover
Phaedria — Euclio's daughter
Megadorus — Wealthy old suitor
Staphyla — Euclio's maid
---
Satires – Horace
Horace — Poet and narrator
Maecenas — Patron and addressee
Stock figures — Represent social vices
---
Divine Comedy: Inferno (Canto I & II) – Dante
Dante (Pilgrim) — Traveller through Hell
Virgil — Guide and symbol of reason
Beatrice — Symbol of divine love
Leopard — Symbol of desire
Lion — Symbol of pride
She-wolf — Symbol of greed