Jyothi Justin
Doctoral Student
Department of English
Digital Humanities and Publishing Studies Research Group
School of Humanities and Social Sciences
IIT Indore, M.P., India
Website: https://sites.google.com/view/jyothijustin
Twitter: @JustinJyothi
Why did you apply to HASTAC?
I was motivated to apply to the prestigious HASTAC Scholars program upon encountering the works done by the previous scholars of the program. I was attracted by the multitude of opportunities offered by the program in terms of networking and collaborating with prominent scholars and peers in the field of digital humanities. My current research and academic interests are at the intersection of digital humanities and English literature. I am a doctoral candidate with the Humanities and Social Sciences Department (English Literature) of Indian Institute of Technology Indore (IITI). I hail from a literature background and have very little exposure to the technical skills that are required for Digital Humanities (DH) research. I hope to learn and improve my knowledge about the use of digital tools in humanities research through my interactions with the other HASTAC Scholars. Since I consider myself to be an introverted person, I believe that the program will help to improve both my social skills and research skills.
I was introduced to DH through various conferences and workshops that explored the intersection between the digital and humanities, especially literature. I am interested in using Digital Cartography (GIS) for my doctoral research and have been hence experimenting with QGIS, ArcGIS and google maps. My research aims to understand the intersection between the real (historical representation) and fictional female survivors of selected Dalit massacres in independent India. I also aim to understand the intersections between the real and fictional spaces in the narratives on Dalit massacres. I have used a mixed methodology that is a combination of feminist geocriticism and digital cartography for understanding the relations among caste, gender and space in Dalit massacres. I have published a case study of the Marichjhapi massacre as part of this research. On a more theoretical level I have published a paper on the methodology of this project in ACM Digital Library and also a paper on the need for a legal framework for Dalit massacres in India. At HASTAC, I look forward to presenting my research and getting constructive feedback on the same. As an emerging scholar in the field of DH, this is my first DH project which will later be published as an open-access spatial archive. I am currently developing the spatial archive with interactive digital maps and information on the survivors using CLS INFRA TNA fellowship.
I believe that the academic events offered as part of HASTAC Scholars, such as Digital Friday will enable me to garner critical insights on my work that I might have otherwise missed. I hope that my project will also immensely benefit from the critical comments and suggestions from the HASTAC Scholar community.
What has been your favorite course so far as an instructor or student? Why?
My favorite course as a postgraduate student was “Dalit Literature and Theory” offered at Pondicherry Central University (India), as this was my first encounter (2018) with minority literatures. This course introduced me to Dalit autobiographical writings and Dalit feminist theory. I was able to get advanced training in critically analyzing and understanding Dalit literature from a postcolonial perspective. After my post graduation, I was fortunate to attend the “Winter Institute of Digital Humanities” at IIT Gandhinagar (2019) during which I was introduced to the texts, theory, and tools in digital humanities. The workshops and hands-on trainings in GIS offered during the institute piqued my interest in critical and human geography. This together with my interests in Dalit literature led me to the doctoral project that I am currently pursuing.
Source: IITGN News
At the doctoral level, the course entitled “Postcolonial Digital Humanities” offered at IIT Indore (2020) gave me basic training in understanding the need for decolonizing the field of Digital Humanities. This course focused on the tools, theory, and texts from postcolonial digital humanists while at the same time critiqued the limitations of the existing theories and tools in catering to the needs of minority communities. The course also played a significant role in laying the foundations for my doctoral project on understanding the female survivors of Dalit massacres.
As an instructor, I had the opportunity to take tutorial sessions on QGIS for the newly joined doctoral candidates at IIT Indore as part of “HS 455/655 Digital Humanities course” (2022). This was fun as this was the first time that I had taught a tool. It turned out to be great as the students were able to turn in some interesting projects that analyzed fictional texts using GIS.
What do you want to do after you graduate?
After I graduate, I aim to expand my project to other Dalit massacres in India as my doctoral project is limited to two massacres. I aim to collect more data on the survivors along with conducting in-person interviews that might help to improve their living conditions.
I am also interested in exploring other facets of postcolonial digital humanities, particularly black digital humanities. I am also open to working on post-doctoral projects that align with my current research interests.
What’s something that people would be surprised to know about you?
I think most people would find my academic journey to be surprising as I had to relocate to different places during different stages of my education. This is mainly because I come across as an introverted person who is mostly reluctant to socialize with others. I am also pursuing a PhD in digital humanities though I come from a literature background. It might be surprising to know that though my research intersects with critical geography, digital tools, and literature, I had no prior experience in digital cartography and had to self-train myself in most of these fields.
I am also interested in researching diverse topics and writing about the same. For instance, during my postgraduate days I have published and presented papers not just on caste and feminism but also on food studies and film studies. At the doctoral level I have explored different facets of digital humanities like digital labor, reproducibility, and digital environmental humanities. I am mostly curious, and my research interests are therefore spread across multiple disciplines.
What are some things that you wish you had known before you got into graduate school?
I wish I knew about the actual functioning of academia before plunging into the system. We are expected to do a lot of things in a short span of time which is something that I started observing after I joined the doctoral program. But over the course of time, I have realized that it is also important to prioritize our mental and physical well-being over the race to be an overachiever in academia. It is important to have a life outside academia be it your own alone-time or time with friends and family, as it is important to take breaks and recharge. Life would have been easier if I knew this before coming into academia but then I also got to learn a lot of things about myself and research just because I chose to stay in the system.
How do you envision HASTAC and higher education in 10 years? Where do you fit in?
I genuinely believe that HASTAC has the potential to become a safe space for global research collaboration and development in the field of higher education within the next 10 years. I am grateful to the directors and organizers of the HASTAC scholars’ program for devoting their valuable time and energy to maintaining this space. With the Digital Friday program and other support that I have received from this community I would recommend scholars from across the globe to join and contribute to this ever-expanding community of scholars and academicians. There is a dearth of kind and safe spaces in academia that sincerely support and appreciate the collective growth of researchers, and this is where HASTAC stands out. The online format and the diversity of contributions also makes HASTAC an accessible mentoring platform for upcoming academicians and researchers. I believe that I will also be able to lead and facilitate mentoring of future generation scholars through HASTAC in the coming years.
How does digital scholarship fit into your research or teaching?
Digital scholarship, particularly digital cartography, is very much intertwined with my doctoral research as a major portion of the analysis and results are derived from the use of digital tools. The use of digital tools especially QGIS, ArcGIS (pro and online) have made my research easier and more accessible. I am also in the process of creating a spatial archive and a website for my doctoral project which will result in dissemination of my work. Digital tools and scholarship are therefore important in my research visualization, analysis and dissemination processes.
Just showing off my mapping skills! This is a QGIS map that I created which locates the refugee camps during the Bengal partition.
What do you hope to accomplish with your research or teaching?
Through my current research on Dalit massacres I wish to educate the future generations about the relations among space, caste, and gender in Dalit massacres. I am including a section entitled “educational resources” in the project website that will provide syllabus templates and other educational resources on Dalit massacres. The website will also be open access thereby creating awareness about the massacres among both academia and common people. I have also published on the need for a legal and theoretical framework for Dalit massacres in India given the lack of such laws in the existing system. In terms of teaching as well, I aim to develop syllabus and teach minority literature and postcolonial digital humanities at graduate, postgraduate and doctoral levels in future. Therefore, the overall aim is to create awareness and educate the future generations about the caste-based atrocities committed against the Dalits, especially Dalit women.
What are you currently reading, watching, or listening to?
I have just returned to India from Madrid (still trying hard not to miss the city anymore!) and am currently reading “Madrid Tales (City Tales)” by Helen Constantine (Editor) and Margaret Jull Costa (Translator). The short stories on the bar and café culture in Madrid are not just exotic but also interesting to me as a literature student. The book is also interesting as it captures the life and culture of the ‘not so touristy’ areas of Madrid as well.
Source: OUP
I am now (and always) listening to old Malayalam songs (of the ‘80s and ‘90s) as well as cover songs.
A film that I watched recently and that has stayed with me is the Malayalam movie “Brahmayugam” by Rahul Sadasivan (2024). This movie was a different experience as this was the first black and white movie that I watched in a movie theater.
Source: Wikipedia