ABSTRACT

This article provides an optic for understanding the genre of the Marathi love lyric, lavani (lāvaṇī), and its emotionality. The genre reached its greatest popularity during the turn of the nineteenth century, receiving broad popular support as well as patronage from the Maratha State. Often contrasted with the povada (povāḍā), defined essentially as a heroic ballad that recounts the feats of larger than life historical persons, the two have been seen in tandem, paired for their characterization of masculine valour and feminine eros. Each genre, relying on the other to form a complete picture, providing the appropriate context in a dialogue of genres. Despite the contrast and obvious references to warfare in the povada, however, most scholars have not acknowledged the eros of lavani as a product of its historical circumstances. Instead, generations of scholars have often characterized lavani as immoral, about women who are ready to swindle heroic men out of their hard-earned riches – riches earned from plunder and warfare in the eighteenth century.

In this article, I steer away from moralizing discourses, and instead historicize the lavani’s aesthetics and emotionality within the contexts of warfare, displacement, and slavery – the material conditions under which lavani reached its apex. I consider the emotional language of the lavani as a desire for social intimacy, attachment, and protection, rather than an attempt at duplicity. The Maratha State frequently sold slaves for revenue generation, and often even granted slaves in lieu of payment; these activities disproportionately affected women. In reading the lavani genre, especially the woman’s voice, within its historical contexts, therefore, I argue for a materialist understanding of the lavani’s emotionality.

摘要

本文为理解马拉地语爱歌词，lavani（lāvaṇī）的体裁及其情感提供了一种视觉手段。这种类型在19世纪初达到了最大的流行，受到了马拉松州的广泛支持和赞助。通常将povada（povāḍā）（本质上被定义为讲述比生活中历史人物更大的壮举的英勇民谣）形成鲜明对比的人，他们一前一后地被视为是男性勇气和女性色情人物的代表。每种类型都依赖于另一种类型，以形成完整的图片，从而在各种类型的对话中提供适当的上下文。尽管在波瓦达战场上形成了鲜明的对比，并提到了战争，但是，大多数学者并没有意识到拉瓦尼的魅力是其历史环境的产物。反而，

在本文中，我避免了将话语道德化，而是在战争，流离失所和奴隶制的背景下对拉瓦尼的美学和情感进行了历史化-拉瓦尼达到顶点的物质条件。我认为拉瓦尼人的情感语言是对社会亲密感，依恋和保护的渴望，而不是一种欺骗性的尝试。马拉塔州经常出售奴隶以产生收入，甚至还授予奴隶代替付款；这些活动严重影响了妇女。因此，在阅读拉瓦尼的体裁，特别是女人的声音时，我主张在其历史背景下对拉瓦尼的情感有一个唯物主义的理解。