Published works
- A Sheaf Gleaned in French Fields, Saptahik Sambad Press, Bhowanipore, 1876
- Bianca, or the Spanish Maiden, serialized in Bengal Magazine from January to April 1878 (posthumous; unfinished)
- Le Journal de Mademoiselle d’Arvers, Didier, Paris, 1879 (posthumous)
- Ancient Ballads and Legends of Hindustan, 1882 (posthumous)
A Sheaf Gleaned in French Fields was published in 1876 without a preface or introduction. Its 165 poems are translated from French into English by Dutt, except for one poem composed by her, "A Mon Père", and eight poems translated by her sister.[5] At first the collection attracted little attention, though it eventually came to the notice of Edmund Gosse in 1877, who reviewed it favourably in the Examiner that year. Sheaf saw a second Indian edition in 1878 and a third edition by Kegan Paul of London in 1880, but Dutt lived to see neither of these. The second edition added 44 new poems, a portrait of Toru Dutt and her sister, and a preface by their father.[5]
At the time of her death, she left two novels, Le Journal de Mademoiselle d’Arvers, (published posthumously in 1879), the first novel in French by an Indian writer, and Bianca, or the Young Spanish Maiden, (thought to be the first novel in English by an Indian woman writer), in addition to an unfinished volume of original poems in English and Sanskrit translations, Ancient Ballads and Legends of Hindustan. The last were among writings discovered by her father after her death in 1877.
Edmund Gosse wrote an introduction for Ancient Ballads and Legends of Hindustan: "She brought with her from Europe a store of knowledge that would have sufficed to make an English or French girl seem learned, but which in her case was simply miraculous."[9] Some well-remembered poems from the volume include "A Sea of Foliage", "The Lotus", "Sîta", and "Our Casuarina Tree." The last in particular is often taught in high schools in India as a part of the English curriculum.[9]
Contributions to Periodicals
Dutt also published translations of French poetry and literary articles in Bengal Magazine from March 1874 to March 1877.[5] Notable magazine publications of the time include essays on Leconte de Lisle and Henry Louis Vivian Derozio in December 1874.[5] She also published some translations from Sanskrit in Bengal Magazine (October 1876) and Calcutta Review (January 1877).[5]
- ‘An Eurasian Poet’, The Bengal Magazine III (5 December 1874), p. 164
- ‘A Scene from Contemporary Life’, The Bengal Magazine (June – July 1875)
- ‘Bianca, or The Young Spanish Maiden’, The Bengal Magazine (August 1877 – July 1878)
Dutt had numerous items published in The Bengal Magazine and The Calcutta Review between March 1874 and March 1877.[10]
In addition, Dutt wrote a great many letters.[9]
