A Colonial Tale to Tell A glimpse into the lives of Indian authors, poets during the time of colonialism and its effect on Indian Literature, shaping the Literature scenario of India post colonialism.
Nadiminti Sarvani & Senjuti Chakraborty
Nadiminti Sarvani and Senjuti Chakraborty
A vote of thanks to our teachers through all walks of life who’ve taught us how to strive towards a goal in life, the genial sun and showers that have fallen on the pages of “A Colonial Tale to Tell”, and made us happy. Mumbai, March, 2017.
Sabarmati Aashram - Dandi March Taken from : http://4.bp.blogspot.com/
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Prologue Nadiminti Sarvani & Senjuti Chakraborty We do not find it easy to get sufficiently far away from this book, in the first sensations of having finished it, to refer to it with the composure which this formal heading would seem to require. Our interest in it, is so recent and strong; and our mind is so divided between pleasure and regret pleasure in the achievement of a long design, regret in the separation from many companions - that we are in danger of wearying the reader who we love, with personal confidences, and emotions. Besides which, all the attempts at telling the story of struggling Indians have been attempted by us. It would concern the reader little, perhaps, to know, how sorrowfully the pen is laid down at the close of a two-years’ imaginative task; or how an Author feels as if he were dismissing some portion of himself into the shadowy world, when a crowd of the creatures of his brain are going from him for ever. Instead of looking back, therefore, we will look forward. We cannot close this volume more agreeably to ourselves, than with a hopeful glance towards the time when we shall again put forth our notebooks to jot down another venture of ours for all to relate with.
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Dr John-Murray View of the Taj Mahal Agra India c.-1856 Albumen print Taken from : http://www.bjp-online.com/
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Contents i. Introduction ii. What is Colonialism? 1. Index iii. Colonialism in the world iv. History and Evolution of Colonialism in India i. Introduction v. The British Raj ii. What is Colonialism? vi. Post Colonialism, an Overview iii. Colonialism in the world vii. The Literature of British Raj iv. History and Evolution of Colonialism viii. in India Authors and Novels at the time of The Raj v. The British Raj ix. Indian Literature in other languages vi. Post Colonialism, an Overview x. Poetry of the Postcolonial Indian Literature vii. The Literature of British Raj xi. Women Writers viii. Authors and Novels at the time of xii. The RajTrends Now ix. Indian Literature in other languages xiii. Acknowledgement x. Poetry of the Postcolonial Indianxiv. References Literature xi. Women Writers xii. Trends Now xiii. Acknowledgement xiv. References
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Introduction On setting foot on Indian soil, India meant something to everybody, from the Queen herself with her Hindu menservants to the humblest family in the barracks of Cawnpore. India was the brightest gem, the Raj, part of the order of things: to a people of the drizzly north, the possession of such a country was like some marvel in the house. For more than two hundred years now, literate Western society has chosen to express its truths and realities in the form of the novel, and it is upon that particular form that the following brief survey of the literature of the Raj will focus. Some of the earliest Indian novels published in England go back as far as the 1780s, and by the beginning of the 19th century,
a steady stream of quaintly exotic novels was serving to assuage the British public’s curiosity in its ever-growing Indian possessions. Many of these early novels deal with the ‘nabobs’ of John Company. Clearly reflected in the novels of this period, also, is the evangelical undercurrent that was to change the course of British policy in India. Whatever their theme or setting, most novels about British India deal ultimately with the relationship between Englishmen and Indians, between ruler and ruled. With Independence, that relationship ceased to exist. Whilst it is a palpable fact that the Raj is long gone, its legacy survives.
Cawnpore - Cawnpore was an important garrison town for the East India Company forces. Located on the Grand Trunk Road, it lay on the approaches to Sindh (Sind), Punjab and Awadh (Oudh). John Company - merchant adventurers who returned from India fabulously wealthy, and flaunted their riches before an astonished London society
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What is Colonalism? Colonialism is the establishment of a colony in one territory by a political power from another territory, and the subsequent maintenance, expansion, and exploitation of that colony.
British Soldiers Taken from : https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/
Samuel Bourne, ‘Maharaja of Patiala and Attendants’, India, 1870s, Albumen print Taken from : http://www.bjp-online.com/
The impacts of colonization are immense and pervasive. Various effects, both immediate and protracted, include the spread of virulent diseases, unequal social relations, exploitation, enslavement, medical advances, the creation of new institutions, abolitionism, improved infrastructure, and technological progress. Colonial practices also spur the spread of colonist languages, literature and cultural institutions, while endangering or obliterating those of native peoples. The native cultures of the colonized peoples can also have a powerful influence on the imperial country.
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Evolution of Colonialism Colonial India was one of the main types of trade in the world economy and was the main catalyst for the period of European exploration. Vasco da Gama’s maritime success to discover for Europeans a new sea route to India in 1498 paved the way for direct Indo-European commerce. The Portuguese soon set up tradingposts in Goa, Daman, Diu and Bombay. The next to arrive were the Dutch, the English—who set up a trading-post in the west-coast port of Surat in 1619—and the French. The internal conflicts among Indian Kingdoms gave opportunities to the European traders to gradually establish political influence and appropriate lands. Although these continental European powers were to control various regions of southern and eastern India during the ensuing century, they would eventually lose all their territories in India to the British, with the exception of the French outposts of Pondicherry and Chandernagore, the Dutch port in Travancore, and the Portuguese colonies of Goa, Daman, and Diu.
Captain Linnaeus Tripe Trimul Naiks Choultry Side Veranda from West Madura India 1858 Albumen print Taken from : http://www.bjp-online.com/
Vasco Da Gama - Vasco da Gama, 1st Count of Vidigueira, was a Portuguese explorer and the first European to reach India by sea. Pondicherry - Puducherry formerly known as Pondicherry is a union territory of India. Chandernagore - Chandannagar, formerly spelled as Chandernagore is a Corporation city and former French colony. Travancore - Travancore became the second most prosperous princely state in British India.
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The British Raj The English East India Company had been given permission by the Mughal emperor Jahangir in 1617 to trade in India. Gradually the Company’s increasing influence led the de jure Mughal emperor Farrukh Siyar to grant them permits for duty-free trade in Bengal in 1717. The Nawab of Bengal Siraj Ud Daulah, the de facto ruler of the Bengal province, opposed British attempts to use these permits. This led to the Battle of Plassey in 1757, in which the armies of the East India Company, led by Robert Clive, defeated the Nawab’s forces. This was the first political foothold with territorial implications that the British had acquired in India. The East India Company monopolized the trade of Bengal. By the 1850s, the East India Company controlled most
of the Indian sub-continent, which included present-day Pakistan and Bangladesh. Their policy was sometimes summed up as Divide and Rule. The first major movement against the British Company’s high handed rule resulted in the Indian Rebellion of 1857. After a year of turmoil, and reinforcement of the East India Company’s troops with British soldiers, the Company overcame the rebellion. There were 565 princely states when the Indian subcontinent gained independence from Britain in August 1947. During period of the British Raj, famines in India, often attributed to failed government policies, were some of the worst ever recorded.
Post colonialism : An Overview The term “Post Colonialism” appeared first in its composite form in the Oxford English Dictionary of 1959 and without hyphen in the American Heritage Dictionary of 1959. The prefix “post” in post colonialism, is a “post” that challenges the legitimizing narratives of yore. The prefix “post’ in postcolonialism, according to Jean Francois Lyotard means that it, “elaborates the conviction
that it is both possible and necessary to break with tradition and institute absolutely new ways of living and thinking.” This does not mean one has forgotten or repressed the past, but merely keeps repeating it, not surpassing it. This form of “post colonialism” is not “post” something but post colonialism is “a continuous process of resistance and reconstruction.
Farrukh Siyar - Farrukhsiyar, was the Mughal emperor between 1713 and 1719, after murdering Jahandar Shah. Siraj Ud Daulah - Siraj ud-Daulah was the last independent Nawab of Bengal. Robert Clive - He was the Commander-in-Chief of British India Divide and Rule -Taking advantage of the enmity festering between various princely states and social and religious groups.
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Literature of the British Raj Having got the freedom from the colonial rule, the Postcolonial people thought of having their identity. So, they raised their voice against the past exploitations and oppressions and attempted at establishing their identity. The question of identity whether it is of the writer or of poet, of the nation or of religion, and of the national or regional literature is important for each. In the postcolonial era the lives of ordinary people and their culture have been widely discussed in both Indian English Fiction and Indian English Poetry by the different perceptions of different writers and poets of different cultures. In Indian English Fiction, representation of colonialism, offers an unbiased common man’s and common sense perspective on colonialism in India. Darkness of ignorance, illiteracy, starvation, poverty, suffering and humiliation prevailing in Indian writings. Post colonialism pursues a post national reading of the colonial encounter by focusing on the global amalgam of cultures and identities. Apart from the themes, one important ingredient of postcolonial literature is the language in which it is written. It was the conspiracy of the colonial rule to introduce English with the intention of converting the colonized into mimic men, but this tool proved to be the nail in their coffin as the Indians learnt how to pay them in the same coin. But today it is not the problem because English has become a global language, and has become a medium to represent the east to the west in an emphatic manner.
Global Amalgam - A combination of different aspects shaping global scenario Illiteracy - Inability to read or write
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East India House by Thomas Malton the Younger Taken from : https://upload.wikimedia.org/
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Authors and Novels The writers like Rabindranath Tagore, Bankimchand Chatterjee, Sarat Chandra, Premchand, O. Chandumenon, Gulwadi Venkata Rao and many others from different parts of India wrote about the colonised India. They have addressed various developments and reforms in their works. People of that period including political leaders, nationalists, writers and the masses started to think in their own ways. However, colonialism became the centre of discussion for the people of all sections. In the early 19th
century most of the writers focused more on social issues of the society. The social reformists played a significant role in changing the society. The social reformists like Raja Ram Mohan Roy, Dayanada Sarswati, K.C. Sen, Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar, Annie Besant, Surendranth Banerjee and Jyotiba Phule have tried to give a new life to the decadent contemporary society and thought about the social problems of the society through their writings. The intellectuals of this period started spreading the message of
Arundhati Roy Taken from : https://woolfworks.files.wordpress.com/ So Many Hungers - First novel of Bhabani Bhattacharya All About Hatter - All About H. Hatterr is a novel chronicling the adventures of an Anglo-Malay man in search of wisdom and enlightenment.
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Khushwant Singh Taken from : http://images.mathrubhuminews.in/
Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay Taken from : https://upload.wikimedia.org/
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The novels like Untouchable (1935), Coolie (1936) Two Leaves and A Bud (1937) and The Village (1939) are milestones in Anand’s journey of social reform. These novels concentrated on social reforms so much. The trend of presenting the social issues for the purpose of social reform got strengthened with the publication of G.V. Desai’s All About Hatter and Bhavani Bhattacharya’s So Many Hungers. While G.V Desai’s All About Hatter concentrates on the frontiers of social realism and stresses the need for social reform, Bhattacharya’s So Many Hungers studies the socio-economic effects of Bengal famine of early forties. The writings of the writers are purely postcolonial in texture and structure as their writings deal with notional and transnational themes with a poet mind. All come within the purview of their writings.
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Prem Chand Taken from : http://bharatdiscovery.org
Literature in other languages Indian society in the colonial period was very rigid and was beset with social evils like the Sati, widow-remarriage, the caste system and the social, religious as well as all kinds of hegemony. A major development in pre-Independence during this period was the Bengal Renaissance - an intellectual and cultural understanding and movement amongst the Bengalis in Calcutta, Bengal (presently Kolkata), which was both the British capital and the nucleus of Bengali culture. The writers of Bengal Renaissance were primary and principal and decisive to have led the way in synthesising Indian and Western ideas in literature and culture.
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Ayilam Subramania Panchapakesan Taken from : https://3.bp.blogspot.com/
A Colonial Tale to Tell
The primary aim of the writers of this period in most of the Indian vernaculars was to alert people of the consequences of these evils and also to bring awareness among them. For instance, in Malalyam, O. Chandumenon in his work Indhulekha (1889) takes “issue with the colonial characterization of Nair society and especially of Nair women. In Kannada Gulvadi Venkatrao in his novel Indirabai (1899) presents the question of widowhood and supports widow remarriage in the transition period. M.Vedanayakam Pillai in his collection of poems Penputtimalai (The Garland of Female Wisdom) emphasises the need for women education. Ishwar Gupta in Bengali and Dalapatram in Gujarati wrote
poems about widow remarriage, women education and patriotism. The sati system, child marriage, marginalisation of women, widow-remarriage were in vogue during the period. Gayatri Chakraborhy Spivak, Kancha Iliah, Ranjit Guha and others have focused on the subaltern issues in their works. The literary works of the colonial nationalist period revolved around themes like marginalization, widowhood and widow remarriage. It was Bankim Chandra Chattopadyaya, who for the first time, sought to bring the national movement and patriotism in his novel Anandmath (1882). Later, it was followed by Ishwar Chandra Vidya Sagar, Sri Aurbindo, Rabindranath Tagore and others.
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Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay Taken from : https://upload.wikimedia.org
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Rabindranath Tagore Taken from : http://stylewhack.com/
Endless alleys of Post Colonial India Taken from : https://ageofanxietynovel.com/
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Post Colonial Poetry Poetry of first phase The first phase of Indian poetry was the period of literary renaissance in India. Derozio’s poems, Kasiprasad Ghose’s The Shair or Ministrel and other poems, Michael Madhusudan Dutt’s The Captive Lady, Manmohan Ghose’s Love Songs and Elegies are a testimony to the creative upsurge occasioned by the romantic spirit kindled by the literary renaissance. Toru Dutt alone among these romantic poets of Background to Indian English Poetry. The first phase puts an emphasis on India and her heritage by putting into verse a large number of Indian legends. The romantic Toru Dutt is also a predecessor in respect to the use of the tree in verse as demonstrated by “Our Casuarina Tree”, a predecessor in respect of childhood memories recalled with nostalgia or regret. Poetry of second phase The poets of the second phase, still romantic in spirit were Sarojini Naidu, Tagore, Aurobindo Ghose and Harindranth Chattopadhyaya. The poetic output of these poets was prolific. Romanticism of these Indian poets was fraught with nationalism,
spirituality and mysticism. It was therefore different from English romanticism. Indian romanticism widened the poet’s vision. Poetry written in the colonial period with a view to establish Indian identity by the Indian poets was an explosion or rather outburst of emotions: the nationalistic, philosophical, spiritual or mystical emotions. The appeal was to the heart of the readers. Post independence poetry The post - independence era of hope and aspiration was replaced by an era of questioning and ironic exposure. The national identity achieved after independence gave Indian writers a new confidence to be the critic of the present, the past and of themselves. In this new spirit and confidence the Indian poets found themselves in line with Modern English and American poets. There was borrowing up to some extent as in the first two phases of Indian poetry. While the pre - 1947 poets borrowed from the romantics, Victorians and “new” Romantics of the decadent period, the post - 1947 poets borrowed from the modernist poets like Yeats, Eliot, Pound and Auden.
Casuarina - Casuarina is a genus of 17 tree species in the family Casuarinaceae The Shair - Indian word for ‘Minstrel’
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Women Writers Women writers in post-colonial India have created a literature of their own, so to say, placing women in the context of the changing social scenario, specially concentrating upon the psyche of such women. At the outset writers like Kamala Markandaya, Anita Desai, Shashi Deshpande, Shobha de, Bharati Mukherjee and some others have denied any sort of feminist bias in their writings but an in depth analysis proves a strong feminist intent, for women’s issue pertains to be the chief concern of their plot.
De, Kamala Markandaya, Nayantara Sahgal, and Kiran Desai carved a niche for themselves in Indian English fiction. The new generation of Indian women novelist namely, Gita Hariharan, Namita Gokhale, Anita Nair and Manju kapur have invited much critical attention. Each one of the four has composed at least one novel focussing attention on the plight of contemporary women especially in their endeavour for emancipation and liberation from the patrilineal social system.
Two female poets of this and a little later time - Toru Dutt and Sarojini Naidu - both Bengali by birth, had distinguished themselves with works in English. TThe Golden Threshold (1905) is a massive collection of her poems, which often focusses upon themes associated with Indian cultural traditions and Indian women’s day-to-day living. Sarojini Naidu also had penned speeches and essays and she later became a leader of the nationalist movement, which sought independence from Britain.
Though constructive contribution of women in post-independent India specially in the past two or three decades has been unquestionably great and continuously increasing, yet the male-dominated Indian literature consciously ignored their sustaining role and portrayed them invariably as a “subaltern’. However, beginning with Kamala Markandaya right upto now, in the first decade of the new millennium so to say, we have witnessed a spurt of women writers who have shunned all inhibitions accepting bravely the challenge of projecting, delineating, analysing and discussing the real status and factual roles of contemporary Indian women.
Many women novelists in postcolonial period like Anita Desai, Arundhati Roy, Jhumpa Lahiri, Shobha
The Golden Threshold - Massive collection of Naidu’s poems, which often focusses upon themes associated with Indian cultural traditions and Indian women’s day-to-day living. Subaltern - Of a lower rank or position; inferior
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Sarojini Naidu Taken from : http://filmsdivision.org/
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Trends Now The modern Indian literature is the representation of each aspect of modern life. Happily, despite this clamour of sophistry, patriotic piety, and political bias, good literature continues to be written and, as it justifies itself, it helps to sharpen the reader’s sensibility. Since the time of Tagore a growing minority of intelligent critics well versed in the literary traditions of their own country and of the West have bravely maintained a more wholesome approach that is neither overwhelmed by the burden of the past nor overawed by the glamour of the latest fashion. This healthy trend of the modern Indian literature should gain in strength with a growing realization that, in the republic of letters as in that of men, a sensitive and well-trained critical apparatus and its judicious and fearless exercise are a prerequisite of happy results.
Salman Rushdie Taken from : http://i.internethaber.com/
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Acknowledgements It is our privilege to express our sincerest regards to our subject coordinator, Ms. Susmita Das Pal, for her valuable inputs, able guidance, encouragement, wholehearted cooperation and constructive criticism throughout the duration of our project. We take this opportunity to thank all our lecturers who have directly or indirectly helped our project. We pay our respects and love to our parents and all other family members and friends for their love and encouragement throughout our career. Last but not the lea st we express our thanks to our friends for their cooperation and support.
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References indian%20literature&f=false
i. Introduction http://www.f.waseda.jp/buda/texts/litindia.html
vii. Authors and Novels at the time of The Raj https://786ram.wordpress.com/2010/07/10/ postcolonial-indian-english-literature/
ii. What is Colonialism? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colonialism
viii. Indian Literature in other languages http://www.cambridgescholars.com/download/ sample/61086
iii. Colonialism in the world https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_colonialism iv. History and Evolution of Colonialism in India https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colonial_India https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_colonialism
ix. Poetry of the Postcolonial Indian Literature http://www.tmv.edu.in/pdf/Distance_education/ MA(English)/IndianLiteratureinEnglish.pdf
v. Post Colonialism, an Overview https://link.springer.com/ chapter/10.1057/9780230288171_3
xi. Women Writers http://eltchoutari.com/2014/05/postcolonialism-inindian-literature/ http://www.indianetzone.com/42/british_influence_ on_contemporary_indian_literature_contemporary_ indian_literature.html
vi. The Literature of British Raj https://books.google.co.in/books?hl=en&lr =&id=uIalYaenrTkC&oi=fnd&pg=PR9&dq= effect+of+colonialism+on+indian+literatur e&ots=fE-3Rx5qdD&sig=dyoaUwkrcxda9dtIuE_QA6WSHI#v=onepage&q=effect%20of%20 colonialism%20on%20indian%20literature&f=false
https://www.ukessays.com/essays/english-literature/ women-writers-in-post-colonial-india-englishliterature-essay.php xii. Trends Now http://www.indianetzone.com/42/modern_indian_ literature.htm
https://books.google.co.in/s?hl=en&lr=&id=UP 7vmkFSJhIC&oi=fnd&pg=PR1&dq=effect+of+c olonialism+on+indian+literature&ots=CLrf597f Ou&sig=2hdFe9rzEwVHvSqB0VsPm0z2oXc#v= onepage&q=effect%20of%20colonialism%20on%20
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One of the recurrent themes in this book is the inception of colonialism in India and its effect on various elements related to the Indian Literature scenario during those times. The backbone of Indian Literature strengthened after the several uprisings of writers, poets and spread of knowledge amongst the common man during the Raj. This book gives an insight into the changing face of literature which went on to shape India as it is now.
“This book is an enlightening rendition paving way to a benign religion of Indian literature study.” - Hari Kanta Pattanayak “Nadiminti and Senjuti’s writing has inspired and intrigued the present generation of India by throwing light upon the struggles of Indians in order to build an effective knowledge and literature base for the generations to come.” - Aditi Paineni