Colonial subjectivity : Keshab Chandra Sen in London and Calcutta, 1870-1884
The thesis investigates the ideas and activities of the Bengali Brahmo religious and social reformer Keshab Chandra Sen, and his interaction with a range of British intellectual, political and cultural figures. Keshab propounded novel and influential ideas regarding the relations between âEastâ and âWestâ to audiences in Britain and India (concerning British rule in India, education, religion and spirituality, the position of women, global history, universalism and modernity), ideas that were profoundly shaped by his experiences as a colonial subject in two powerful centres of empire - London and Calcutta. The thesis draws upon approaches from biographical, intellectual, social, cultural and political history in order to locate Keshab within an analysis which relates the construction of identity in public discourses in multiple sites of empire to an analysis of the experience of colonial subjectivity at the level of friendship, family and self. This analysis is grounded in an exploration of the social construction of notions of âdifferenceâ, with particular reference to ideas of race, gender, class and nation. Through bringing London and Calcutta into a single analytic frame, the thesis demonstrates
Stevens, J. A.
Colonial subjectivity : Keshab Chandra Sen in London and Calcutta, 1870-1884. The thesis investigates the ideas and activities of the Bengali Brahmo religious and social reformer Keshab Chandra Sen, and his interaction with a range of British intellectual, political and cultural figures. Keshab propounded novel and influential ideas regarding the relations between âEastâ and âWestâ to audiences in Britain and India (concerning British rule in India, education, religion and spirituality, the position of women, global history, universalism and modernity), ideas that were profoundly shaped by his experiences as a colonial subject in two powerful centres of empire - London and Calcutta. The thesis draws upon approaches from biographical, intellectual, social, cultural and political history in order to locate Keshab within an analysis which relates the construction of identity in public discourses in multiple sites of empire to an analysis of the experience of colonial subjectivity at the level of friendship, family and self. This analysis is grounded in an exploration of the social construction of notions of âdifferenceâ, with particular reference to ideas of race, gender, class and nation. Through bringing London and Calcutta into a single analytic frame, the thesis demonstrates
colonial subjectivity london calcutta investigates ideas activity bengali religious social_reformer interaction range british intellectual_political cultural figure propound novel influential idea regard relation east_west audience britain india concern british_rule india education religion spirituality position_woman global history universalism modernity idea profoundly shape experience colonial subject powerful centre empire london calcutta draw_upon approach biographical intellectual social_cultural political_history order locate within analysis relate construction_identity public_discourse multiple site empire analysis experience colonial subjectivity level friendship family self analysis ground exploration social construction notion difference particular_reference idea race gender_class nation bring london calcutta single analytic frame demonstrates