Social & Cultural Developments: What Was Taught?

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Social & Cultural Developments
Saturday, March 3 2012, 7:24 PM
Education
The State of Indigenous Education
What was taught?
1. In higher education, traditional subjects like religious philosophy, literature, languages. Scientific study
was missing.
2. In elementary education, reading, writing and arithmetic was taught.
3. Original thinking and rationalist outlook was discouraged.
Who was taught?
1. Brahmans and high classes.
2. Women and lower castes were generally excluded.
Educational Infrastructure
1. The higher educational centers were mathas and madarssas which were financed by donations from rich
and nobility.
2. The lower educational centers were elementary schools and maktabs.
Dislocation of Indigenous Education
1. In 1844, it was announced that English speaking candidates will be given preference in government jobs.
This was a killer for traditional system.
Introduction of Western Education
Phase 1 (17571813)
1. The £ commercial company took hardly any interest in education. Only exceptions being Calcutta
Madarssa by Warren Hastings in 1781 and Sanskrit College in Benaras in 1791. But the design of these
colleges was to provide Indians for junior administrative posts only.
Phase 2 (18131854) A single shelf of a good European library was worth the whole native literature.
1. The utilitarians needed a class of Indians who would support their liberal legislative agenda of
emancipation. For this £ education was needed. The Charter Act of 1813 provided for efforts to spread
knowledge of modern sciences in India. A sum of 1 lac rupees p.a. was to be spent for the encouragement
of learning in India and for the promotion of sciences among the Indians. This sum was made available in
1823 only. This was under the influence of Utilitarians. The company was also facing corruption issued.
Grant argued that the officials rampantly exploited the country as they viewed it as a temporary
phenomenon. By providing this grant the company was demonstrating its commitment to a permanent rule
as well as a sense of duty towards the development of the natives.
2. A General Committee for Public Instruction was setup but it interpreted the clause to mean advancement
of Indian classical literature and sciences. Thus they planned to open more Sanskrit colleges, tols and
madrassas. However this was opposed by the utilitarians and when raja Ram Mohun Roy wrote a letter
to the GG pleading against the proposed Sanskrit college in Calcutta (since he believed that the
modernization of India would come through £ education and western sciences), utilitarians gained an
upper hand. In 1828 Bentinck was appointed as GG who was a utilitarian himself and in 1834 Macaulay
was appointed as the law member in his council. In 1833, Lord Benetinck setup the Macaulay Committee.
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The utilitarians wanted to spend this sum for promotion of western studies exclusively while the
orientalists wanted to spend it on western sciences as well as Indian learning. One wanted medium of
instruction to be English, others wanted vernacular languages. In 1835, a compromise decision was taken.
Western sciences were to be taught and in vernacular languages in primary and in English in higher
education. Thus a new education system was introduced in India, in which the task of producing
knowledge was assigned to the metropole while its reproduction, replication and dissemination were left
for the natives.
3. It must be noted that £ language was present in India even before 1835. But while earlier it was studied
primarily as a language of literature, now it became the medium of instruction itself. But elementary
education was neglected and mass illiteracy remained. £ took recourse to trickle down effect theory since
it was considered to be 'more cost effective'. During this period, many English officials became associated
with Indian social reformers and helped opening many educational institutions. In NWFP, a £ civilian
Thomason experimented with vernacular elementary schools and he was so successful that Dalhousie
recommended its extension to Bihar and Bengal.
Phase 3 (1854 till date)
For Evangelists it was supposed to open the gates for proselytization of Indians, for Utilitarians it was the
ultimate fulfillment of the £ imperial mission, "imparting education to natives is our moral duty". For the
company it sought to reduce the cost of administration.
1. Woods dispatch in 1854. This asked the government of India to take the responsibility if the education of
masses thereby repudiating the trickle down effect theory. It also took on from the vernacular school
experiment of Thomason and recommended the extension of vernacular education in India. However, in
practice nothing happened. However, even in this shifting focus towards elementary mass education, it is
not difficult to see a concern for political economy of the empire. While a smaller group of highly
educated Indians would be needed to man the subordinate positions in administration, the wider
population should also have 'useful and practical' knowledge in order to become good workers and good
consumers being able to value the superiority of £ goods.
2. Higher education was given a further boost and departments of education were setup in each province and
universities were affiliated to them. Roorkee College of Engineering came up under Dalhousie. Anglo
vernacular schools were also proposed under him. Canning opened Calcutta, Bombay and Madras
universities. Secondary schools (with £ as the medium of instruction) proliferated but they were required
to charge a fee since 'free education will not be valued properly'. Curzon started an agriculture institute @
Pusa. Indian Military Academy was started in Dehradun in 1932.
3. The Indian Education Commission of 1882 reiterated the policy of mass literacy and even advocated
setting aside funds for subsidizing the education of backward communities. But despite the official
rhetoric these backward classes continued to be excluded as the local administration sided with the local
elites in excluding them from the schools in the name of 'practicality'.
So the colonial regime could never abandon the policy of using direct force to uphold its hegemony.
1. But the educated Indians selectively adopted this knowledge and deployed it to interrogate the colonial
rule itself. The Indians who were attracted to £ education were mainly Hindu upper caste males from
middle classes who were economically hard pressed due to changing times. For most of them £ education
was a means to get administrative jobs rather than a pathway to intellectual enlightenment and when
supply exceeded the demand, they were soon disgruntled.
£ education brought the native youth in contact with a body of thought which openly questioned many of the
fundamental assumptions upon which the fabric of traditional values rested.
Enlightenment seemed to be the "panacea" for all the evils and backwardness that Indians were being blamed
for.
1. This 'new body of thought' was the post enlightenment rationalism which came to be defined as
'modernity' in the age. They began to look at their own society through a prism of reason, utility, progress
and justice. In this they found many of the traditional practices wanting. These Indians though identified
themselves in the Indian culture but this culture needed reforms for through their prism, all existing social
practices and religious notions appeared to be signs of a decadent feudal society.
Thus the challenge was to rediscover reason and science in their own civilization, and to reposition the
modernization project within a cultural space defined by Indian tradition.
1. The new social reform agenda, in order to be successful, had to create a reform mentality that did not
reject Indian tradition but sought to change certain 'unreasonable' aspects of the Hindu society which did
not conform to their new 'rationalist' interpretation of the 'glorious Indian past'. The failure of Derozians
was because they rejected Indian tradition. Arya Samaj, Brahmo Samaj, Prarthna Samaj etc. on the other
hand never cut themselves off from the Indian culture.
2. This 'rooting of reforms in ancient Indian culture' also provided legitimacy to Bentinck's social reform
agenda. Thus sati (which had spread dangerously in this age due to social mobility aspirations of certain
ambitious lower classes) was not abolished for humanitarian reasons but because it was not prescribed in
the vedas.
Legislative reforms remained on paper.
1. Furthermore these reforms remained merely on paper and there was no attempt to develop a social
consciousness among the people. Similarly the Widow Remarriage Act 1856 too was conservative in the
sense that on remarriage it disinherited the widow of the property of the deceased husband. In 1803,
Wellesley banned child sacrifice @ Sagar island in Bengal, in 1870 female infanticide was banned but all
of it remained ineffective. In case of even less visible evils, legislative reforms failed to have any effect.
Thus in 1843 slavery was abolished but the agrarian relations in India were so complex that it continued
unabated in the form of indebted labor, bonded labor, caste customs etc.
Nationalist Educational Efforts
1. RN Tagore established Vishwa Bharati University @ Shanti Niketan in 1922. KC Sen found Calcutta
College in 1861.
2. During Swadesi, Satish Chandra Mukerjee started the Bhagabat Charuspathi, the Dawn Society was
started, Brahmabandhab Upadhyay started Saraswat Ayatan. Bengal National College was founded in
1906.
Rise of Press, Literature and Public Opinion
Factors Responsible
1. Social reform movements. They used journals to increase awareness.
2. Liberal policies followed by William Benetinck.
3. Western education.
4. Nature of £ rule.
Nature & Character
1. Indian press covered national as well as international news. Thus what was happening in the world and
other parts of the country began to affect people in one part.
2. It served as views reporter as well and views reflecting Indian aspirations were given weight.
Impact
1. The people saw that what was happening in other parts of the country as a result of £ rule was happening
with them as well and affected them. This led to growing integration.
2. Indian aspirations were highlighted in the articles and created awakening.
3. It helped INM and social reforms. In the early days when INM was not a mass movement, press was the
main weapon in the hand of nationalists. To be a journalist meant to be a political worker and involved
considerable self sacrifice.
4. Its impact was not limited to educated gentry because very often a literate person would read out the
newspaper to a group of illiterates. Discussing newspapers became a form of political participation.
Freedom of Press
Censor Act 1799 by Lord Wellesley
1. Every newspaper should print the names of printer, editor and proprietor. Before printing any material it
should be submitted to the secretary of Censorship. This Act was abolished by Hastings.
Licensing regulation Act 1823 by John Adam
1. Every publisher should get a license from the government, defaulters would be fined Rs 400 and the press
would be ceased by the government. Government has right to cancel the license. Charles Metcalf
abolished the Act.
2. Raja Ram Mohun Roy protested against it in 1824. This was the first political protest in India.
3. In subsequent years, press friendly policies were followed. But in 1870 an act was passed which declared
preaching disaffection towards £ rule an act of sedition and treason. Indian press used to dodge it while
proclaiming loyalty to the crown @ top of the article, publishing excerpts or antiimperialistic quotes in
foreign newspapers, by presenting the content as an advice to the government, irony, sarcasm.
Vernacular Press Act IX 1878
1. Magistrates were authorized to ask any publisher of newspaper to give assurance of not publishing
anything threatening peace and security. The magistrate’s decision was final in any dispute.
2. To dodge it, Amrita Bazar Patrika became an english newspaper overnight. The first great
demonstration in India happened over this issue in Calcutta in 1881 and it had to be repealed in 1882 by
Lord Ripon.
3. SN Bannerjea was the first Indian to go to jail over press issue. He was held for contempt of court in a
case where the court had disregarded public sentiments by having an ancient idol brought over to the court
premises. BG Tilak also used press to propagate nationalist messages and to popularize ganpati and shivaji
festivals. He was sentenced to long years in jail for his press articles.
Newspaper Act 1908
1. Magistrate had the power to confiscate the assets of the press.
Press Regulating Act 1942
1. Registration of journalists was made mandatory. Limitations were imposed on the messages regarding
civil disturbances. Prohibition of news was imposed regarding acts of sabotage. Limitations on headlines
and space given to news on disturbances.
Press Trivia
1. Abul Kalam Azad > LissanusSidq, AlHilal (1912) and AlBalak (1914).
2. Newspapers which covered 1857 revolt > Doorbin, SultanulAkhbar, PayamiAzadi.
3. MG Ranade > Indu Prakash and Gyan Prakash (Marathi press).
4. Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar + Harish Chandra Mukerjee > Hindoo Patriot.
5. Gandhi > Indian Opinion, Young India, Nav Jivan.
6. JLN > National Herald.
7. BK Ghose > Yugantar.
8. Madam Bhikaji Kama > Vande Matram & Talwar.
9. CR Das, BC Pal, SC Malik > Bande Matram.
10. Bhartendu Harish Chandra > Kavichan Sudha (1st Hindi journal).
11. Sardar Dayal Singh Majithia (+SN Bannerjea) > Tribune (1881).
12. Raja Ram Mohun Roy (protest against John Adam) > Banga Dutta, Samwad Kaumudi.
13. Fardoonji Nairoji > Gujarati Samachar.
14. Dadabhai Nairoji > Rast Goffar.
15. Rudyard Kipling > Pioneer.
16. Shishir Kumar & BK Ghose > Amrita Bazar Patrika.
17. Jyotibha Phule > Din Bandhu.
18. Derozio > East Indian Newspaper.
19. Madan Mohan Malviya > Leader, Hindustan.
20. PS Mehta > Bombay Chronicle.
21. Lala Lajpat Rai > Punjabi, Vande Matram, People.
22. James Augustus Hichey > Bengal Gazette (India's first newspaper).
23. KC Sen > Indian Mirror.
Rise of Modern Vernacular Literature
Christian Missionaries
1. Christian missionaries had been coming here and preaching since ancient times. Their activities were
mostly peaceful and sensitive earlier and they could carry on their activities here. Example of Akbar.
2. The Charter Act of 1813 gave full government backing to the missionaries. With this, they abandoned
their previous ways and turned insensitive. The government thought that christianization of India would
perpetuate £ rule in India and will also create Indians who are brown in color but £ in thought. But the
resentment against the methods used by missionaries and the social reform movements eventually
undermined the £ rule only.
Progress of Science
1. Raja RM Roy was a champion of modern sciences and western education. He setup a Society for
Translating European Sciences in 1825 and followed it up with a Society for the Acquisition of General
Knowledge in 1838. His movement reached a major milestone when in 1876 Mahendra Lal Sarkar setup
the Indian Association for the Cultivation of Sciences. Syed Ahmed Khan founded the Aligarh Scientific
Society in 1864. In 1866 Bihar Scientific Society was found.
£ SocioCultural Policy in India
£ Imperialistic Ideology
1. In the post enlightenment intellectual environment, the £ also started defining themselves as a modern
civilization vis a vis the orientals and this rationalized their imperial vision. The resulting £ patriotism
reveled in the glory of the imperial empire. They began to look upon their imperialistic campaign as an
'age of reform'. Thus the £ imperial ideology in India and the so called 'sub imperialism' was merely a part
of such imperialistic ideology back home and provided every justification for the actions of the local
officials in India.
The government of the East India Company functioned like an 'Indian Ruler'
1. This was said by the colonial historians in the sense that it accepted the nominal suzerainty of the
Mughals, struck coins in his name, used Persian as the official language and administered Hindu and
Muslim laws in the courts. It followed a system of government in which it left much of the administrative
organization unchanged at the local level.
2. However, this policy of 'least intervention' had originated not from any ideological concerns but merely
from a pragmatic concern as initially £ didn't have sufficient knowledge and resources to establish their
separate administration in India. Such a policy was discarded as soon as the situation became favorable.
The anglicization of the administration began but it was not a revolutionary change but a gradual one. The
officials looked at themselves as "inheritors rather than innovators, as the revivers of a decayed system". It
was their duty to free India of the tyranny of its decayed system by introducing modern ideas and form of
administration.
Orientalists
Respect and paternalism, therefore, remained the 2 complementing ideologies of the early £ empire in India.
1. £ were also baffled by the Hindu religion which was not monotheistic, not founded by a single prophet,
had no religious leader / institution and neither had a single sacred text. In India multiple religions were
practiced and enjoyed royal patronage unlike Europe. Thus they felt a need to fit this phenomenon within
their mould of bounded rationality.
2. They thought of India as a land of past glory which had fallen into degeneration. They had, thus, an urge
to know or 'rediscover' the glorious past culture of India. Moreover they believed that in order to further
the Raj in India, the best way was to rule the conquered people by their own laws. They believed in not
disturbing Indian culture and society and if pressed, introduce changes only gradually. Sweeping or rapid
changes might produce a violent reaction. This required a knowledge about Indian languages, practices,
norms etc. So Indian languages were studied as well as dharmashastras (which were believed to be Indian
code of laws). Asiatic Society of Bengal, William Jones all belonged to this school. Sanskrit was shown to
have links with European languages, Asiatic Society of Bengal was founded in 1784, Calcutta Madrassa
in 1781 and Sanskrit College in Benaras in 1794 for the purpose of promoting Indian studies. It was for
the same reason that the Fort William College @ Calcutta was setup in 1800 to train the civil servants
about Indian system.
3. After Hastings the emphasis on the 'ancient glory' of Indian civilization was changed to the 'present
degenerated' state. Indian thought was considered to be more in the sphere of spirituality and mysticism
and thus appealed to these £ who were apprehensive of excessive materialism brought about by the
industrialization of their society. They tried to show that Indians were so concerned with the other world
and so less with the tangible aspects of this world. A dichotomy was maintained that £ values were
materialistic while Indian values were spiritual. They hoped to bring about another renaissance in £. Every
accumulation of knowledge is useful to the state: it attracts and conciliates distant affections, it lessens the
weight of the chain by which the natives are held in subjection, and it imprints on the hearts of our own
countrymen the sense and obligation of benevolence.
4. They showed that Sanskrit had linkages with european languages so that it could be proved it was derived
from european languages only. They also emphasized on the kinship of the Aryan race. The similarity in
language and the Aryan race hypothesis (with subsequent degradation of the Indian brothers) also served
to legitimize the authoritarian £ rule (kinship ties) and it now needed to be 'rescued from the predicament
of its own creation' and elevated to the desired state of progress as achieved by Europe. In this zeal, efforts
were made to link Puranas with Bible but were not successful. A son of Noah was said to have migrated to
India and establish the Indian population! Orientalism was a knowledge thrust from above through the
power of the europeans, it was produced through a process of dialogue in which the colonial officials,
Indian commentators and native informants participated in a collaborative intellectual exercise and one
in which the natives hardly had any control over the final outcome.
5. Thus Orientalism produced a knowledge of the past to meet the requirements of the present i.e. to serve
the needs of the colonial state.
Despotism was something which distinguished the Oriental state from its European counterpart; but ironically,
it was the same logic that provided an implicit justification for the paternalism of the Raj
1. Armed with the legitimacy derived from the ancient kinship ties and the obligation to lift his brethren,
Cornwallis departed from the conservative policy of Hastings and went for greater anglicization of the
administration. Cornwallis even introduced the PS in the hope that the rule of law and private property
rights would liberate individual enterprise from the shackles of custom and tradition, and would bring in
modernization to the economy and society.
2. Wellesley furthered the policy of anglicization the aim of which was supposed to be the end of 'oriental
despotism' and this despotism can be ended by limiting state interference by limiting its role to protection
of individual rights and private property and separation of judiciary and executive. Radical at home,
attracted to the glorious past of India and its simple people, they remained nonetheless the upholders of
authoritarian rule in India.
3. The company tried to curb the local zamindars in order to free the people from their oppressive feudal
lords and to safeguard their freedom (for the natives were not used to enjoying freedom and needed to be
emancipated). And ostensibly for same purpose it took utmost care in surveying and policing the territory.
However, the real aim was to ensure a free flow of trade and steady collection of revenue and bleed the
Indians dry without any resistance.
Conservative Philosophy Behind Ryotwari System
1. Cornwallis was opposed by Malcolm and Metcalfe who thought that PS didn't pay heed to Indian tradition
and experience. They thought that such reforms (rule of law and separation of powers) had to be modified
to suit the Indian context. Some old traditions in the administration must be maintained and the role of the
company should be protective than intrusive. So Munro went on to introduce the Ryotwari settlement with
the intention to 'preserve India's village communities'.
2. Ryotwari system also had elements of 'military fiscalism' since Munro's ultimate aim was strengthening of
the Raj by expanding its revenue base where land taxes would be collected directly by the state to build a
strong army. Munro further believed that part of India should be indirectly governed but he insisted that
the traditional form of government will function better if directed by £ authoritarian rule (the zamindars
and local elites being governed by £). He thus rejected the idea of direct political participation by Indians.
Utilitarianism
1. They were largely £ who resided in £ but wrote about India. People like Mill, Macaulay were associated
with this school. They believed that the conquest of India had been by acts of sin or crime but instead of
advocating abolition of this 'sinful' act, they clamored for its reform so that Indians could get the benefit of
good governance of £ and keep up with the 'best ideas of the age'. Thus £ were ruling India for their own
good. They held that Indians were not fit to govern themselves according to modern ideas. They had never
known democracy etc. and had always been ruled by despotic kings totally unrepresentative of public
opinion (theory of oriental despotism). India always had self sufficient villages whose surplus was
creamed off by the despotic rulers governing through an autocratic bureaucracy. The peasant was always
kept subjugated and the king would control all means of irrigation and would own all land and claim
divine status. Thus they believed that £ were doing a favor by ruling India by modern means.
2. Contrary to Orientalists they were sharply critical of the 'barbaric' Indian culture and believed in changing
the very nature of India. They firmly believed in the superiority of £ race and culture. They emphasized on
the values of rational thought and individualism which were said to be absent in India and that Indian
culture was stagnant. This stagnant culture can be uplifted by introduction of Christianity in India (thus
believed the Evangelists who also belonged to this school). Grant was instrumental behind the provision
of allowing Christian missionaries into India and their state backing in the 1813 Charter Act. While the
Utilitarians talked of appropriate social engineering and authoritarian reformism the Evangelists argued
about the necessity of government intervention to liberate Indians from their religions that were full of
superstitions, idolatry, and tyranny of priests.
3. The free traders also belonged to this group and believed that India could function as a good market for £
goods and a reliable supplier of raw materials if the company shifted its attention from 'trading' to 'ruling'
and take steps to restructure the economy. They were instrumental in lifting of the company's monopoly in
the 1833 Act.
4. The liberals (like Macaulay) also belonged to this group. They believed that £ primary task was to civilize
and not just conquer and in this a liberal agenda of emancipation needs to be followed. Trained by us to
happiness and independence, and endowed with our learning and political institutions, India will remain
the proudest monument of £ benevolence. £ should improve Indian society by bringing in social reform
legislations and promoting £ education in India to remove the stagnant features of Indian society.
5. This ideology legitimized the £ authoritarian regime in order to follow a liberal emancipation
agenda. Thus Bentham argued that the ideal of human civilization was to bring the greatest good to
greatest number. Good laws, efficient administration were the most effective agents of change and the rule
of law is a necessary precondition. Mill 'exploded' the myth of Indian cultural and economic riches and
argued that what India needed for her improvement was an effective school master i.e. a wise government
promulgating good legislations. They were responsible for passage of 1813 act where it was provided that
1 lac rupees be spent for the promotion of western sciences. They divided the study of Indian history into
Hindu age, Muslim age and the £ age so as to divide Indians and perpetuate £ rule. They began to interpret
history in terms of communal lines. They drew up the IPC (Macaulay) on the Benthamite model of a
centrally, logically and coherently formulated code, evolving from 'disinterested philosophic intelligence'.
Utilitarianism: £ vs India
in britain:
political reforms 1832 reform act, subsequent reform acts in 1867 etc, strengthening of democracy through expansion of
franchise, political freedom and civil liberties, abolition of slavery etc.
influence on economy ricardo's theory of comparative advantage, free trade, abolition of monopolies (prominently that of
english east india company), abolition of corn laws, navigation laws, other protectionist measures and taxes.
legal reforms codification of laws, systemising all the laws, repealing the laws which were redundant, and passing those
which were necessary.
in india:
political effects exclusion of indians from government positions, charter acts of 1813, 1833
economic reforms abolition of company's monopoly, free trade, financial capitalism, ricardo's theory of rent was applied in
bombay presidency
legal reforms codification of laws, ipc, crpc, rule of law, property rights etc
education anglicist over oriental
social and cultural abolition of sati, etc etc (there were other social reforms which were the result of utilitarians which i dont
remember)
consequences
in britain democracy, rule of law, people's participation, huge support to industrialisation, financial capitalism, etc
in india authoritarian despotism, white racism, mass illiteracy, inaccessible justice, poverty, deindustrialisation, ve effect
on agriculture due to application of ricardo's rent theory, etc
Estimate of Bentinck
1. He was an ardent follower of Mill and followed a liberal emancipating agenda to abolish Sati and child
infanticide in the same spirit. Still he was different from Mill in the sense he retained his faith in Indian
traditions and nurtured the orientalist desire to give back Indians their true religion grounded in their
ancient texts Sati abolition was carried out because it was warranted by ancient Hindu texts.
2. Press Reforms: He followed a liberal approach towards press and let it grow including the vernacular
press.
3. Educational Reforms: He constituted the Macaulay Committee in 1833 which submitted its report in 1835
which entailed that vernacular should be the medium in primary and English in higher levels.
4. Judicial Reforms: He abolished the provincial courts and the circuit courts. Till now Persian was used in
the courts, but he made vernaculars in the lower ones and English in the higher ones.
Victorian Liberalism Post 1857
It was Victorian liberalism in the post 1857 India that certainly made paternalism the dominant ideology of the
Raj.
The traumatic experience of the revolt convinced many in £ that in India reform was 'dangerous as well as
pointless' and that Indians could never be trained to become like £.
India thus passed from the Company rule to the Crown rule, which ironically meant the rejection of a liberal
promise of reforming India in order to prepare her for self government. It meant, in other words, a "symbolic
endorsement of £ permanence in India".
1. It can't be said that the zeal for reform was totally gone for it could be seen in the the Crown Proclamation
of 1858, in the patronage of education, in Indian Councils Act, 1861 and in Local Self Government Act,
1882.
2. But the Orientalist regard for Indian culture, Utilitarian hope for emancipation of Indians was replaced by
£ racial superiority. £ were ruling not because 'it was for Indian good or to lift the Indians out of a stagnant
culture and economy via christianity, free trade or liberal legislative agenda' (as proclaimed by the
Utilitarians) but because they had a right to do so given their racial superiority. Indians were not the
'school children' as thought by utilitarians but were 'primitive savages'. They were beyond redemption and
trust was reposed in their 'natural leaders' vis the zamindars and native princes. This arrangement has also
been called the 'limited raj' where the colonial regime depended on the local power elites like zamindars
of the administration of the interior.
3. Such ideas were reinforced by the rise of racial 'sciences' in £ which furthered the idea of superior races.
They couldn't contend with the idea of an ancient glorious civilization of 'dark skinned Indian aborigines'
and thus the theory of 'white skinned' Aryan invasion over the dark skinned Indian aborigines was
invented. Indians were never fit to rule themselves (as they were racially inferior and had always been
ruled by foreign invaders) and all talk of right of self determination was dismissed as being sentimental.
4. Such kind of racialism had always been present in the Raj (although came out more openly now) as
Cornwallis had earlier transformed the company officials into an 'aloof elite' maintaining physical
separation from the subjects. £ soldiers were forbidden to have any sexual contact with Indian women and
were confined to barracks where they would be confined from 'Indian diseases and vices'. £ civilian
officers were discouraged from having Indian mistresses and urged to have £ wives. In the imperial cities,
a physical separation was maintained between the £ and the Indian settlements and thus every city came to
have a 'white town' and a 'black town' intersected by a 'grey town' which was dominated by Eurasians and
accessible to natives as well. With time the position of Eurasians (mixed children) went down in the
imperial pecking order and they too were barred from holding any important posts.
3 philosophical strands after the 1857 revolt
1. After the 1857 revolt £ rule became very authoritarian. There were 3 reactions to it. First were the liberals
who became critical of the authoritarian nation of the Raj. Second were the utilitarians who believed that
democracy and self governance were desirable goals and authoritarianism was undesirable, but Indians
were not ready or educated enough for it and that is why there was a need for paternalistic
authoritarianism. They however nurtured the hope that once Indians become properly educated they can
be handed over the political control.
2. The third strand outrightly rejected any form of concession and embraced authoritarianism. They
advocated that Indians should never be handed over self rule and there was no obligation on £ side to
gradually prepare them for this task.
Radicals
1. They applied the doctrines of rationalism, humanism and belief in capacity of man to upgrade himself to
Indians as well and wanted India to progress. They were also aided unwillingly by missionary activities as
they ridiculed Hinduism and Islam. But later they succumbed to imperialistic thought.
Nature and Character of £ SocioCultural Policy
1. It was a colonial policy. £ needed a modern section in India to act as a bridge between themselves and
natives, to man lower administrative posts, to spread market of £ products in India. But too much of
modernization might produce a violent reaction or worse spread modern ideas of liberty and nationhood in
India.
2. The colonial nature is also reflected in the fact they neglected elementary education and literacy of
masses. Education of girls was also neglected. They only spent the meagre amount allocated for education
on higher education so as to produce clerks.
3. The policy gave full support to missionary activities in India. These missionaries ridiculed Hindu and
Muslim religions.
Paintings
1. £ created demand for Indian painting but modified it to suit the moods of west. So there was a reaction in
Indian schools. Raja Ravi Varma in Kerala tried to reestablish Indian art using western methods like oil
painting.
2. Bengal Revival: Abanindra Nath Tagore and Havel led the revival of Indian art in Bengal. Their style as
well as themes were Indian and they tried to revive the best in ancient and medieval art and adapt it to
modern times. Nandlal Basu was another leading painter who painted in Ajanta style.
Social Reform Movements
Nature & Character
1. They were liberal and progressive and not regressive. They were inspired by modern ideas and vision of
future.
2. They were religious reforms but they aimed at improving the society and creating consciousness among
people. Religion was so omnipresent in those days in social interactions that any meaningful attempt to
awaken people and reform the society had to involve religious reforms.
3. They were assimilating in character. They assimilated the ideals of west and east, different religions, past
and future. They only took the best in each and didn't ape. Rationalism and scientific attitude were taken
from west but materialism and racism rejected. Simplicity and value system was taken from east but
narrowness and bigotry rejected.
4. It was indian renaissance though not backward looking. Renaissance means rebirth. Even Arya Samaj
didn't mean return to vedic life when it said 'go back to vedas'. It simply meant restoration of the virtues
established in Vedas.
5. It was egalitarian. Castes, religions, gender.
6. It had close association with politics and the reformers used political backing to support their cause.
7. They emphasized on the common aspects of Indian culture, weaken the divisive elements and hence
create a sense of belonging to common nation.
8. They were humanist, pan Indian and nonviolent in their thinking.
Significance
1. They created awakening and the cultural background. They emphasized on the common aspects of Indian
culture and do away with the divisive elements. They instilled a sense of pride in Indians. The concept of
nation emerged. They highlighted how all of us are suffering from same problems.
2. All of them supported education and even founded many institutions. This led to spread of modern
education and ideas.
3. They encouraged vernacular languages and press. Ram Mohan Roy had a journal 'Samvad Kaumudi'. But
they never really tried to preach their message among the masses. Lacking a broad social base, the
reformers thus exhibited an intrinsic faith in the benevolent nature of the colonial rule and tried to impose
the reforms from top.
Equally important is the colonial character of reforms (orientalists).
1. The dominant colonial perception at that time was that religion was the dominant form of social discourse
and that it was codified in the scriptures. The social evils were thought of as the distortions created by self
serving interests who had a monopoly over the textual knowledge. Thus most of the reformers translated
the ancient texts into the local languages and used to derive legitimacy for their agenda by references to
the scriptures and not because of any intrinsic humanistic value. Thus It is simplistic to suggest that the
great reformers of the 19th century were not concerned about the welfare of women; but the reforms were
not just for women.
2. But it is not justified to say that the reformers just reflected colonial formulations. The earlier writings of
Raja RM Roy are indeed full of humanistic pleas to ameliorate the condition of Indian women. The
reference of scriptures was just to sell his agenda.
They undertook to reform their society and its religious practices in order to adapt them to Western modernity
while preserving the core of Hindu tradition.
1. It can be argued that they took recourse to the colonial state for support and direction from the post
enlightenment concepts of rationality, but they could never leave the Indian tradition. The Indian
modernization project always felt a compulsion to construct a modernity that would be located within
Indian cultural space.
Raja Ram Mohun Roy
1. Education: He opened many institutions like the Hindu College and the Sanskrit College. He was a
champion of modern sciences and western education. He setup a Society for Translating European
Sciences in 1825 and the Derozians followed it up with a Society for the Acquisition of General
Knowledge in 1838. His movement reached a major milestone when in 1876 Mahendra Lal Sarkar setup
the Indian Association for the Cultivation of Sciences.
2. Journalism: He had a journal called Samvad Kaumudi and was one of the earliest tall figures in this are
who defined the path of its growth.
3. Vernacular Languages: Wrote in Bengali. Translated many books in Bengali.
4. Women: Fought for abolition of sati. Widow remarriage, child marriage.
5. Religion: Fought against priestly domination, caste system, polytheism (translated the upanishads into
Bengali to prove that ancient scriptures prescribed monotheism), idol worship, rituals.
6. Politics: Organized first political agitation.
7. International: Kept himself aware of international events. Naples revolution failure => fasted.
8. Economy: Raised his voice on economic issues as well.
Bijoy Goswami
1. He took the movement out from the elite circle in Calcutta into the district towns of east Bengal along
with KC Sen. He bridged the gap between Brahmo movement and Vaishnavism.
Debendra Nath Tagore
1. He reorganized Brahmo Samaj and found Tatvabodhini Sabha. After the 1st Brahmo Samaj split in 1865
over question of radical reforms, he led the old faction called Adi Brahmo Samaj.
KC Sen
1. He took the movement out of Bengal. He found Sangat Sabha in 1860. He toured India and helped in
founding Veda Samaj by S Naidu and Pratthna Samaj in Maharastra. He found Indian Reform Association
which was 1st all India reform association.
2. He promoted girl education and reforms which led to Child Marriage Restraint Act.
3. After the 1st Brahmo Samaj split in 1865 he led the radical faction Bharatvarshiya Brahmo Samaj which
wanted to dissociate itself from Hinduism altogether. The other faction led by DN Tagore preferred to
maintain their identification with Hinduism. Later on Sen himself became milder and in 1878 there was a
2nd split over the issue of KC Sen marrying off his minor daughter. His rivals formed Sadharan Brahmo
Samaj (included SN Bannerjea, AM Bose, Sivnath Sastri). After the 2nd split, he went on to found Nav
Vidhaan with focus on mixing Hindu and Christian ideas. But eventually the movement died as it
succumbed to Hindu revivalism.
Arya Samaj
1. It laid stress on infallibility of Vedas (because social evils were absent in those times) and education
including modern sciences. It is difficult to ignore the western orientalist touch in his discourse that tried
to project Hinduism as a "religion of the book". But in his aggressive response to the west, he fully used
the western tools of reason and science. Yet the reforms he argued for were the very reforms £ too argued
for.
2. It was an attempt to revitalize Hindu society in face of the insensitive and fraudulent activities of Christian
missionaries, westernization of India for colonial purposes. He held Hinduism to be superior than Islam or
Christianity because for him 'Vedas alone contained scientific truths'.
3. However, it remained confined to North because the appeal of Vedas was not popular in Dravidian lands
and nonVedic groups.
Reforms in W India
1. In W India, reforms began in 2 different ways one was the orientalist method of rediscovering the glory
of ancient Indian civilization through its texts (KT Talang, VN Mandalik and RG Bhandarkar belonged to
this school), and the other was the more radical and direct trend of attacking caste system, widow
remarriage etc (Mehtaji Durgaram, Dadoba Pandurang, Mandav Dharma Sabha, Paramhansa Mandali).
Prarthna Samaj
1. KC Sen visited deccan between 1864 and 1867 and as a direct consequence, Prarthna Samaj was setup by
MG Ranade in 1867 along with Atmaram Pandurang, RG Bhandarkar, KT Talang. All the leading
personalities of this movement were western educated brahmans and its philosophy followed that of
Brahmo samaj even though it maintained its distinction from the latter in avoiding a direct confrontation
with the brahmanical society (and thus was more cautious and gradual in approach than Brahmo samaj).
Thus it did not seek to break with the past and end all connections with the society.
2. Its activities in AP were spread by the famous widow remarriage champion Veersa Lingam Pantulu.
Young Bengal
Young Bengal left little distinctive or permanent impression on the plane of religion and philosophy.
Thus the challenge was to rediscover reason and science in their own civilization, and to reposition the
modernization project within a cultural space defined by Indian tradition.
1. They wanted to transform the scientific rationalist mentality into an effective social agenda. They were
guided by free thinking and became notorious for their individual social rebellion. Their importance was
that they posed a direct and militant intellectual challenge to the religious and social orthodoxy in
Hinduism.
2. They founded the Society for the Acquisition of General Knowledge in 1838 and advocated social reforms
like ending caste taboos, child marriage, kulin polygamy or the ban on widow remarriage. Yet they
couldn't usher in an age of reform because they were too anglicized in their thought and behavior. Any
movement which based itself on the western thought and distant from Indian tradition couldn't have
succeeded in India. Thus the challenge was to rediscover reason and science in their own civilization, and
to reposition the modernization project within a cultural space defined by Indian tradition.
Other Women Movements
It is simplistic to suggest that the great reformers of the 19th century were not concerned about the welfare of
women; but the reforms were not just for women.
1. When civilizations were ranked, one of the major criteria was the position of women and it was here that
Indian civilization was severely criticized. So the educated Indians responded to this criticism by
advocating women reforms. Such reforms however affected only few women.
2. In 1841 an anonymous Maratha brahman reformer advocated child remarriage of infant widows as a
measure to control their sexuality and to make their reproductive capacity socially useful.
3. In 1860s a strong movement under Vishnu Sastri for widow remarriage began but in 1870 it suffered a
setback when the reformists were defeated in a public debate. By 1900, only 38 widow remarriages had
taken place and in all the places the couples had to face immense social pressure.
4. In Telugu speaking areas of Madras, Veersa Lingam Pantulu started the widow remarriage movement and
founded the Society for Social Reform in 1878. He officiated the 1st widow remarriage in 1881 in
Rajahmundry. He was able to rally support for the movement and in 1891 a Widow Remarriage
Association was formed with the patronage of prominent citizens of the town.
5. In Bengal, Vidyasagar continued his reform movement, directing it against polygamy and child marriage
and finally secured the 1856 Act as well as the 1860 Age of Consent Act (fixing the minimum age of
consent @ 10). This was raised to 12 by the 1891 Act.
BR Ambedkar
1. Journalism: Mook Nayak (1920), Bahishkrit Bharat (1924), Prabuddha Bharat (1929).
2. Associations: 1st Depressed Classes Conference @ Mangaon / Kolhapur (1920), Bahishkrit Sabha @
Bombay (1924), 2nd Depressed Classes Conference @ Mahad (1927) where he publicly burnt Manu
Smriti, Simon Committee (1928), 3rd Depressed Classes Conference @ Nagpur (1930), Independent
Labor Party (1936).
3. Agitations: Mahad Satyagrah (1924) for right of untouchable to draw water from public wells,
Ferazai Movement
1. It was led initially by Shariatullah of Farirpur (E Bengal) and later by his son Muhammad Mehsin (Dadu
Mian).
2. He was influenced by Wahabism and preached radical ideas, need to oppose exploitation. He campaigned
against payment of rents.
Wahabi Movement
1. It was preached in India by Syed Ahmed Khan of Barelli and it was popular in NWFP.
2. It stressed on purity of Islam and was orthodox.

Social & Cultural Developments: What Was Taught?

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4/10/2017 Evernote shared notebook: history modern

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