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    6 views5 pages

    CamScanner 04-14-2022 00.46

    Uploaded by

    Zia Ur Rehman

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF or read online from Scribd
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    Chapter 86 GAURI VISWANATHAN THE BEGINNINGS OF ENGLISH LITERARY, STUDY IN BRITISH INDIA From ‘The Begianings ef English Literary Study in British India’ Oxford Literary Review 9(1-2), 1987. da jf masta ae wed by fatty Eueprre fo mute oer pals HIS PAPER IS PART OF A LARGER INQUIRY into the construction of English literary education as 2 cultural ideal ia British India. British parliamentary documents have provided compelling evidence for the central thesis of the investigation: that hhusronistic functions traditionally associated with the study of literature — for exemple, the shaping of character or the development of the aesthetic sense or the disciplines of ethical thialing —are also essential to the process of sociopolitical control, My argument is that Literary study goined cnormovs, cultural strength through its developmient in 2 period of territorial ‘expansion and conquest, and that the subsequent institutionalization of the discipline in England itself tock on a shape and zn ideological content developed in the colonial context. . .. English liternture made its inroads in India, albeit gradually and imperceptibly, with = crucial eyent in Indian educational Wistory: the passing of the Charter Act of 1813. This act, which renewed the East Jaca Company's charter for commercial operations in India, produced ‘wo major changes in Britain's role with respe ian subjects: gne i ofa new over missionary in kya, “Ta Keeping with the government policy of religious neutrality, the Bible was proscribed and scriptural teaching forbidden. {The opening of india a anissionaties, along with the eommitanent of the British to native | Smprovement, might appoor to suggest a victory for the missionaries, encouraging they perhaps A toantispte ofl support for ir Envegeliing mision, Bt i they had ach Tyee they \sowere to be : smyed Ly the continuing checks on their activities, which grew impossibh stangent. Dbl, the English Paamest dmandd « gone hat lergesee preselyiing : eran tl a » though, it needed little persuasion about the tages that vou from inissionary a ve ir ‘hymoral ond disgusting habits’, mn Ce nage ty oY oThough representing s converg 1, ea si tng ce of interest, these two events ~ of British involveinent inital sree ete 1.01 missionaries ~ were far from being complementary or Cle an ea yn On 3 cant ey were ently oppated to each othe a . The ins. ent consti ing on Bri i in Se cental eaten 03 gone eee eth eaten oth in prin policy are apparent Scanned with CamScanner ENGL ISH LITERARY STUDY IN BaiTisH inoia 377 eels vation. The encouragement of Oriental learning, seen ini sears cblgations to the sbjets, scemed to sexier Pea of fling ie ret as the Brtsh ewily lame to thee done, it ingoate acne nt exposing the Hindus and Madims tothe velgiourand mon] Gene spective faiths ~ 2 situation that was clearly not tenable with the stated pal a no ‘nd intelicctual improvement! & ‘moral “This tension between increasing involvement in Indian eduentian and enforer] noninters <— fence in rligfon was proluctively resolved through the itrodcton of Erp Ierture Gigtiutly, the cretion to this solution was presen in the ChyrterAet fll, whose 3rd section empowered the Governor-General-in-Couneil to direct thy ‘a sam of not less inn soe Ie af rupees shall be armualy applied to the revival snd improvement of trature, and the encouragement of the learned natives of Indin’ (Great Britain 1831-2: 496). Az subse quent debate made only too obvious, there is deliberate embigy#ty in this cluse regsrding aifieh literature was to be promoted, leeviog it wide open for msisexpretatins ane confi toarse on the isaue, While the use of the world ‘revival’ may weight the fatermettions on the side of Oriental Literature, the elmostdelsbetate imprecision suggests s more: uid gover iment postion in conflict wich the olla expousal of Osinclsm, Quer -swent. yest usr Macaley ws to ase on this very ambigty to argue mt the pss enly enn Wisin Tieraturg, and denounce in no uncertain terms stempis to nterpct the eure asa eferenee > Oriente litera — It is argued, or rather taken for granted, thot by Iterstire, the Parliament con hove meni aly ‘Arabic: and Sandi Tevatze, Dot thoy never wel hve een be honourable appellation of a learned native 10.9, naive soho wh a seth purty of Mikion, she Metaphysics of Locke, the Paps of 1700 rmegot to designate by that mn only such perso 2 right ge ie he carne tre endone all the use of cussegrai, and all he myatees of EST into the Deity. (ues 1835: 318) ion tae pasing_of the English This plea on behalf of English Hterature Ind 2 visor lle, BSS. te Ee - Fe es on eta Taasy ih ofall ruled the APS Of Oe hal alronly Bop English was not an unienown ontity #8 Tn tt is E20 A begun seceiving radimentary instruction in the Tonguage fn re ede Yet wae Tnitilly, English didnot supersede Onlentl tes Bo lh clear that itenjayed a different situs, for there was 3 sep oy the Fngish eoane tollgas fore sy. Even when it wes taught wile i ame at asta iret of studies was kept separate from the courte cf Oriental stud) 8d dents who were set of students, The rationale wes that if the English deporte a eihe A ‘atiached only to its department and to." » other (that 18 awe “the same" Siaskrit), the langage might ther be tought lassie in Greck Were taught in Eng land. © Tei important Ty espns ct ihe eney Beth oul based op literary material, was primarily devoted (9 eg MB T yetrd becsme 2 major cau the atinonphire of secularism in which these sale wore conte sr3, Wan Ent Cee oe ctnonaies who weve permited £2.06" 00 owed wore ‘a sa itself, there was a strong feeling thot texts re3 n of 8 3 a8 a form a sn which the voyager has to expect dhipowec’ (Athen 1839: 105) and that they could not bie or the at Latin and jum in English, though y Brits Indian ex However, by the 18205 Scanned with CamScanner unre op Cue 378 GAURI VISWANATAAN be relied on to exert « beneficial elfect upon the moral condition of society i ‘ in general sensivent vat compleanertd by an equally strong one th for Engh werks obesity ven for ngage purposes «high degres of mestal and moral estan was ist te svhich the maar of people siply Aid aot have, To a man in a stte of jgnoraice yt luv, lizratare would appear indifferent to virtue, Far from clivting moral ekings, paacy realing was more likely to caus him t question mora nw moce lsely and pepe Mi encourage him to deviate [rom its dictates. « «- Sven "Toe uncesintsgenerted by a stil secular policy in teaching English cervel to rence _ charles Gran in te British conseioumness. An officer ofthe Bas eda Comany Grant way cone of the first Englishmen to urge ‘he promotion of both Western literature and. Chin iW Indias 1797 he had written a tract, ended Chserrations on the State.of Society omong the ‘ae Sabi of Gece Bion, which waa seating denunciation of Indian religion and het interested the British sn the ear following the actual introduction of English swat Gront's ghrewd observetion that by emphasiting the moral apect, it would be possible to lk sbout introducing Western education without having to torr open the door of English Hoeral thong to natives te aim at aoralsaproverent ofthe subjects without having veorry about the posite danger of inculating radical ideas that would upset hs Bie presence in India, Moral jood and bappinees Grant had axgucd"vews politics through the safe medium of morals, to the laws of universal ectitude!_{Grest Britain 1832! 73). The mest appeiing part of his gument, from the point of weve of a govem ent now sensing the Buh of the missidnaries) criticism of secularism, .was that historically Christianity bad never becn associated with bringing down gov sraments, for its concer was swith the interaal rather tian the extermal condition of mans As Tate av the 1820s, the ‘literary curriculum’ in Betis, educational establishments vewained polarized af Jasscal studies for the upper classes and yeligiows studies for the eager. As for what is mone known as the subject of English lterature, the British educations) aystem had no fern place for itt the last quarter ‘ofthe nineteenth century, when the Ghllenge posed by the wuiddle classes to the exsting structure resulted in the eration of SIteretive iostiwtions devoted to:'modern’ studics. Ie is quite concerwb.e that educetionsl development in British India may have ran the same counge a5 tt did in England, were it not for one cvucs] differenec: the strict contrals von Chistianining activitis, Clearly, she texts chat were standard fare for the lower Glasses in England could not legitsately be incorporated into the Indian curricula without inviting, cae ent reactions from tis native papolatioa, particulary the Tearned clases. And yet the fear Fingered in de British mind that without submission of the individual to moral law or the authority of God, the

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