The Library
Reconstructing the history of women's participation in the nationalist movement in India, 1905-1945
Tools
Thapar-Björkert, Suruchi (1997) Reconstructing the history of women's participation in the nationalist movement in India, 1905-1945. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.
|
PDF
WRAP_THESIS_Thapar-Bjorkert_1997.pdf - Submitted Version - Requires a PDF viewer. Download (22Mb) |
Official URL: http://webcat.warwick.ac.uk/record=b1359811~S1
Abstract
The nationalist struggle in India against British colonial rule brought about the
political mobilisation of both men and women. The nationalist leaders required the
participation of women in the nationalist movement because the movement's
importance and success was dependent on women's contribution to and involvement
in it. While the existing research has contributed to my understanding of women's
interaction with political life in India, this study attempts to reconstruct the dominant
interpretations on women's political involvement. In doing so, it deconstructs
concepts such as 'active', 'private', 'public' and 'political'.
The argument in this thesis is shaped through three inter-related themes. First, it
problematises women's emergence into the public sphere from a purdah-bound
domestic existence. Secondly, it locates the domestic as an equally important site of
nationalist activities as the public sphere. Thirdly, in the light of the above themes, it
is suggested that dichotomous concepts such as public/private do not help to explain
the interaction between these spheres, which facilitated the complex process of
women's emergence in the public sphere. Moreover, the associated concepts of
political/apolitical do not take into account women's political contributions from
within the domestic sphere.
Within the domestic sphere, women's nationalist identities were continuously
re-negotiated to accommodate values of ancient Indian culture and the new Western
influences. These identities shifted from an educated domestic woman to a nonviolent
and non-antagonistic public woman to a public woman aware of challenging
Western ideas, yet primarily confined to the domestic sphere.
The nationalist movement also served as an important vehicle for encouraging
middle-class women to engage in activities and to adopt new role models. The
representations of women constructed by the nationalist project enabled women to
play a political role through the avenues they opened, in both the public and domestic
domains. However, women's political past and their varied contribution to the
struggle was not effective in undermining gender inequalities or improving their status
in society.
The ideas in this historical study are shaped primarily through oral narratives
and Hindi vernacular literature. The interviews with Indian activists, as a non-Western
researcher, made me aware of the negotiable category 'Other'. Official and unofficial
sources provided an initial framework for the study of this historical period.
Item Type: | Thesis (PhD) | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Subjects: | D History General and Old World > DS Asia | ||||
Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH): | Nationalism -- India -- History -- 20th century, Indian women activists -- History -- 20th century | ||||
Official Date: | May 1997 | ||||
Dates: |
|
||||
Institution: | University of Warwick | ||||
Theses Department: | Centre for the Study of Women and Gender | ||||
Thesis Type: | PhD | ||||
Publication Status: | Unpublished | ||||
Supervisor(s)/Advisor: | Wolkowitz, Carol ; Liddle, Joanna | ||||
Sponsors: | British Council ; Northbrook Society ; International Federation of University Women ; University of Warwick ; Sir Ernest Cassel Educational Trust | ||||
Extent: | xxii, 312 leaves | ||||
Language: | eng |
Request changes or add full text files to a record
Repository staff actions (login required)
View Item |
Downloads
Downloads per month over past year