Gandhi against Caste
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ISBN:
9780199474295
Publication date:
15/07/2017
Hardback
336 pages
Price: 795.00
We sell our titles through other companies
Disclaimer :You will be redirected to a third party website.The sole responsibility of supplies, condition of the product, availability of stock, date of delivery, mode of payment will be as promised by the said third party only. Prices and specifications may vary from the OUP India site.
ISBN:
9780199474295
Publication date:
15/07/2017
Hardback
336 pages
Nishikant Kolge
The book seeks to examine Gandhi’s understanding of the caste and varna, and his evolving strategies to abolish it. It divides the entire political career of Gandhi in India into five periods—1915 to 1920, 1920 to 1927, 1927 to 1932, 1932 to 1945, and 1945 to 1948—based on the themes that emerge in his writings during those years on issues of untouchability, caste, varna, sanatani Hindu, inter-dining, and inter-caste marriage. It traces the evolution of Gandhi’s views, exploring shifts and turns in the context of political and social development of the time.
Rights: World Rights
Nishikant Kolge
Description
In 1909, while still in South Africa, Gandhi publicly decried the caste system for its inequalities. Shortly after his return to India though, he spoke of the generally beneficial aspects of caste. Gandhi’s writings on caste reflect contradictory views and his critics accuse him of neglecting the unequal socio-economic structure that relegated Dalits to the bottom of the caste hierarchy. So, did Gandhi endorse the fourfold division of the Indian society or was he truly against caste?
In this book, Nishikant Kolge investigates the entire range of what Gandhi said or wrote about caste divisions over a period of more than three decades: from his return to India in 1915 to his death in 1948. Interestingly, Kolge also maps Gandhi’s own statements that undermined his stance against the caste system. These writings uncover the ‘strategist Gandhi’ who understood that social transformation had to be a slow process for the conservative but powerful section of Hindus who were not yet ready for radical reforms.
Seven decades after it attained freedom from colonial powers, caste continues to influence the socio-political dynamics of India. And Gandhi against caste—the battle is not over yet.
About the Author
Nishikant Kolge teaches at the Department of History, Tripura University, India. He holds a PhD degree in history from the Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology Madras, India. His articles have appeared in leading journals such as Gandhi Marg and Economic and Political Weekly.
Nishikant Kolge
Table of contents
Foreword by Rajmohan Gandhi
Acknowledgements
1. Was there a strategy in Gandhi’s approach to fight against the caste system?
2. What did Gandhi stand for and what did he intend to achieve?
3. Gandhi’s evolving strategy to abolish the caste system: Part I
4. Gandhi’s evolving strategy to abolish the caste system: Part II
5. Critical analysis: Ambedkar, Gandhi, and the Arya Samaj
The politician: A response to Arundhati Roy’s ‘The Doctor and the Saint’
Glossary
Gandhi’s Life: A Chronology
Further Readings
Index
About the Author
Nishikant Kolge
Review
‘In this fine new book, Nishikant Kolge provides a richly researched analysis of the limits as well as the possibilities of Gandhi's critique of untouchability and caste prejudice. By using a wide array of primary and secondary sources, and by meticulously juxtaposing Gandhi's words with Gandhi's practice, Kolge provides a clear path through the fog of distortion and misrepresentation that has clouded this subject. Gandhi is a central figure in our modern history; caste perhaps the central theme of this history. This impressive book should therefore be of interest to all students and scholars of Indian history, politics, and society.’—Ramachandra Guha
Nishikant Kolge
Description
In 1909, while still in South Africa, Gandhi publicly decried the caste system for its inequalities. Shortly after his return to India though, he spoke of the generally beneficial aspects of caste. Gandhi’s writings on caste reflect contradictory views and his critics accuse him of neglecting the unequal socio-economic structure that relegated Dalits to the bottom of the caste hierarchy. So, did Gandhi endorse the fourfold division of the Indian society or was he truly against caste?
In this book, Nishikant Kolge investigates the entire range of what Gandhi said or wrote about caste divisions over a period of more than three decades: from his return to India in 1915 to his death in 1948. Interestingly, Kolge also maps Gandhi’s own statements that undermined his stance against the caste system. These writings uncover the ‘strategist Gandhi’ who understood that social transformation had to be a slow process for the conservative but powerful section of Hindus who were not yet ready for radical reforms.
Seven decades after it attained freedom from colonial powers, caste continues to influence the socio-political dynamics of India. And Gandhi against caste—the battle is not over yet.
About the Author
Nishikant Kolge teaches at the Department of History, Tripura University, India. He holds a PhD degree in history from the Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology Madras, India. His articles have appeared in leading journals such as Gandhi Marg and Economic and Political Weekly.
Table of contents
Foreword by Rajmohan Gandhi
Acknowledgements
1. Was there a strategy in Gandhi’s approach to fight against the caste system?
2. What did Gandhi stand for and what did he intend to achieve?
3. Gandhi’s evolving strategy to abolish the caste system: Part I
4. Gandhi’s evolving strategy to abolish the caste system: Part II
5. Critical analysis: Ambedkar, Gandhi, and the Arya Samaj
The politician: A response to Arundhati Roy’s ‘The Doctor and the Saint’
Glossary
Gandhi’s Life: A Chronology
Further Readings
Index
About the Author
Gyanesh Kudaisya
Stewart Gordon
Meena Arora Nayak
Meena Menon and Uzramma
