Cultural
Dynamics and Strategies of the Indian Elite (1870-1947): Indo-French and Anti-French Under the Raj
By-
Samuel Berthet
Published
in Association with Centre de Sciences Humaines, New Delhi
The
history of French culture in India tends to show that if for long conflicts in
the colonial context have been studied in a dual perspective, they can be
better understood in a polyphonic one. From the nineteenth century onwards,
along with the opposition between the British tending to increasingly impose
their dominance, and the Indian élite trying to assimilate and manufacture a
modern identity of its own, France and French culture provided an alternate
space for cultural negotiation. Perceived in Europe and beyond as the modern culture
par excellence, the most anglicized of the Indian élite engaged themselves in a
process of appropriation of French as an alternate path for cultural discourse.
The direct consequence of this was the rapid progress of French language in
Indian universities by the end of the nineteenth century.
The
British authorities were prompt to react and tried to contain the development
of French culture within the educative institutions. The new space for culture
making created by
the Indo-French dialogue is now open to political interpretations, at times conflicting. The relations between Rabindranath Tagore and Sylvain Lévi is one instance of the difficulties for a colonizing power to acknowledge the modern ferment within the colonized regions of the world in the twentieth century. Nevertheless, as this volume so eloquently portrays, the dynamics of cultural and scientific exchanges were in motion between France and India, through the Indian diaspora and French intellectuals associating themselves with India and Indian reformist movements.
the Indo-French dialogue is now open to political interpretations, at times conflicting. The relations between Rabindranath Tagore and Sylvain Lévi is one instance of the difficulties for a colonizing power to acknowledge the modern ferment within the colonized regions of the world in the twentieth century. Nevertheless, as this volume so eloquently portrays, the dynamics of cultural and scientific exchanges were in motion between France and India, through the Indian diaspora and French intellectuals associating themselves with India and Indian reformist movements.
Samuel
Berthet
has been a lecturer at Visva Bharati and Jawaharlal Nehru universities.
Affiliated to the Centre de Sciences Humaines, he is currently research coordinator for the South Asia Europe Maritime Heritage Project conducted under the aegis of the Centre for French and Francophone Studies (JNU).
Affiliated to the Centre de Sciences Humaines, he is currently research coordinator for the South Asia Europe Maritime Heritage Project conducted under the aegis of the Centre for French and Francophone Studies (JNU).
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