This course will use a combined chronological and thematic approach, against a historical canvas that engages such diverse issues as political economy, conquest, resistance, state formation, economic exploitation, national liberation, gender, and identity politics. Beginning with the Mughal empire, we will turn our attention to the eighteenth century during the transition between two empires (the Mughals and the British), and will end in the present. The aim of this course is to interrogate the impact of British colonialism and South Asian nationalisms on the state, society, and people of the subcontinent. We will study South Asia with an eye to the experiences of its peoples. This course narrates the story of modern South Asia in a way that is sensitive to both the profound change and violence wrought by colonialism and nationalism, and the agency of South Asians in the making of their modernity. Topics covered include: the remaking of Indian society under the British Raj, the Partition of India and creation of Pakistan, and the War on Terror in South Asia. These will be investigated from historical and anthropological perspectives. Texts and readings will draw upon recent scholarly research, historical and literary primary source materials, a novel, as well as films and documentaries. We will address both the most significant historical moments of modern South Asian history and the historiographical debates that surround them.
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