2024/25 Undergraduate Module Catalogue

HIST2420 Nationalism, Colonialism and 'Religious Violence' in India, 1857-1947

20 creditsClass Size: 45

Module manager: Professor William Gould
Email: W.R.Gould@leeds.ac.uk

Taught: Semester 2 (Jan to Jun) View Timetable

Year running 2024/25

This module is not approved as a discovery module

Module summary

'So far as I am able to judge, nothing has been left undone either by man or nature, to make India the most extraordinary country that the sun visits on his rounds' (Mark Twain). India is considered to be one of the largest and most participatory democracies in human history, but has also been a centre of conflict. This course examines how the ethnic and religious conflicts, particularly those between 'Hindus' and 'Muslims', were transformed and moulded by colonialism and nationalism in India; asking how far the interpretation of Indian religious, ethnic and caste difference was part of a British struggle to understand and rule such a huge country, and examines Indian responses to the colonial state, from the great revolt of 1857, through Gandhian national protests, to independence and partition in 1947.

Objectives

On completion of this module, students should be able to:
1. build on a broad knowledge and interest in India and the rest of the subcontinent in the era of decolonisation.
2. find inter-connections between nationalisms and processes of decolonisation in India and other non-European contexts.
3. understand how national and religious identities have been tackled and discussed by historians of Asia and Europe.
4. write and talk knowledgeably about caste, religion in India, and their inter-connection with political processes.

Skills outcomes
Enhances Common Skills listed below:
- high-level skills in oral and written communication of complex ideas;
- independence of mind and self-discipline and self-direction to work effectively under own initiative;
- ability to locate, handle and synthesize large amounts of information;
- capacity to employ analytical and problem-solving abilities;
- ability to engage constructively with the ideas of their peers, tutors and published sources;
- empathy and active engagement with alternative cultural contexts.

Syllabus

'So far as I am able to judge, nothing has been left undone either by man or nature, to make India the most extraordinary country that the sun visits on his rounds' wrote Mark Twain about the country which is home to a quarter of the world's population, to all of the major global religions, to 33 languages with a million or more speakers, and to the man with the world's largest moustache. India is considered to be one of the largest and most participatory democracies in human history.

Yet India is, and has historically been a centre of ethnic and religious conflict. This course examines how these conflicts, particularly those between 'Hindus' and 'Muslims', were transformed and moulded by colonialism and nationalism in India. It asks how far the interpretation of Indian religious, ethnic and caste difference was part of a British struggle to understand and rule such a huge country, and examines Indian responses to the colonial state: From the great revolt of 1857, through Gandhian national protests, to independence and partition in 1947.

Teaching methods

Delivery type	Number	Length hours	Student hours
Lecture	11	1.00	11.00
Tutorial	9	1.00	9.00
Private study hours			180.00
Total Contact hours			20.00
Total hours (100hr per 10 credits)			200.00

Private study

- Exam preparation; researching, preparing, and writing assignments
- Undertaking set reading
- Self-directed reading around the topic

Opportunities for Formative Feedback

Contributions to class discussions, an assessed exercise or exercises worth 10% of module marks, an assessed essay.

Methods of assessment

Coursework

Assessment type	Notes	% of formal assessment
Essay	Essay of 3000 words	60.00
Assignment	3 blog/VLE mini essay posts (the 3 best chosen from 5), (500-750 words)	40.00
Total percentage (Assessment Coursework)		100.00

Normally resits will be assessed by the same methodology as the first attempt, unless otherwise stated

Reading list

The reading list is available from the Library website

Last updated: 18/10/2024

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