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Indian writing in English emerged as a distinct literature that also served as a link between India's diverse literary traditions. During the early stages of the Indian independence movement in the late 19th century, educated Indians began writing in English to advocate for social, educational, and religious reforms. Notable reformist writers included Ram Mohan Roy, Keshub Chandra Sen, and Dayanand Saraswati. As the freedom struggle gained momentum in the early 20th century, many prominent Indian writers like Rabindranath Tagore, Sri Aurobindo, Gandhi, and Jawaharlal Nehru employed literature to inspire nationalism and patriotism. Their writings helped strengthen and spread the ideals of the independence
Indian writing in English emerged as a distinct literature that also served as a link between India's diverse literary traditions. During the early stages of the Indian independence movement in the late 19th century, educated Indians began writing in English to advocate for social, educational, and religious reforms. Notable reformist writers included Ram Mohan Roy, Keshub Chandra Sen, and Dayanand Saraswati. As the freedom struggle gained momentum in the early 20th century, many prominent Indian writers like Rabindranath Tagore, Sri Aurobindo, Gandhi, and Jawaharlal Nehru employed literature to inspire nationalism and patriotism. Their writings helped strengthen and spread the ideals of the independence
Indian writing in English emerged as a distinct literature that also served as a link between India's diverse literary traditions. During the early stages of the Indian independence movement in the late 19th century, educated Indians began writing in English to advocate for social, educational, and religious reforms. Notable reformist writers included Ram Mohan Roy, Keshub Chandra Sen, and Dayanand Saraswati. As the freedom struggle gained momentum in the early 20th century, many prominent Indian writers like Rabindranath Tagore, Sri Aurobindo, Gandhi, and Jawaharlal Nehru employed literature to inspire nationalism and patriotism. Their writings helped strengthen and spread the ideals of the independence
India during the Freedom Struggle: Writing and Thought
K. R. Srinivasa Iyengar in his book Indian writing in English writes If
English is admittedly a link-language in India today, Indian writing in English, besides being a distinctive literature in its own right, is also a link-literature in the context of Indias pluralistic literary landscape. Now let us examine in brief the term Indian Writing in English. When we come across anything we tend to see things both in their uniqueness and in their inter-relatedness to everything else. A poem or a novel has its autonomy certainly but it has also filiations (the term used by Iyengar) with the larger ever growing body that is literature. Indo Anglian literature is an expression of the practical no less than creative genius of the Indian people. Indian Writing in English is Indian literature. But Indian literature comprises of various languages such as Hindi, Marathi, Malayalam, and so many more. Indian writing in English is but one of the voices in which India speaks. Indian writing in English is by a person Indian in thought and feeling and emotion and experience who submits to discipline of English for expression. Indian writing in English is also referred to as Indo Anglian Literature. Anglo-Indian literature is the product of Indo-English literary relations. When England and India had come together, out of this development in the history of India had come the offspring: Indo Anglian Literature. Indian writing in English has its own distinctiveness but may be categorised under commonwealth literature. In general, Commonwealth literature is a vague term which defines English-language works written in the former British colonies or place which had the status of dominion. It may also fall under Post-colonial literature (also Postcolonial literature, New English Literature, and New English literatures) is a body of literary writing that responds to the intellectual discourse of European colonization in the Middle East, Asia, and Africa. The conquest of India, which could be said to have begun with the Battle of Plassey 1757)), was practically completed by the end of Dalhousie's tenure in1856. It had been by no means a smooth affair as the simmering discontent of the people manifested itself in many localized revolt during this period. However, the Mutiny of 1857, which began with a revolt of the military soldiers at Meerut, soon became widespread and posed a grave challenge to the British rule. Indian Freedom Struggle refers to period from 1857 to 1947 when India achieved independence. Before looking into the freedom struggle of India, it is necessary to know the origin of English in India which later gave rise to Indian Writing in English. English came to India with the coming of England. Thought the Company was not interested in the welfare of India there were individuals (servants of the Company) like Warren Hastings who established the Calcutta Madrassa in 1781, Sir William Jones who
organized the Royal Asiatic Society of Bengal in 1784, Sir Thomas
Munroe etc. The greatest impact on the development or foundation of English in India came when the commercial monopoly of the Company was ended in 1813, and the British in India assumed, police functions, educative and civilizing or administrative functions as well. Missionaries began to enter, and they helped established printing press which served printing of grammar books, dictionaries, and translations etc. The printing press led to newspapers and Hickeys Bengal Gazette was the first Newspaper. Lastly came private schools imparting English Education. And slowly colleges came into existence. Hindu College in Calcutta was one such established in 1817. Raja Rammohan Roy was one of the products of this college. The introduction of English to Indians brought various changes step by step. At first the Indians because of English were introduced to literature of Europe, Science and other subjects and culture of the civilized world and to Christianity. Indians were attracted to this strangeness and welcomed it. People like Raja Rammohan Roy went to the extent of founding a new religion based called Brahmo Samaaj which advocated monotheism and assimilated tenets of Islam and Christianity. Raja Rammohan Roy not only wanted more English in India but he wanted more Englishmen also. Thus he wrote ...the settlement in India by European should at least be undertaken experimentally... Among others who followed in his footsteps was Keshub Chandra Sen, who tried to forge the links between England and India and Hinduism and Christianity, thus he wrote: Let, then, India learn from England practical righteousness. Let England learn from India devotion, faith and prayer. During the 20 years between 1835 and 1855- the period of the Macaulay and the Wood dispensations English spread like wild fire but soon people began to realize the disadvantages of neglecting the vernacular languages or the native languages and adopting a culture and religion different from their own. Perhaps in retaliation to missionary practices Dayanand Saraswati organized the Arya Samaajin 1857whose objective was to preserve and purify Hinduism and even proselytize Non Hindu.Next came the Pratharna Samaaj which was established in 1867. It too didnt dissociate itself from Hindu community and flirted with Christianity. It focused on the tradition of the prophets and saints of Maharashtra like Jnanadev, Tukaram and others. Thus during the early stages of freedom struggle we see that the view of Indians towards England and the British Raj was changing. A movement for social, educational and religious reform was started by young man possessed of idealism and a capacity for intellectual discipline. These men were not like the Derozio Men. Of these men were Kashinath Trimbak Telang and Mahadev Govind Ranade. The reforms advocated by them paved the way for political emancipation.
Ranade was a scholar, economist and jurist. He wrote in English his
classic Rise of the Maratha Power; and he believed that the various races of India could really fuse into a nation. Later, Gopal Krishna Gokhale who was one of the founding social and political leaders during the Indian Independence Movement, became Ranades disciple, and carried forward the work Ranade had begun. Like Ranade and Telang, Sir Narayan Chandavarkar was also journalist, judge, orator, politician, Pratharna Samajist, all rolled into one. His speeches and writings on social reform and education and literature drew upon his vast knowledge and experience. He was a leading reformer and was elected president of Indian National Congress in the 1900. Among the many learned and Indian and a prominent personality in the early Indian Freedom Struggle was Dadabhai Naoroji. He taught at Elphinstone College. Naoroji is also credited with the founding of the Indian National Congress, along with A.O. Hume and Dinshaw Edulji Wacha. His book Poverty and Un-British Rule in India brought attention to the draining of India's wealth into Britain. The book was written in English and is one of the important piece of work related to Indias freedom struggle. In his book he writes: I need only say that the people of India have not the slightest voice in the expenditure of the revenue, and therefore in the good government of the country. Literature played a significant role in Indias freedom struggle. At the beginning the educated gentry wrote in English and at later stage to promulgate the ideas of Swaraj and Independence among common masses. Various newspapers, journals, were written in vernacular languages. More and more writers began to employ literature for patriotic purpose. Even when freedom from the British Rule had not yet emerged as a programme for any major political organization or movement, and the Indian National Congress was concerned only with constitutional agitation, the realization of subjection and the need for freedom had begun to be clearly expressed in literature. With the passage of time, as the freedom movement began to attract larger sections of the people, and the demand for freedom became more insistent, literature strengthened the growing idealism of people. But it also did something more. Besides inspiring people to make all kinds of sacrifices for the cause of countrys liberation, literature also brought out weaknesses of the nationalist movement and its leaders. Noted writers during the Indian Freedom Struggle are Rabindranath Tagore, Sri Aurobindo, Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru. Rabindranath Tagore opposed imperialism and supported Indian nationalists, and these views were first revealed in Manast, which was mostly composed in his twenties. Sri Aurobindo was an Indian nationalist, freedom fighter, philosopher, yogi, guru and poet. He joined the Indian movement for freedom from British rule, for a while became one of its influential leaders and then
turned into a spiritual reformer, introducing his visions on human
progress and spiritual evolution. His main literary works are The Life Divine, which deals with theoretical aspects of Integral Yoga; Synthesis of Yoga, which deals with practical guidance to Integral Yoga; and Savitri. Gandhi was the preeminent leader of Indian nationalism. Gandhi was a prolific writer. One of Gandhi's earliest publications, Hind Swaraj, published in Gujarati in 1909, is recognised as the intellectual blueprint of India's freedom movement. For decades he edited several newspapers including Harijan in Gujarati, in Hindi and in the English language; Indian Opinion while in South Africa and, Young India, in English, and Navajivan, a Gujarati monthly, on his return to India. Gandhi also wrote several books including his autobiography, The Story of My Experiments with Truth. His other autobiographies included: Satyagraha in South Africa about his struggle there, Hind Swaraj or Indian Home Rule, a political pamphlet, and a paraphrase in Gujarati of John Ruskin's Unto This Last. Nehru was a prolific writer in English and wrote a number of books, such as The Discovery of India, Glimpses of World History, and his autobiography, Toward Freedom. Like Shakespeare, Marlowe and the likes, although we cannot list Rammohan Roy, Ranade, Gandhi, Tagore, and others as the poets and contributors to the Indian literature, nevertheless it should be noted that these stalwarts used language as forceful means of communicating their ideas to India and the world. These stalwarts were among makers of independent India and what they said and wrote must be cherished as our national literature. English, then, is one of our national languages and Indo-Anglian literature too is one of our national literatures.
References: 1. Dadabhai Naoroji, Poverty and Un-British Rule in India (1901), Swan Sonnenschein & Co., Lim pi-x 2. K.R.S. Iyengar. Indian Writing in English. Asia Publ. House Online refrences: www.wikipedia.org