Department of History                                                                                                        Spring 2022

HISTORY 460    Cricket Colonialism and Nationalism (Readings in World History)

A Liberal Studies Course in the Social and Political Worlds Block.  Also fulfills the NAU Global Diversity Requirement.

 

Text Box: Instructor: SANJAY JOSHI Office: LA 206 Office Hours: (Virtual until pandemic subsides!) Tu-Thu 11:30-12:30 pm, and by appointment E-mail: Sanjay.Joshi@nau.edu Phone: 523-6216 Meeting time: Tu 4:00-6:30 Location: LA 123 Course Web Page: http://jan.ucc.nau.edu/~sj6/ HIS 460 Cricket Webpage.htm PLEASE CHECK THE LINK ABOVE FOR A COPY OF THIS SYLLABUS WITH CLICKABLE LINKS TO ELECTRONIC READINGS.

 

                                                            

Do Check NAU’s Policy Statements: https://nau.edu/university-policy-library/syllabus-requirements/

 

“What do they know of cricket who only cricket know.”  C. L. R. James

 

COURSE DESCRIPTION

To understand cricket one has to locate it in history, and the history of this sport is inextricably linked with the histories of colonialism and nationalism. This course explores the history of the world’s second most popular sport (after soccer).  An estimated one billion people (one of seven people across the world) watched the Cricket World Cup Final of 2015.  A bat and ball game that began in the villages of medieval England spread across the British Empire in the 18th and 19th centuries.  Its spread was a direct product of the British Empire and much of its popularity (and perhaps also its decline in some parts of the world) was the product of nationalism.

 

Today, cricket is a major sport in many parts of the former British Empire. Australia, Bangladesh, England, India, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa, Sri Lanka, West Indies, and Zimbabwe comprise the major cricket-playing countries of the world.  However, it is only in the Indian subcontinent (Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka) that the sport is all-consuming.   From the 1980s, the popularity the sport has grown exponentially in India.  India’s large population, a growing economy, and communications revolution ensures that it is by far the largest market for the sport.  As a result, the center of the sport has moved from older colonial elites in England and Australia to India.  This course will explore the interconnections between the sport, and social, economic, cultural, and political phenomena of colonialism and nationalism from the 19th Century to the present-day.  We will explore some key moments and some key figures in the history of this sport, even as we locate these histories in larger historical contexts. 

 

READINGS

Book (available as online book via Cline and at the NAU Bookstore)

C. L. R. James, Beyond a Boundary (50th Anniversary Edition) Durham: Duke University Press, 2013 [reprint, original, 1963]  ISBN: 978-0-8223-5563-2  This is available as an e-book via Cline Library using the following URL https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/nau-ebooks/detail.action?pq-origsite=primo&docID=1603734 You will need your NAU credentials.

 

James’ book is a classic, combining as it does his deep love for the traditions and aesthetics of the sport with a critical look at the politics of race, class, and empire.  You will find it referenced in almost all scholarly work that you will read for this course.  These other readings are as much a required part of the class readings as James’ book.  There are direct clickable links to most of these readings available through the electronic version of this syllabus on the COURSE WEB PAGE.  As a matter of habit, I urge you to visit all course-related web sites in advance and save or print the required readings.  As I am sure most of you are aware, connections to web sites often fail at the very time we need them most!  For that reason, having soft or hard copies of the readings in advance will prevent panic the night before class, or a few hours before!!   Please note that many links require you to be logged in via an NAU domain, either from campus or via VPN.

 

STUDENT LEARNING EXPECTATIONS/OUTCOMES FOR THIS COURSE

Sixteen weeks from now, you all will have developed some sense of the complex history of the global spread of cricket from the 19th century to the present day.  To help you understand this history, the course assigns a variety of readings and a few films.  It is critical you complete your assigned reading and viewing before coming to class. Class discussions (and sometimes lectures) will always relate to the topics assigned but will not summarize assigned readings. Instead, our class period will be used to address your questions from the readings, and through the course of discussion, we will introduce additional material, different interpretations, and theoretical concepts that are not always in the text.  I expect you to be motivated to learn about the subject and to improve your skills as a historian. I will do my best to help you understand more about the subject.  But my efforts will only help if you bring a healthy curiosity and an active engagement with the contents of this course.  An active engagement will allow students to:

·       Learn through discussion of texts and films, the processes through which the sport was globalized (and resisted) from the 19th Century.

·       Demonstrate, through your assignments, your grasp of the details of this complex history.

·       Demonstrate through in-class discussions and your final paper your understanding of assigned textual materials and participate in critical discussions of sources and their interpretation.

·       Demonstrate through the final paper, your ability to independently identify, research, analyze, and present information from a variety of sources: primary and secondary sources as well as information gathered from global news and scholarly sources

 

WORK HABITS:  I strongly urge all students in my classes to back up their written work in multiple ways and in multiple locations.  In addition to your hard drive, please back up your work on the cloud (working on or uploading regularly to Google Docs is one possibility) and an external USB-type drive.  “My computer crashed” or “the file was accidentally deleted” are treated on par with excuses like “the dog ate my homework.”

 

ASSESSMENT OF LEARNING OUTCOMES

The course uses primarily three types of instruments to assess your achievement of the learning objectives listed above, in addition to regular participation in class activities. You must submit, a day before five of the class meetings, a response paper summarizing and evaluating the class readings and/or film assigned for the following class period. You will write one review of the film, Fire in Babylon, in the context of a longer history of Caribbean cricket in C.L.R. James’ book. You will also write one final paper on the global history of cricket but primarily focused on one topic.  This could be an event, an individual, a theme (such as race, gender, class, or caste), or one region of the world.  I will ask you to write a short preliminary proposal for this paper, due in Week Six, and then a more formal proposal that will be due Week Ten.  I do not accept late assignments unless allowed for by University policy.  Health-related absences or tardiness in submitting assignments will require documentation.  There will be no exams for this course.

I.                Discussion Questions: Students need to submit at least two discussion questions on the readings for the week on FIVE occasions through the semester (covering Weeks Two through Nine and Weeks Eleven and Twelve).  The questions must reveal a close and thoughtful reading/viewing of the assigned material and be aimed to promote discussion rather than be simple queries. Questions must be submitted at least an hour prior to start of class.  You should submit them on the assignment section of BB Learn, though I also encourage you post them on the Discussion Board on BbLearn to share with the rest of the class.  Each set of submissions will be evaluated out of 20 points, and if you submit more than five, the best five will count toward the final grade for a maximum of 100 points.

II.             Response paper: Over the course of the semester, you need to submit at least FIVE 350–500-word response papers to the assigned readings. These are due by 5 pm on Monday (day before class) for Weeks Two through Six, Week Eleven and Week Fourteen.  There are seven possible response papers, and you must submit at least five over the semester.  If you submit more than five, I will take the best five into account. A response paper should consist of the following:

·       The central thesis of each of the articles, book chapters, or film assigned for that week (100-150 words)

·       The evidence used to support the theses, including at least one short and relevant quote from each reading or film. (150-200 words)

·       How the readings and/or film connect, and what you learnt from them collectively. (100-150 words)

Response papers will be graded out of 40 points each and together will count for a maximum of 200 points for the course.

III.           Before the end of class time on Week Ten you will submit a 1200-to-1500-word review of the film Fire in Babylon relating the successes of the West Indies team of the 1970s to the themes brought up by C. L. R. James in his book, Beyond a Boundary.  I will be assessing your review based on both your close observation of the film and your close reading of James’ book.  This assignment will be graded out of 200 points.

IV.           Final Paper: Your task will write a formal paper on a globally connected aspect of the history of cricket.

In addition to demonstrating your knowledge of the course material, this paper requires you to conduct some independent research.  Your paper should use at least five sources beyond course readings (at least two journalistic sources and three scholarly sources) on your topic.  Scholarly sources can include peer-reviewed journals (or their websites), books published by reputable academic presses, or proceedings of conferences.  I would particularly urge you to look at journals such as the International Journal for the History of Sport or Journal of Sport History, though “mainstream” history journals often carry work on the history of cricket as well.  Running a search on JSTOR (search for the database via the Cline Library site) with relevant keywords will also help.  

 

Writing of this paper will go through three stages.  Before the start of class on Week Seven, you will submit a PRELIMINARY proposal for your paper.  I expect this to be around 300-500 words, outlining your TOPIC, showing its connection with global history, and the possible sources or where you will look for the sources to write this paper.  This assignment will be graded out of 50 points.

 

Before start of class on Week Twelve, you will submit the FINAL version of your proposal.  I expect this document to be around 1000 words, and include not only a specific topic, but also a preliminary thesis or argument of the paper.  In addition, you must provide an annotated bibliography of the sources you will use to write the paper. The annotations will indicate how the source will help in making the case for your paper.  This will be graded out of 100 points.

 

The final paper around 3000 words (~ 12 pages) excluding notes and bibliography (double spaced, one-inch margins, fonts between ten and twelve points) is due before start of class on Week Sixteen.  The paper should be formally written (no slang), make full use of citations using the Turabian/Chicago Style citation style, and have a clearly marked thesis bolded in the first paragraph of the paper.  I will be evaluating the paper on style and content.  Grammatical, spelling, and other errors will be penalized.  The final paper will be graded out of 250 points.

 

IV. Class Participation: My assessment of your attendance and your active participation in class activities (questions and discussions of reading and films) will count toward 200 points of the total course grade.

 

EVALUATION

Grades will be determined using the following criteria:

            Discussion Questions (best 5)                        100 (20 points each)

Response Papers (best 5)                                200 (40 points each)

Review of Fire in Babylon                             200

Preliminary Proposal for Final Paper             50

Detailed Proposal for Final Paper                  100

Final Paper                                                      250

Attendance and Participation                         100 points

TOTAL FOR COURSE                                1000 points

The grading scale for the course will be as follows: 

900+ = A; 800 - 899= B; 700-799= C; 600-699= D; below 600= F.

 

COURSE POLICIES

Until we are told it is safe to interact without masks, I expect each student attending class in person to wear a mask throughout the class period (and inside buildings, generally).  I also advise you to maintain the required six feet of social distance from each other during class meeting.  I strongly suggest you clean and disinfect the area around you both before the start of class and at the end of the class session.

 

I expect regular class attendance whether in person or online.  This is a seminar class where much of the learning happens through interaction.  Without regular attendance and participation there is no point in your being enrolled in this class. Missing too many classes will undoubtedly and negatively impact on your class performance, given the discussion-oriented nature of this class, and will be penalized at my discretion.

 

If you miss a class, whatever your reasons for doing so, it is YOUR RESPONSIBILITY to meet or call a classmate and find out what happened in that class.  I also expect you to come to class having done all the required reading and prepared to engage in discussion.  Finally, I expect you to be motivated to learn about the subject, and to improve your skills as a historian and critical thinker.

 

Once in the classroom, I do not permit the use of ANY electronic devices for any purpose not directly related to this course.  If this policy is abused, I reserve the right to ban all electronic devices in the classroom at any point in the semester.

 

PLEASE NOTE: I do not give extensions, incompletes, or make-up exams, except in cases allowed for by University Policy.

Plagiarism or other forms of academic dishonesty will not be tolerated and will result in failing the course.  Please consult the section on “Academic Integrity” in the link to NAU Policy Statements at the top of this syllabus for further details.  IT IS THE STUDENTS' RESPONSIBILITY TO FAMILIARIZE THEMSELVES WITH THESE MATTERS AS DEFINED BY THE UNIVERSITY.

 

PROVISIONAL SCHEDULE (dates, readings, and assignments subject to change)

 

WEEK ONE              JANUARY 11                        INTRODUCTIONS             

Required Films/Reading

1.         “Cricket for Americans” You Tube video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5oPLhskOH4o 

2.         History of Cricket from the ICC Website.  https://www.icc-cricket.com/about/cricket/history-of-cricket/early-cricket  Please make sure you read all four tabs, “Early Cricket” “19th Century Cricket,” “20th Century Cricket,” and “21st Century Cricket.”  They are all fairly short accounts.

Assignment

Come to class prepared to ask (and answer!) questions based on the above!

 

WEEK TWO             JANUARY 18                        CRICKET, COLONIALISM AND NATIONALISM: AN INTRODUCTION THROUGH FILM      

Required Films/Reading

1.               Watch the film Lagaan (on Bb Learn page for the course)

2.               Chandrima Chakraborty, “Bollywood Motifs: Cricket Fiction and Fictional Cricket”

3.               C. L. R. James, Beyond a Boundary

a.      “Introduction to the American Edition” pp. xvii-xxi

b.     “A Note on Cricket” pp. xxiii-xvi

Assignment

1.     Complete a short (300-350 word) response paper to the film and readings above by January 17th 5 pm on Bb Learn (for details, see “Response Paper” in Assessment of Learning Outcomes, above). The purpose of this assignment is to demonstrate your understanding the sport and be able to see cricket as related to histories of colonialism and nationalism in India.

2.     Come to class prepared to ask (and answer!) questions based on the above film and readings!

 

WEEK THREE         JANUARY 25            CRICKET, COLONIALISM AND NATIONALISM: AN INTRODUCTION THROUGH TEXTS

Required Readings

1.     C. L. R. James, Beyond a Boundary, Chapter One, “The Window” pp. 3-20 and Chapter Two “Against the Grain” pp. 21-38 (36 pages)

2.     Mike Marqusee, Anyone But England: Cricket, Race and Class (London: Bloomsbury, 2016), Chapter One, edited (For those interested, the full Chapter available at “Culture Clash.” )

Assignment

1.     Complete a short (300-350 word) response paper to the readings above by January 24th 5 pm on Bb Learn (for details, see “Response Paper” in Assessment of Learning Outcomes, above). The purpose of this assignment is to demonstrate your understanding the sport and be able to see cricket as related to histories of colonialism, race, and nationalism.

2.     Come to class prepared to ask (and answer!) questions based on the above readings!

3.     Start thinking about your final paper.

 

WEEK FOUR           FEBRUARY 1                       FATE OF CRICKET IN THE UNITED STATES

Required Readings

  1. Orlando Patterson and Jason Kaufman, “Bowling for Democracy.” New York Times (May 1, 2005) https://www.nytimes.com/2005/05/01/opinion/bowling-for-democracy.html if you can’t access it, try this link.
  2. Boria Majumdar and Sean Brown, “Why Baseball, Why Cricket? Differing Nationalisms, Differing Challenges.” The International Journal of the History of Sport (Vol. 24, No. 2, February 2007), 139 – 156.
  3. George B. Kirsch, “The Fate of Cricket in the United States: Revisited.” Journal of Sport History (Vol. 43, No. 2, Summer 2016), pp. 168-191.

Assignment

  1. Come to class prepared to ask (and answer!) questions based on the above readings!
  2. Complete a short (300-350 word) response paper to the film and readings above by January 31st, 5 pm, on Bb Learn (for details, see “Response Paper” in Assessment of Learning Outcomes, above).

 

WEEK FIVE             FEBRUARY 8                       HISTORY OF IMPERIAL CRICKET

Required Readings

  1. Mike Marqusee, Anyone But England: Cricket, Race and Class (London: Bloomsbury, 2016), Chapter Three, “The Cathedral and the Cult.”
  2. J. A. Mangan, “Britain’s Chief Spiritual Export: Imperial Sport as Moral Metaphor, Political Symbol and Cultural Bond.” The International Journal of the History of Sport (Vol. 27, Nos. 1–2, January–February 2010), pp. 328–336.
  3. Dean Allen, “‘Tours of Imperialism’: Cricket and Cultural Transfer in South Africa, 1880–1910.” The International Journal of the History of Sport (35, 15 2016), pp. 1717-1729.

Optional Reading

  1. James Bradley, “The MCC, society and empire: a portrait of cricket's ruling body, 1860–1914.” The International Journal of the History of Sport, 7:1(1990), pp. 3-22.

 

Assignment

1.               Come to class prepared to ask (and answer!) questions based on the above readings!

2.               Complete a short (300-350 word) response paper to the film and readings above by February 7, 5 pm on Bb Learn (for details, see “Response Paper” in Assessment of Learning Outcomes, above). The purpose of this assignment is to demonstrate your understanding the sport as connected with projects of British imperialism and colonial rule.

3.               Think about and come to class prepared to briefly talk about your proposed final paper for this course.

WEEK SIX    FEBRUARY 15         GENDER, EMPIRE and CRICKET

Required Readings

  1. Patrick F. McDevitt, “Defending White Manhood: The Bodyline Affair in England and Australia.” Chapter Five of May the Best Man Win Sport, Masculinity, and Nationalism in Great Britain and the Empire, 1880-1935 (New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2004), pp. 81-110.
  2. Andre´ Odendaal, “‘Neither cricketers nor ladies’: Towards a history of women and cricket in South Africa, 1860s–2000s.” The International Journal of the History of Sport (Vol. 28, No. 1, January 2011), pp. 115–136.
  3. Souvik Naha, “Adams and Eves at the Eden Gardens: Women Cricket Spectators and

the Conflict of Feminine Subjectivity in Calcutta, 1920–1970.” The International Journal of the History of Sport (Vol. 29, No. 5, April 2012), pp. 711–729.

Recommended

  1. Documentary Film on Bodyline
  2. Jared van Duinen, “Bodyline, the British World and the Evolution of an Australian National Identity.” The International Journal of the History of Sport (Vol. 32, No. 2, 2015), pp. 250–264.

Assignment

1.     Come to class prepared to ask (and answer!) questions based on the above readings and perhaps the film!

2.     Complete a short (300-350 word) response paper to the film and readings above by February 8th 5 pm on Bb Learn (for details, see “Response Paper” in Assessment of Learning Outcomes, above). Focus, race, gender, and empire.

3.     Work on your preliminary proposal, due next week.        

WEEK SEVEN         FEBRUARY 22                     CRICKET IN THE CARIBBEAN - 1

Required Readings

C. L. R. James, Beyond a Boundary,

Chapter Four, “Light and Dark” pp. 49-65

Chapter Five, “Patient Merit” pp. 66-71

Chapter Eight “Prince and Pauper” pp. 101-116

Assignment

1.               Come to class prepared to ask (and answer!) questions based on the above readings!

2.               Take careful notes on the relevant chapters of the book for use in your review of the film.

3.               You should already have submitted, before start of class, your preliminary proposal for your final paper.

WEEK EIGHT         FEBRUARY 29         CRICKET IN THE CARIBBEAN- 2

Required Readings

C. L. R. James, Beyond a Boundary,

Chapter Twelve, “What Do Men Live By,” pp 151-58

Chapter Thirteen “Prolegomena to WG” pp. 159-70

Chapter Fourteen, “WG” pp. 171-85

Chapter Fifteen, “Decline of the West,” pp, 186-92

Assignment

1.     Come to class prepared to ask (and answer!) questions based on the above readings!

2.     Take careful notes for use in your review of the film

WEEK NINE             MARCH 8     CRICKET IN THE CARIBBEAN- 3

Required Readings

C. L. R. James, Beyond a Boundary,

Chapter Sixteen, “What is Art” pp. 195-211

Chapter Eighteen, “Proof of the Pudding,” pp. 225-52

Chapter Nineteen, “Alma Mater,” pp. 253- 56,

“Epilogue and Apotheosis,” pp. 257-61

Required Film Viewing

Watch Fire in Babylon (available to stream via Bb Learn)

Assignment

1.     Read, watch and come prepared to talk about the connections between James’ book and the film.

2.     Start working on a 1200-1500 word paper reviewing the film, Fire in Babylon and readings from Weeks Six through Eight.  To be submitted before March 15th, 6:30 pm on Bb Learn. If you have plans for spring break, I strongly recommend you submitting this BEFORE you leave town.  No spring break related excuses will be acceptable.

3.     Start work on your formal proposal.  Recommended Reading (for paper proposal) David

Underdown, “The History of Cricket.” History Compass 4/1 (2006): 43–53.

WEEK TEN               MARCH 15               SPRING BREAK 

 

WEEK ELEVEN       MARCH 22               COLONIALISM and CRICKET in INDIA

Required Readings

1.     Satadru Sen, “Enduring colonialism in cricket: from Ranjitsinhji to the Cronje affair.” Contemporary South Asia (2001, 10, 2), pp. 237–249.

2.     Ramachandra Guha, “‘The Moral that can safely be drawn from the Hindus’ Magnificent Victory’: Cricket, Caste and the Palwakankar Brothers” in J. Mills, Subaltern Sports: Politics and Sport in South Asia (London: Anthem Press, 2005), pp. 83-106.

3.     Boria Majumdar, “Communalism to Commercialism: Study of Anti-Pentangular Movement.” Economic and Political Weekly , Feb. 15-21, 2003, Vol. 38, No. 7 (Feb. 15-21, 2003), pp. 656-664.

Assignment

1.     Come to class prepared to ask (and answer!) questions based on the above readings.

2.     Complete a short (300-350 word) response paper to the film and readings above by March 21st, 5 pm, on Bb Learn (for details, see “Response Paper” in Assessment of Learning Outcomes, above).

3.     Keep working on your paper proposal.  Due before start of next class.

 

 

WEEK TWELVE      MARCH 29               INDIA AS CRICKET’S POWERHOUSE      

Required Readings

1.     Amit Gupta, “The Globalization of Cricket: The Rise of the Non-West.” The International Journal of the History of Sport (21:2, 2004), pp. 257-276.

2.     Boria Majumdar, “The Indian Premier League and World Cricket.” The Cambridge Companion to Cricket. Ed. Anthony Bateman and Jeffrey Hill. Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 2011. 173–86.

3.     Fahad Mustafa, “Cricket and globalization: global processes and the imperial game.” Journal of Global History (8, 2013), pp. 318–341.

Assignment

You need to have submitted your final proposal before the start of class today.

I will circulate a sign-up sheet with proposed meeting times for one-on-one ZOOM meetings to discuss your proposal next week.  Due to time limitations, some meetings will have to be outside of class meeting times.

 

WEEK THIRTEEN  APRIL 5         NO CLASS INDIVIDUAL MEETINGS TO DISCUSS PAPER PROPOSAL (some will have to be outside of class meeting time)

 

WEEK FOURTEEN             APRIL 12       APPROPRIATING CRICKET

Required Film and Reading

1.     Watch Jerry Leach and Gary Kildea, Trobriand Cricket (Bb Learn page for class) Also at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gYZFNRc9mKk

2.     Read Arjun Appadurai, “Playing with Modernity: The Decolonization of Indian Cricket,” in Carol.A. Breckenridge (ed.), Consuming Modernity: Public Culture in a South Asian World (Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 1995)

Recommended

1.     Pat Fiske, “Curators Notes” https://aso.gov.au/titles/documentaries/trobriand-cricket/notes/

2.     Jerry Leach, “Structure and Message in Trobriand cricket” https://journals.openedition.org/tc/195

Assignment

1.     Come to class prepared to ask (and answer!) questions based on the above film and readings

2.     Complete a short (300-350 word) response paper to the film and readings above by April 5th, 5 pm, on Bb Learn (for details, see “Response Paper” in Assessment of Learning Outcomes, above). The purpose of this assignment is to demonstrate your understanding of the different ways in which cricket has been “de-colonized” by people who have adopted the game as their own, but also the lasting impacts of colonialism on the sport.

WEEK FIFTEEN                  APRIL 19       no class, work on your papers        

 

WEEK SIXTEEN                 APRIL 26       FINAL PAPERS DUE by the end of the day

We will have a short class meeting briefly reviewing what you have learnt through the course and taking your suggestions for change.