Department of History
Fall 2019
HIS 460 FILM &
HISTORY: COLONIALISM, NATIONALISM AND MODERNITY IN INDIA (Readings in World
History)
Instructor: SANJAY JOSHI Office
Hours: Mo-We. 2:30- 3:30 pm
and by appointment
Office: LA 206 Phone: 523-6216
E-mail: Sanjay.Joshi@nau.edu Meetings:
Mon. 4.00 - 6.30; LA 306
Course Web Page
URL http://jan.ucc.nau.edu/~sj6/filmandhistory/HIS%20460%20Course%20Page.htm
DO LOOK AT NAU Policy Statements https://nau.edu/university-policy-library/syllabus-requirements/
COURSE DESCRIPTION
This course uses written and visual texts to better
understand representations of three key themes in the history of modern India. Starting
with the advent of British colonialism in the Indian subcontinent, this course
then studies the various nationalist responses to colonialism, and looks at the
nature of political, economic, and social issues in post-independence India.
Colonialism, Nationalism, and the specific nature of modernity in colonial and
postcolonial India will be the main themes we examine through this course. In
doing so, we will pay particular attention to the place of gender, class,
caste, and the politics of religious identities.
Films are used both to better understand a complex
history, and as alternative narratives and/or representations of that history. We
will use films to help make a fascinating history come alive in a way not
always possible through written texts alone. At the same time, we will also
examine how more conventional histories help us better understand and critique
cinematic representations. Our aim will be to see how different representations
of history help us better understand the complexities of narrating histories,
and how to distinguish as well as evaluate these multiple representations.
COURSE OBJECTIVES We aim to:
1. Get a clear grasp of the basic narrative of events
relating to colonialism and nationalisms in South Asia from ca. 1830 to recent
times.
2. To understand and analyze various competing
interpretations of these events.
3. To understand the ways in which traditional
historical narratives differ from cinematic representations of history and to
explore how these, together or separately, help us better understand
colonialism and nationalisms in South Asia (as well as their legacy for the
contemporary world).
COURSE STRUCTURE AND REQUIREMENTS
This is a SEMINAR class. While I do not expect prior
knowledge of the history of India, I do expect participants in a 400-level
seminar class to be able to read and analyze material about unfamiliar names
and events in very short order. I must warn all students of a pretty steep
learning curve that this course will demand. At the same time, I think the work
will pay off with a complex understanding of Indian history and cinema suitable
for a 400-level seminar. I fully expect that this course WILL be run as a
seminar where students will take primary responsibility for knowledge
production in the classroom. That means all students MUST come to class having
completed reading (and viewing) assignments for that day, and prepared to
engage in discussion. Fifteen percent (15%) of the total grade for this class
comes from participation. If you do not participate, you WILL lose points. See
the stipulations under the “Participation” section of “Course Assignments,”
below.
We will not screen any of the required films in class,
though we will obviously discuss films in great detail. Therefore, it will also
be necessary for students to complete the viewing of the films in their own
time. The films are available to you via the BBLearn
page for the course.
Please make sure you are aware of the differences
between, and the different material available at the COURSE web page
and the BBLearn page for
this course.
READINGS
There is only one required textbook for this course,
though there are MANY other REQUIRED readings which are available either as
links from this syllabus via the COURSE WEB PAGE or from the BBLearn page for this course. The textbook is Barbara
and Thomas Metcalf A Concise History of
India. (Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 3rd edition,
2012). Please ensure you DO have this edition as it has updates required
for this course. This is available for purchase at the NAU bookstore. In
addition, I highly recommend an invaluable website on Indian Cinema as an
essential aid for a better understanding of some the films used in this course,
and a wonderful introduction to many others that are not used here, https://uiowa.edu/indiancinema/films
FILMS
We will be using the following films as required
viewing for this course. They are available as streaming media files
accessible via the BBLearn page for the course.
1. Larger Than
Life: India's Bollywood Film Culture
2. Lagaan: Once Upon a Time
in India
3. Rudyard Kipling's The Man Who Would Be King
4. Gandhi (Attenborough’s version)
5. Jinnah
6. Mother India
7. Deewar
8. Bandit Queen
9. Firaaq
10. Lage Raho Munnabhai
COURSE ASSIGNMENTS
1. Syllabus Quiz. (5 points) Take-home
assignment. To ensure that students read the syllabus as carefully as possible.
It is a complicated one!
3. DISCUSSION NOTES. (10 points each)
This may be a relatively new kind of assignment for
you, so do pay attention to the following:
You will be given specific questions or topics around
which to frame your discussion notes a few days in advance of the discussion
day. To evaluate the notes, I will be looking for both a clearly-outlined
THESIS in response to each question, AND relevant data/evidence to
support your thesis. The evidence/ data can be in “note” form, but the
notes MUST have citations to specific pages in the readings as well as the film
assigned that week. Notes that do not indicate a clear thesis or sufficient
supporting data will be penalized at my discretion. To allow you to get used to
the requirements of this assignment, your first two sent of notes are worth
only 10 points each. The proportion of points gets higher in the assignment
below. If University-related business compels you to miss a discussion, you
will be allowed to submit notes in advance of your departure.
4. DISCUSSION QUESTIONS and NOTES (30 [15 points
each])
You must submit TWO DISCUSSION QUESTIONS and NOTES
on the appropriate dates marked on the syllabus. I expect to see between three
and five questions, all designed to encourage discussion of the major issues
brought up by the films and the readings. At least one question should make a
connection between the film and readings. The questions must be written on a
separate page, and you MUST BRING ENOUGH COPIES of your questions
FOR ALL MEMBERS OF THE CLASS. Your questions need to be accompanied by two to
four pages of notes, starting on a separate page. Your notes are not
to be shared. Notes should follow the same format as required for
the Discussion Notes assignment (above) with the significant difference that
these notes should suggest ways in which the questions you pose can be
addressed. As with the above assignment, you MUST include specific citations
(including page numbers) to the readings and the films. You will lead the
discussion for the period when your questions are being discussed.
While you are free to frame your questions and notes
in any way you choose, keep in mind that I will be evaluating them on the
extent to which they reveal familiarity with and analysis of the appropriate
films and readings. You are, of course, free to bring up queries,
separately from the discussion questions. Each set of discussion
questions and will be worth 15 points, for a total of 30 points.
5. FINAL PROJECT (30 points [5 proposal, 25
final paper])
For your final assignment, you will write a
high-quality final paper of at least 10 to 15 pages in length analyzing AND
historicizing ONE of the following films. The paper will be evaluated on the
quality of research, argumentation, and quality of prose. The films are:
PYAASA https://uiowa.edu/indiancinema/pyaasa
BEGUM JAAN https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Begum_Jaan
HAIDER https://upperstall.com/film/haider/
GULLY BOY https://upperstall.com/film/gully-boy/ (awaiting availability currently, I may substitute
another film if we are unable to get collective access to the film)
The films are all available to stream via BB Learn.
The links above will give you a sense of what the films are about, so that you
may be able to make an informed decision about your topic in advance of
spending a long time watching the film.
Your paper must pay attention to the film as a product
of the time it was released, but also locate it in context of a longer
history of the Indian subcontinent. Each of these films can be read as having a
particular theme, and your paper must locate the film in the actual history and
historiography of that theme (e.g. Begum Jaan
is a film on partition, and also women’s empowerment/disempowerment), your
paper must explore the history and historiography the theme running through the
film. This will involve undertaking independent research via the library
and scholarly databases. Your paper must use at least TWO scholarly and
TWO journalistic pieces (such as film reviews or newspaper/magazine articles)
that are NOT currently PART of existing course readings.
I also want you to analyze the film in the context of
similar previous or contemporary Indian films on a comparable topic. I expect a
discussion of a minimum of two or three other films included as
part of your paper. At least one of the films you compare it to has to
be outside the list of required or recommended films for this course. I leave
it you to make the case of how the film(s) you choose are comparable.
This is not a project that you can undertake over just
a few days. Therefore, I have included a process to ensure you start early on
this project. I ask that you write a formal proposal of three to four
double-spaced pages (excluding citations), in academic prose, and submit
that to me by November 18. In addition to your film of course,
the proposal must contain a list of your academic and journalistic sources and
films, and outline your proposed argument for the paper. I will meet with you
individually in the weeks of November 18 and 25 (outside of class times) to
discuss and comment on your proposal. The final paper is due December 2nd,
by 4 pm in my mailbox in the History office.
I will allow
but not demand that students to pair up in teams of two (no more) to
complete this assignment. If you are teaming up, I recommend creating your team
as soon as possible, and certainly before the fourth week of classes. If I am
not informed of a team by this date, you will be writing your papers
individually. I will be more than happy to help you in your research, but the
responsibility for selecting, researching, and writing the paper is ultimately
your own. I strongly encourage you to keep consulting with me on this project
as the term progresses.
EVALUATION AND GRADES
Grades will be determined using the following
criteria:
Syllabus
Take Home Quiz 05 points
Discussion
Notes 20
points (10 each)
Discussion
Questions and Notes 30 points (15
each)
Final
Project Proposal 05
points
Final
Project Essay 25
points
Participation 15
points
TOTAL FOR COURSE 100
points
The grading scale for the course will be as follows:
90+ =
A; 80 - 89= B; 70-79= C; 60-69= D; below 60= F.
COURSE POLICIES
I expect regular class attendance of course, which is
particularly critical for a seminar class. Missing even one class, unless it is
for documentable reasons and allowed for by University policy, will have
serious learning consequences. I will certainly penalize absences. More
than three unexcused absences from scheduled class meetings will automatically
result in a failing grade. If you miss a class, whatever your reasons
for doing so, it is YOUR RESPONSIBILITY to arrange to meet or call a classmate
and find out what happened in that class.
PLEASE NOTE:
I do not give extensions on paper deadlines or other assignment deadlines,
except in cases allowed for by University Policy. I do not offer the option of
an incomplete or “IP” at the end of the course, unless warranted by exceptional
emergency situations.
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 NAU Policy Statements appended to
this syllabus for further details. IT IS THE STUDENTS' RESPONSIBILITY TO
FAMILIARIZE HERSELF/HIMSELF WITH THESE MATTERS AS DEFINED BY THE UNIVERSITY.
Provisional Course Schedule (Dates, Readings, and
Assignments subject to modification)
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WEEK ONE August 26
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INTRODUCTIONS
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Objective
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We get to know each other,
and learn about the content of this course, and what is expected of all
participants in this seminar.
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Readings
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Syllabus! Read Carefully
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Assignment
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Syllabus Quiz Assigned
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WEEK TWO September 2
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NO CLASS:
LABOR DAY
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WEEK THREE September 9
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FILM & HISTORY
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Objective
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To understand the
connections between film and history, get a good sense of Indian history
before the emergence of British rule.
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Required Viewing
(ALWAYS
required before class)
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Larger Than Life: India's
Bollywood Film Culture
http://digital.films.com/PortalViewVideo.aspx?xtid=33907 (NAU Users Only)
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Required
Readings
(ALWAYS
required Before Class)
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1. Robert A. Rosenstone, “History in Images History in Words:
Reflecting on the Possibility of Really Putting History onto Film,” in Visions of the Past: The Challenge of
Film to Our Idea of History. Harvard: Harvard University Press, 1998. http://jan.ucc.nau.edu/~sj6/rosenstonefilmhistory.pdf
2. Nasreen Munni Kabir, “Bollywood Basics” Chapter One of Bollywood: The Indian Cinema Story (Channel
4 Books).
3. Metcalf and Metcalf,
Chapter One and Two.
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Recommended
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The Story of India: Freedom http://digital.films.com/PortalViewVideo.aspx?xtid=41065 (NAU Users Only)
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Activities
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• Discuss Film and History,
and also, Film as History
• Discuss Indian history up
to British rule
• Discuss the emergence of
Indian Cinema and its “Bollywood-ization”
• Take Home Syllabus Quiz due
• If you are planning a team paper, I would strongly
advise you to have your team finalized at this point and let me know by next
week the composition of your team. If I am not informed of a team effort, you
will be writing your paper individually.
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WEEK FOUR September 16
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UNDERSTANDING COLONIAL
RULE AND ITS REPRESENTATION
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Objective
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To
understand the workings of Colonial Rule and the contexts of its
representation in this film.
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Required Viewing
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Lagaan
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Required Readings
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1.
Metcalf and Metcalf, Chapter Two and Three.
2.
Chandrima Chakraborty, “Subaltern Studies, Bollywood and ‘Lagaan.’ Economic and Political Weekly, Vol. 38, No. 19 (May
10-16, 2003), pp. 1879-1884.
3.
Sudhanva Deshpande, “Subaltern Fantasies.” Economic and
Political Weekly, Vol. 38, No. 23 (Jun. 7-13, 2003), pp. 2310-2311.
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Assignment
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Questions for Discussion
ONE on September 23.
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Activities
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• Discuss Cricket as a
sport!
• Discuss the “High Noon” of
British Empire in India
• Discuss Film in the
context of this history
• Discuss the film as a
product of the context of early 21st C India
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WEEK FIVE September 23
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EMPIRE AND CINEMA IN BRITISH INDIA
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Objective
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To understand the workings
and representations of British colonialism. Does seeing a film in the context
of history change our understanding of the film?
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Required Viewing
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Man Who Would Be King
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Required Readings
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1. Metcalf and Metcalf,
Chapter Three and Four.
2. Edward Said, Introduction to Rudyard
Kipling's Kim
3.
Rudyard
Kipling, “Man Who Would be King”
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Activities
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First Half of Class
• Discuss the “High Noon” of
British Empire in India
• Discuss Film
• Discuss Film in context of
the readings
Second Half of Class
Discussion # 1 (British
Colonialism in India) Remember to bring two copies of your notes, one to
hand in to me and the other to use to discuss and make notes for revisions
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WEEK SIX September 30
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GANDHI’S INDIA
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Objective
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To understand the history
and representations of Gandhi. Do the two differ?
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Required Viewing
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Gandhi (Richard Attenborough version)
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Required Readings
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1. Metcalf and Metcalf,
Chapters Five and Six.
2. David Hardiman, “Father
of the Nation” in Gandhi in His Time
and Ours. New York: Columbia University Press, 2003. http://jan.ucc.nau.edu/~sj6/hardimangandhigender.pdf
3.Salman Rushdie, “Attenborough’s Gandhi” in Imaginary Homelands: Essays and Criticism
1981-1991 London: Granta, 1991.
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Recommended
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Rachel Dwyer “The Case of the Missing
Mahatma: Gandhi and the Hindi Cinema.” Special issue of Public Culture edited by Ritu Birla and
Faisal Devji, 23, 2 (Spring 2011), pp. 349-376
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Assignment
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·
Discussion # 2 Questions (for October 7th) Assigned. You Your
notes should be more substantial than for the first discussion as this one covers two weeks’ worth of
films and readings.
·
Start working on your final paper topic. Research
bibliographies & films on the topic. You will be asked to talk in class about progress made in two
weeks’ time.
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Activities
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• Discuss Historical
Background to Gandhi
• Discuss Gandhi’s ideology
• Discuss Attenborough’s
representations of Gandhi
• Gandhi and Gender
• Gandhi, Religion, and
Politics
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WEEK SEVEN October 7
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COMPETING NATIONALISMS AND PARTITION
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Objective
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To understand the
alternative views of nationalism represented Jinnah, the complicated politics
of partition of the subcontinent, and the gendered nature of the violence
that accompanied it
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Required Viewing
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Jinnah
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Required Reading
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1.
Metcalf and Metcalf, Chapter Seven.
2. David Gilmartin,
"Partition, Pakistan, and South Asian History: In Search of a
Narrative," Journal of Asian Studies, vol. 57, no. 4 (November 1998) pp.
1068-95.
http://www.jstor.org/stable/2659304?origin=JSTOR-pdf
or
http://jan.ucc.nau.edu/~sj6/gilmartinpartition.pdf
3.Ritu Menon and Kamla Bhasin, “Speaking for Themselves: Partition History, Women’s
Histories.” Ritu Menon and Kamala Bhasin, Borders and
Boundaries: Women in India’s Partition (New Delhi: Kali for Women, 1998)
pp. 3-27.
4.Ritu Menon
and Kamla Bhasin “Honourably Dead” in Borders
and Boundaries: Women and India’s Partition. Delhi: Kali for Women, 1998,
pp. 32-64. http://jan.ucc.nau.edu/~sj6/Menon_BhasinHonourablydead.pdf
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Recommended Reading:
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Eqbal Ahmad on Qaid-i-Azam, M. A. Jinnah http://pakteahouse.net/2008/09/17/eqbal-ahmad-on-quaid-i-azam-m-a-jinnah/ (especially parts 2 and
3)
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Activities
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First Half
of Class
• Discuss Film
• Discuss Readings on Partition
• Discuss Jinnah vs Gandhi,
History, Film, Context, and Representation
Second
Half
·
Discussion #2 (Nationalism, Gandhi, Jinnah, and Partition)
Remember to bring two copies of your notes, one to hand in to me and the
other to use to discuss and make notes for revisions
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WEEK EIGHT October 14
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THE EARLY NATION-STATE AND DISCONTENTS
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Objectives
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To
understand both the difficulties faced by the new Indian government and the
disappointments confronting the people after the “success” of nationalism.
The representation of this duality in film.
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Required Viewing
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Mother India
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Required Reading
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1. Metcalf and Metcalf pp.
231-251.
2.
Ramachandra Guha, “Verdicts on Nehru: Rise and Fall of a Reputation”
Economic and Political Weekly, Vol. 40, No. 19 (May 7-13, 2005), pp.
1958-1962. http://www.jstor.org/stable/4416605
3. Rosie Thomas, “Sanctity and Scandal: The
Mythologization of Mother India,” Quarterly Review of Film and Video 11:3 (1989):
11-30.
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Assignment
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Prepare
YOUR Questions (on a separate page) and discussion notes based on readings
and films for Discussion #3 covering WEEK EIGHT and NINE for
submission October 21. See description of this assignment, above.
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Activities
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First ¾ of
class time:
• Discuss Nehru’s Vision and
Its Implementation/Limitations
•
Politics in Post Independent India
•
Discuss the representation of early
independent India in this film
• Discuss
the range of social, economic, and political problems the film reveals and
their potential connection with economic political policies of the Nehruvian
era?
Last ¼ of
the class period
Oral report by each
student/team on progress made on the paper
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WEEK NINE October 21
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FROM DISILLUSIONMENT TO ANGER? INDIA AFTER NEHRU
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Objective
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To understand the way India changed, other than in terms of
leaders and their personalities, from Nehru's time to Indira's
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Required Viewing
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Deewar
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Required Reading
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1. Metcalf and Metcalf,
pp. 251-264.
2.
Sudipta Kaviraj, “Indira
Gandhi and Indian Politics.” Economic and Political Weekly, Vol. 21,
No. 38/39 (Sep. 20-27, 1986), pp. 1697-1708.
http://www.jstor.org/stable/4376158
3.
Jyotika Virdi, “The
`Fiction’ of Film and `Fact’ of Politics: Deewar.”
Jump Cut 38 (1993): 26-32. http://ejumpcut.org/archive/onlinessays/JC38folder/Deewar.html
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Activities
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Discuss the following in
the first half of class
• Indian politics from Nehru
to Indira
•
Democracy and Populism and the limitations
of populism
•
Discuss Deewar
as product of the 1970s
In the second half of class
Discussion # 3 BASED ON
YOUR QUESTIONS and Notes. You need to bring sufficient copies of questions
for the whole class as well as two copies of your notes.
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WEEK TEN October 28
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ANGER OF THE OPPRESSED
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Objectives
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To
understand the ways in which caste, class and gender come together to form
the matrix of Phoolan Devi’s oppression. Also, the
controversial ways in which it was represented by Shekhar Kapur
in this film.
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Required Viewing
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Bandit Queen Please be advised that
this film has graphic depictions of violence, and also sexual violence, that
readings below also repeat.
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Required Readings
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1. William
R. Pinch, Review of The Bandit Queen. The American Historical Review,
Vol. 101, No. 4 (Oct., 1996), pp. 1149-1150. http://www.jstor.org/stable/2169642
2. Arundhati
Roy, “The
Great Indian Rape Trick.”
3. Mala
Sen, “Right
of reply: `Bandit Queen' gives it to you straight.”
The Independent, March2, 1995.
4.
My Powerpoint “Caste: A Historical Approach”
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Assignment
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Prepare
Questions (on separate page) and discussion notes based on readings and films
for WEEKS TEN and ELEVEN for submission November 4. Discussion # 4. These
should be as substantial a set of notes (as for Discussion # 3) because they
cover two weeks’ worth of films and readings.
Continue
work on final paper. By this time you should have a
good sense of your topic, and the outside readings and film to go along with
it. If you do not, this would be the time to meet with me to
make sure you are on track.
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Activities
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•
Discuss Caste, some history and its
operation in everyday life
•
Discuss readings
• Discuss
film in the context of the readings and earlier discussion
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WEEK ELEVEN November 4
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TARGETING
MINORITIES
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Objective
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To understand the growing
intolerance and rise of Hindu nationalism in contemporary India in a
historical context.
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Required Viewing
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Firaaq
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Required Readings
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1.
Metcalf and Metcalf, Chapter Nine.
2.
Syed Asif Haider “Firaaq: Remembering Gujarat” Polyvocia
– The SOAS Journal of Graduate Research, Vol. 2, March 2010.
3. Gyanendra Pandey, “Can a Muslim Be an Indian?” Comparative Studies in Society and
History, Vol. 41, No. 4 (Oct., 1999), pp. 608-629
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Assignment
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Keep
working on your final paper. A formal PROPOSAL (worth points) is due the week
after Veteran’s Day (in two weeks’ time)
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Activities
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First Half
Discussion of Films and
Readings in the context of history
How do film and history
help us understand the increasing violence in society?
Second Half
Discussion
# 4 (Class, Caste, Gender and Religion as axes of oppression and response in
contemporary India) based on your questions. You do need to bring
notes as well.
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WEEK TWELVE November 11
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NO CLASS: VETERAN’S DAY
Please do work on your paper PROPOSAL
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WEEK THIRTEEN November 18
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FROM GANDHI TO GANDHIGIRI:
ARE WE POSTCOLONIAL YET?
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Objectives
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To discuss and understand
the complications of modernity in contemporary India with a focus on changing
representations of Mahatma Gandhi.
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Required Viewing
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Lage Raho
Munnabhai
http://www.uiowa.edu/~incinema/Lage%20Raho%20MB.html
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Required Reading
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1. Ashis
Nandy, “Gandhi
After Gandhi.” The Little Magazine Vol. 1, Number 1 (May 2000)
2. Arunabha
Ghosh and Tapan Babu,
“Lage Raho Munna Bhai:
Unravelling Brand 'Gandhigiri'.” Economic and Political Weekly, Vol.
41, No. 51 (Dec. 23-29, 2006), pp. 5225-5227 http://www.jstor.org/stable/4419050
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Assignment
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Submit paper proposals
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Activities
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• Discuss readings and films
• Sign up for appointments
over assigned times NEXT WEEK
• Keep in mind that if
working as a team, BOTH team members must be available to attend the meeting
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WEEK THIRTEEN and FOURTEEN November 25
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Meetings IN MY OFFICE with individuals or teams
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WEEK FIFTEEN
December 2
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No Class meeting. FINAL PAPER DUE in my box in the
HISTORY OFFICE by 4:30 pm
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