Behind the veil : resistance, women, and the everyday in colonial South Asia

This book aims at re-examining the issue of 'everyday resistance' through the lens of women's experiences in colonial South Asia. The overwhelming image of Indian women during the period is one of passivity, with the exception of some outstanding figures. The attempt in the present volume is to unearth a narrative of deeper and more enduring resistance offered by less extraordinary women in their daily lives. In a breathtaking collection of essays key scholars in the field bring together evidence from a range of unconventional sources such as women's songs, photographs, and embroidery, but equally from legal records, memoirs, and published work, to present women in far more assertive and/or subversive roles. The volume is, however, as much about the nature of power as it is about women. Inspired by both subaltern and gender studies, it tries to highlight the complex ways in which power operates within oppressive structures, making any simple valorization -- and for that matter, theorization -- of gendered resistance difficult if not impossible. Contributors: Padma Anagol, Clare Anderson, Geraldine Forbes, Anindita Ghosh, Siobhan Lambert-Hurley, Tanika Sarkar, Nita Varma Prasad. This Book Aims At Re-examining The Issue Of 'everyday Resistance' Through The Lens Of Women's Experiences In Colonial South Asia. The Overwhelming Image Of Indian Women During The Period Is One Of Passivity, With The Exception Of Some Outstanding Figures. The Attempt In The Present Volume Is To Unearth A Narrative Of Deeper And More Enduring Resistance Offered By Less Extraordinary Women In Their Daily Lives. In A Breathtaking Collection Of Essays, Key Scholars In The Field Bring Together Evidence From A Range Of Unconventional Sources Such As Women's Songs, Photographs, And Embroidery, But Equally From Legal Records, Memoirs, And Published Work, To Present Women In Far More Assertive And/or Subversive Roles.--book Jacket. From The Symbolic To The Open : Women's Resistance In Colonial Maharashtra / Padma Anagol -- Small Acts Of Rebellion : Women Tell Their Photographs / Geraldine Forbes -- Wicked Widows : Law And Faith In Nineteenth-century Public Sphere Debates / Tanika Sarkar -- Subtle Subversions And Presumptuous Interventions : Reforming Women's Health In Bhopal State In The Early Twentieth Century / Siobhan Lambert-hurley -- Gender, Subalternity, And Silence : Recovering Convict Women's Experiences From Histories Of Transportation, C. 1780-1857 / Clare Anderson -- The Litigious Widow : Inheritance Disputes In Colonial North India, 1875-1911 / Nita Verma Prasad -- A World Of Their Very Own : Religion, Pain, And Subversion In Bengali Homes In The Nineteenth Century / Anindita Ghosh. Edited By Anindita Ghosh. Originally Published: Delhi : Permanent Black, 2007. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. This book aims at re-examining the issue of 1everyday resistance2 through the lens of women's experiences in colonial South Asia. The overwhelming image of Indian women during the period is one of passivity, with the exception of some outstanding figures. The attempt in the present volume is to unearth a narrative of deeper and more enduring resistance offered by less extraordinary women in their daily lives. In a breathtaking collection of essays key scholars in the field bring together evidence from a range of unconventional sources such as women's songs, photographs, and embroidery, but equally from legal records, memoirs, and published work, to present women in far more assertive and/or subversive roles. The volume is, however, as much about the nature of power as it is about women. Inspired by both subaltern and gender studies, it tries to highlight the complex ways in which power operates within oppressive structures, making any simple valorization - and for that matter, theorization - of gendered resistance difficult if not impossible. Contributors : Padma Anagol, Clare Anderson, Geraldine Forbes, Anindita Ghosh, Siobhan Lambert-Hurley, Tanika Sarkar, Nita Varma Prasad Front Matter....Pages i-x Introduction....Pages 1-20 From the Symbolic to the Open: Women’s Resistance in Colonial Maharashtra....Pages 21-57 Small Acts of Rebellion: Women Tell Their Photographs....Pages 58-82 Wicked Widows: Law and Faith in Nineteenth-Century Public Sphere Debates....Pages 83-115 Subtle Subversions And Presumptuous Interventions: Reforming Women’s Health in Bhopal State in the Early Twentieth Century....Pages 116-138 Gender, Subalternity, and Silence: Recovering Convict Women’s Experiences From Histories of Transportation, c. 1780–1857....Pages 139-160 The Litigious Widow: Inheritance Disputes in Colonial North India, 1875–1911....Pages 161-190 A World of Their Very Own: Religion, Pain, and Subversion in Bengali Homes in the Nineteenth Century....Pages 191-221 Back Matter....Pages 223-233 This book re-examines 'everyday resistance', gender and power through the lens of women's experiences in colonial South Asia. Moving away from educated and outstanding figures and drawing on a range of unconventional sources, it unearths a narrative of deep and enduring resistance offered by less extraordinary women in their daily lives.