Confluence of Thought : Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr.

While much has been written about the Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr., never before has anyone compared the social and political origins and evolution of their thoughts on non-violence. In this path-breaking work, Bidyut Chakrabarty argues that there is a confluence between Gandhi and King's concerns for humanity and advocacy of non-violence, despite the very different historical, economic and cultural circumstances against which they developed their ideas. At the same time, he demonstrates that both thinkers were truly shaped by their historical moments, evolving their approaches to non-violence to best advance their respective struggles for freedom. Gandhi and King were perhaps the most influential individuals in modern history to combine religious and political thought into successful and dynamic social ideologies. Gandhi emphasized service to humanity while King, who was greatly influenced by Gandhi, pursued religion-driven social action. Chakrabarty looks particularly at the way in which each strategically used religious and political language to build momentum and attract followers to their movements. The result is a compelling and historically entrenched view of two of the most important figures of the twentieth century and a thoughtful meditation on the common threads that flow through the larger and enduring nonviolence movement. Contents 8 Foreword 10 Preface 14 Abbreviations 16 Introduction 20 Chapter 1 The Intellectual Roots of Confluence of Thought 47 The Socio-economic And Political Contexts Of Mahatma Gandhi And Martin Luther King Jr. 48 Intellectual Pilgrimage To Nonviolence: Gandhi 50 Critique Of Gandhi: M. N. Roy, Rabindranath Tagore, And B. R. Ambedkar 53 M. N. Roy And Gandhi 54 Rabindranath Tagore And Gandhi 56 B. R. Ambedkar And Gandhi 63 Intellectual Roots Of King’s Sociopolitical Ideas 67 Sources Of Inspiration 68 Concluding Observations 83 Nature Of Protests 84 Religion And Nonviolence 86 Chapter 2 Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr 89 Politics Of Difference 90 Gandhi’s “liberal” Dilemma 98 Martin Luther King Jr. And The American Enlightenment 102 And Its Impact 111 Reinhold Niebuhr And King 114 King’s Liberal Challenge To Racial Prejudices 119 Thinking Alike 123 Concluding Observations 135 Chapter 3 Articulation of a New Ideology 141 Gandhi In South Africa (1893–1914) 142 Gandhi In India 148 Gandhi On The All-india Scene 152 The Rise Of Gandhi As A Pan-indian Leader: The Noncooperation And Civil Disobedience Movements 155 The Noncooperation Movement (1920–22) 156 The Noncooperation Movement: Consolidation Of Gandhi 160 The Civil Disobedience Movement (1930–32) 162 Do Or Die: Gandhi’s Articulation Of Freedom 165 The August Revolution: A Radical Movement 168 Concluding Observations 169 Chapter 4 Challenging Jim Crow 173 The 1955 Montgomery Bus Strike 177 The 1941 March On Washington 186 The 1963 March On Washington 188 The Birmingham Campaign, 1963 193 The Selma-to-montgomery March, 1965 199 Concluding Observations 204 Conclusion 208 Notes 228 Bibliographical Notes And Select Bibliography 262 Index 276 Confluence,of,Thought "The literature on Gandhi and Martin Luther King is vast, and scholars often speak of the two leaders when discussing theories of non-violence. Yet, no attempt has yet been made to understand the way in which Gandhi and King's socio-political ideas converge in terms of their origins, development and application. In Confluence of Thought, Bidyut Chakrabarty argues that there is a confluence of thought between Gandhi and King's concerns for humanity and advocacy of non-violence, despite their different historical and socio-economic contexts. He says that these two figures are perhaps the best modern historical examples of individuals who combined religion with the political to produce a dynamic social ideology. Gandhi saw service to humanity as the path to 'self-actualization' and thus spiritually most fulfilling; similarly, King pursued religion-driven social action. Chakrabarty looks particularly at the way in which each deployed religious and political language to draw the widest possible membership to their social movements. While Chakrabarty points out that neither thinker was able to fulfill his chosen mission, both suffering death by assassination, he positions the two as the premier modern influences on theories of non-violence today"-- Provided by publisher Confluence of Thought is the first book to demonstrate the way in which Gandhi and King's socio-political ideas converge in terms of their origins, development and application