From the Seams of History: Essays on Indian Women (Gender/Women's Studies)

Contributed Research Papers. Caste, Widow-remarriage And The Reform Of Popular Culture In Colonial Bengal / Sekhar Bandyopadhyay -- Popular Perceptions Of Widow-remarriage In Haryana: Past And Present / Prem Chowdhry -- Attired In Virtue: The Discourse On Shame (lajja) And Clothing Of The Bhadramahila In Colonial Bengal / Himani Bannerji -- The Early Muslim Bhadramahila: The Growth Of Learning And Creativity, 1876 To 1939 / Sonia Nishat Amin -- Conformity And Rebellion: Girls' Schools In Calcutta / Raka Ray -- The Freedom Movement And Feminist Consciousness In Bengal, 1905-1929 / Bharati Ray -- Women's Work In Bengal, 1880-1930: A Historical Analysis / Mukul Mukherjee -- The Role Of Women In Economic Activity: A Study Of Women In Rice-farming Systems In West Bengal / Bahnisikha Ghosh. Edited By Bharati Ray. Series Statement From Dustjacket. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. The ten essays which make up the body of this book are drawn from a wide variety of disciplines and weave a complex pattern of the experiences of women. Beginning with the debate on widow remarriage in Bengal and Haryana, the book moves on to examine how the new attire of the Bengali gentlewoman in the nineteenth century was tailored according to the values and anxieties of their dominant male counterparts. One essay takes the argument of male domination further and points out that male oppression in Indian society was in fact remarkable similar to that of the colonial masters. The remaining essays are concerned with the role of education in reinforcing the value system of the larger society; the questioning of socially legitimized assumptions; the organized militancy of the peasant women of Bihar and the marginalization of women in the economic sphere. The ten essays which make up the body of this book are drawn from a wide variety of disciplines and weave a complex pattern of the experiences of women in India over the last one hundred years. The book departs from traditional historiography which has given inadequate attention to women, and in this sense From the Seams of History attempts to 'rewrite' history. Beginning with the debate on widow remarriage in Bengal and Haryana, the book moves on to examine how the new fashions in clothing of the Bengali 'gentlewomen' in the nineteenth century were tailored according to the values and anxieties of their dominant male counterparts. The argument of male domination is taken further in an essay demonstrating that male oppression of women in Indian society was in fact remarkably similar to that of the colonial masters. This collection of essays explores a wide variety of disciplines to provide a profile of the experiences of Indian women. It attempts to rewrite history from the female perspective.