Postgraduate Course: The Politics of Historiography in Post-Colonial South Asia (PGHC11330)
Course Outline
| School |
School of History, Classics and Archaeology |
College |
College of Humanities and Social Science |
| Course type |
Standard |
Availability |
Available to all students |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) |
SCQF Level 11 (Postgraduate) |
Credits |
20 |
| Home subject area |
Postgraduate (School of History and Classics) |
Other subject area |
None |
| Course website |
None |
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| Course description |
'Post-colonial studies' is a burgeoning subject in departments of English literature in the U.K. and U.S.A. Often it amounts to merely a variation on the long-established study of 'Commonwealth literature', involving an awareness of migrant mentalities and racial and orientalist prejudice. Or it can be little more than an obtuse literary style and critical method, which appeals to history whilst revealing a profound ahistoricism in its approach. This course aims to fill that empirical gap, by examining the key interpretative problems facing historians who wish to engage in the advanced study of the history and society of post-colonial South Asia.
A key purpose of the course will be to interrogate the traditional division of labour in South Asian studies, whereby the historians stop at 1947 and political scientists provide predominantly structural and functional analyses of events after that date. This has led to an understanding of South Asia since independence, viewed through pre-conceived theoretical lenses, as a series of crises and paradoxes. The course will argue that a longer-term temporal analysis can instead establish that the apparent paradoxes of Indian politics and society are no more than the expression of long-standing dialectical and dialogical process of engagement by different actors. These articulate complex but integrated patterns of transaction that are by no means contradictory but have become established and clearly recognised over time.
The empirical focus of the course will be the political, social, cultural and economic History of South Asia since 1947: paying proportionate attention to India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. The aim will be to integrate the cultural, social and political, as well as related factors concerning the economy and environment in exploring key interpretative issues in the recent history of the subcontinent.
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Entry Requirements
| Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites |
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| Prohibited Combinations |
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Other requirements |
None
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| Additional Costs |
None |
Course Delivery Information
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| Delivery period: 2010/11 Semester 1, Available to all students (SV1)
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WebCT enabled: No |
Quota: None |
| Location |
Activity |
Description |
Weeks |
Monday |
Tuesday |
Wednesday |
Thursday |
Friday |
| No Classes have been defined for this Course |
| First Class |
First class information not currently available |
Summary of Intended Learning Outcomes
The course will aim to give students from widely differing backgrounds an understanding of the social and political institutions of contemporary India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka In particular, they will:
&· be able to analyse independently historical evidence concerning this topic;
&· engage in theoretical arguments relating to the Historiography of South Asia since independence;
&· develop an appreciation of how the study of a key topic in historiography can widen their historical horizon and research agenda;
&· set their own historical research agenda in relation to the Historiography of South Asia since independence;;
&· learn to prepare and present their own work for seminars and workshops;
&· actively participate in group discussion;
&· and be able to make efficient use of appropriate library and IT resources.
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Assessment Information
| Following School practice in the assessment of MSc courses, assessment will involve a paper of around 3000 words. |
| Please see Visiting Student Prospectus website for Visiting Student Assessment information |
Special Arrangements
| Not entered |
Contacts
| Course organiser |
Dr Crispin Bates
Tel: (0131 6)50 3765
Email: Crispin.Bates@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary |
Mr Nicholas Ovenden
Tel: (0131 6)50 9948
Email: Niko.Ovenden@ed.ac.uk |
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copyright 2010 The University of Edinburgh -
1 September 2010 6:29 am
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