Annotated Bibliography
Primary Sources:
Besant, Annie. “The Case for India.” Britannica Online Encyclopedia and the Project Gutenberg Consortia Center. Proc. of The Presidential Address Delivered by Annie Besant at the Thirty-Second Indian National Congress, 26 Dec. 1917, Calcutta, India. N.p.: n.p., n.d. N. pag. Print.
This speech was delivered by Annie Besant, a political activist and Indian independence leader. The intended audience is the All India Hume Rule League, which demanded self-government and the status of a Dominion. The speech reflects bias because Besant may have used sensationalism in her speech to gain more socialist support. Besant contends that Great Britain claimed to be fighting for “freedom of all nationalities”, but this freedom was promised to all Western countries, excluding India. India was explicitly addressed as an inferior race in speeches made by British statesmen such as Ramsay McDonald, who barely mentioned the future of India in his speeches dealing with the British Empire. This source is unique in that it is a partisan speech delivered much after the events which it discusses. This source has guided my research by leading me to find more primary sources that reflect on British treatment of India during World War I.
D’Avenant, Charles. “An Essay on the East-India Trade.” Letter. 1697. MS.
This essay is a primary source written by Charles Davenant, an English mercantilist economist and politician. Its intended audience is John Lord Marquis of Normanby, to whom the letter is written, and its purpose is to convey his opinion that the East-India trade is beneficial to Great Britain. This opinion is well substantiated with data such as the annual exported and imported yield of Great Britain before and after she began trade with the Indies. This source reflects clear bias because Davenant, a mercantilist, will undoubtedly favor the creation of overseas colonies and forbidding colonies to trade with other nations. The reason I find this source important is that it was written in 1697, far before the British crown assumed direct control over Indian affairs in response to the Sepoy Mutiny of 1857. During the time period when this document was written, relations between Great Britain and India were solely profitable and were evidently seen as innocuous. I intend to use this source to support my chronological argument that Great Britain’s view of Indian political and cultural attitudes evolved as a result of their involvement in Indian affairs.
Griffiths, Charles John. “A Narrative of the Siege of Delhi with an Account of the Mutiny at Ferozepore in 1857.” The Project Gutenberg EBook of A Narrative Of The Siege Of Delhi: n. pag. Print.
Charles John Griffiths’ first hand account of the Mutiny of 1857 describes the British officers’ immediate response to the sepoy mutiny and how the sepoys were subsequently punished. Griffiths’ point of view is from the British authority’s perspective, that which did not take the Indian sepoys seriously and found their demands for respect to be foolish. Griffith explains that when he was informed that all the Europeans in India were being murdered, he laughed and dismissed the startling announcement, acclaiming the British superiority and regarding the Indians with superior contempt. This source is important to my research because it is one of the only detailed first-hand accounts of the sepoy rebellion. It also prompted me to search for accounts from the Indian sepoy or civilian perspective, which I am yet to find. Perhaps this is indicative of how history tends to narrate the victor’s story instead of that of the defeated person, a theme I can further explore and substantiate with primary source documents.
Secondary Sources:
International Socialist Congress. Histoire de la IIe Internationale. 1904. N.p.: Minkoff Reprint, 1976. Print.
This report, titled, “Ruin of India by British Rule”, offers the condemnatory perspective of Henry Hydman, English politician and founder of the Social Democratic Foundation and the National Socialist Party. Hydman contends that Britain has no right to claim that India benefitted from British rule because there is a lack of basis for the superiority of European methods. This secondary source, written in 1904, analyzes the actions of Britain and makes a chronological argument that India was just as “enlightened and cultured” as Western Europe and the Low Countries in terms of science, art, architecture, medicine, laws, and religion. I intend to use this source to further support a part of my thesis, which is that the developed and cultured society in India was considered backwards and inferior without proper rationale. However, it reflects some bias because Hyndman, an ardent Socialist, harshly denounces the detrimental effects of unrestrained capitalism and champions the International Social-Democratic Party in this report.
Mason, David S. “Darwinism and Social Darwinism.” A Concise History of Modern Europe. Second ed. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield, 2011. 71-82. Print.
David S. Mason’s text highlights the key events, ideas, and notable people who shaped modern Europe by providing a succinct history and exploring the theme of political, social, economic, and scientific revolution. This source differs from all of my other sources because of its coherence and brief accounts of European history that draw an audience looking for a framework for more thorough use of primary documents. I found the section on Social Darwinism to be not only informative, but also inspirational in explaining how Darwinism changed society and the way we think about ourselves as human beings. Upon reading this chapter, I began to question how this idea that European society is more “evolved” or developed than society in Africa and Asia is still pertinent in society today. On a personal level, I considered how Darwinism affects our relationship to our environment and how we treat those around us.
McKay, John P., et al. “The West and the World, 1815-1914.” A History of Western Society. Ninth ed. N.p.: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2008. 865-67. Print.
The History of Western Society textbook (ninth edition) considers Social Darwinism as a cause of New Imperialism for European powers because it justified brutal competition among races. In particular, this source describes the idea of Europeans to “civilize” those that they considered primitive and “inferior”. Although there are countless interpretations and controversies over the causes of New Imperialism, the textbook highlights those that are clearly recognizable, such as rapid industrialization and a growing sense of nationalism. This secondary source offers subjective commentary and analysis of various European economists’ and historians’ theories of this racial struggle and whether these beliefs are true or exaggerated. This is the first secondary source that I explored, and it was important in helping me understand how Social Darwinism and harsh racial ideologies fostered imperialist expansion. After visiting the textbook, I realized that I needed a thesis specific to one country, which led me to begin researching British imperialism in India.
Besant, Annie. “The Case for India.” Britannica Online Encyclopedia and the Project Gutenberg Consortia Center. Proc. of The Presidential Address Delivered by Annie Besant at the Thirty-Second Indian National Congress, 26 Dec. 1917, Calcutta, India. N.p.: n.p., n.d. N. pag. Print.
This speech was delivered by Annie Besant, a political activist and Indian independence leader. The intended audience is the All India Hume Rule League, which demanded self-government and the status of a Dominion. The speech reflects bias because Besant may have used sensationalism in her speech to gain more socialist support. Besant contends that Great Britain claimed to be fighting for “freedom of all nationalities”, but this freedom was promised to all Western countries, excluding India. India was explicitly addressed as an inferior race in speeches made by British statesmen such as Ramsay McDonald, who barely mentioned the future of India in his speeches dealing with the British Empire. This source is unique in that it is a partisan speech delivered much after the events which it discusses. This source has guided my research by leading me to find more primary sources that reflect on British treatment of India during World War I.
D’Avenant, Charles. “An Essay on the East-India Trade.” Letter. 1697. MS.
This essay is a primary source written by Charles Davenant, an English mercantilist economist and politician. Its intended audience is John Lord Marquis of Normanby, to whom the letter is written, and its purpose is to convey his opinion that the East-India trade is beneficial to Great Britain. This opinion is well substantiated with data such as the annual exported and imported yield of Great Britain before and after she began trade with the Indies. This source reflects clear bias because Davenant, a mercantilist, will undoubtedly favor the creation of overseas colonies and forbidding colonies to trade with other nations. The reason I find this source important is that it was written in 1697, far before the British crown assumed direct control over Indian affairs in response to the Sepoy Mutiny of 1857. During the time period when this document was written, relations between Great Britain and India were solely profitable and were evidently seen as innocuous. I intend to use this source to support my chronological argument that Great Britain’s view of Indian political and cultural attitudes evolved as a result of their involvement in Indian affairs.
Griffiths, Charles John. “A Narrative of the Siege of Delhi with an Account of the Mutiny at Ferozepore in 1857.” The Project Gutenberg EBook of A Narrative Of The Siege Of Delhi: n. pag. Print.
Charles John Griffiths’ first hand account of the Mutiny of 1857 describes the British officers’ immediate response to the sepoy mutiny and how the sepoys were subsequently punished. Griffiths’ point of view is from the British authority’s perspective, that which did not take the Indian sepoys seriously and found their demands for respect to be foolish. Griffith explains that when he was informed that all the Europeans in India were being murdered, he laughed and dismissed the startling announcement, acclaiming the British superiority and regarding the Indians with superior contempt. This source is important to my research because it is one of the only detailed first-hand accounts of the sepoy rebellion. It also prompted me to search for accounts from the Indian sepoy or civilian perspective, which I am yet to find. Perhaps this is indicative of how history tends to narrate the victor’s story instead of that of the defeated person, a theme I can further explore and substantiate with primary source documents.
Secondary Sources:
International Socialist Congress. Histoire de la IIe Internationale. 1904. N.p.: Minkoff Reprint, 1976. Print.
This report, titled, “Ruin of India by British Rule”, offers the condemnatory perspective of Henry Hydman, English politician and founder of the Social Democratic Foundation and the National Socialist Party. Hydman contends that Britain has no right to claim that India benefitted from British rule because there is a lack of basis for the superiority of European methods. This secondary source, written in 1904, analyzes the actions of Britain and makes a chronological argument that India was just as “enlightened and cultured” as Western Europe and the Low Countries in terms of science, art, architecture, medicine, laws, and religion. I intend to use this source to further support a part of my thesis, which is that the developed and cultured society in India was considered backwards and inferior without proper rationale. However, it reflects some bias because Hyndman, an ardent Socialist, harshly denounces the detrimental effects of unrestrained capitalism and champions the International Social-Democratic Party in this report.
Mason, David S. “Darwinism and Social Darwinism.” A Concise History of Modern Europe. Second ed. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield, 2011. 71-82. Print.
David S. Mason’s text highlights the key events, ideas, and notable people who shaped modern Europe by providing a succinct history and exploring the theme of political, social, economic, and scientific revolution. This source differs from all of my other sources because of its coherence and brief accounts of European history that draw an audience looking for a framework for more thorough use of primary documents. I found the section on Social Darwinism to be not only informative, but also inspirational in explaining how Darwinism changed society and the way we think about ourselves as human beings. Upon reading this chapter, I began to question how this idea that European society is more “evolved” or developed than society in Africa and Asia is still pertinent in society today. On a personal level, I considered how Darwinism affects our relationship to our environment and how we treat those around us.
McKay, John P., et al. “The West and the World, 1815-1914.” A History of Western Society. Ninth ed. N.p.: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2008. 865-67. Print.
The History of Western Society textbook (ninth edition) considers Social Darwinism as a cause of New Imperialism for European powers because it justified brutal competition among races. In particular, this source describes the idea of Europeans to “civilize” those that they considered primitive and “inferior”. Although there are countless interpretations and controversies over the causes of New Imperialism, the textbook highlights those that are clearly recognizable, such as rapid industrialization and a growing sense of nationalism. This secondary source offers subjective commentary and analysis of various European economists’ and historians’ theories of this racial struggle and whether these beliefs are true or exaggerated. This is the first secondary source that I explored, and it was important in helping me understand how Social Darwinism and harsh racial ideologies fostered imperialist expansion. After visiting the textbook, I realized that I needed a thesis specific to one country, which led me to begin researching British imperialism in India.