Empire, Nationalism and the Postcolonial World

By presenting a new interpretation of Rabindranath Tagores English language writings, this book places the work of Indias greatest Nobel Prize winner and cultural icon in the context of imperial history and thereby bridges the gap between Tagore studies and imperial/postcolonial historiography. Using detailed archival research, the book charts the origins of Tagores ideas in Indian religious traditions and discusses the impact of early Indian nationalism on Tagores thinking. It offers a new interpretation of Tagores complex debates with Gandhi about the colonial encounter, Tagores provocative analysis of the impact of British imperialism in India and his questioning of nationalism as a pathway to authentic postcolonial freedom. The book also demonstrates how the man and his ideas were received and interpreted in Britain during his lifetime and how they have been sometimes misrepresented by nationalist historians and postcolonial theorists after Tagores death. An alternative interpretation based on an intellectual history approach, this book places Tagores sense of agency, his ideas and intentions within a broader historical framework. Offering an exciting critique of postcolonial theory from a historical perspective, it is a timely contribution in the wake of the 150th anniversary of Tagore's birth in 2011.