Journal 6 - Hind Swaraj and Beyond a Boundary

In Gandhi’s “Hind Swaraj”, he expresses his concerns over British rule over India and explains that in order to become sovereign, the citizens must also free themselves from British and modern European culture. This is interesting since it opposes Vergera’s notion of the falsity of “cultural authenticity.” Gandhi believes that the British and Indian culture should remain two distinct aspects, but like Vergara states, I do not believe that the two cultures should stay separated. It is true that the British culture permeated through India’s society faster through their colonial rule, which complicated Gandhi’s goal of sovereignty, but I also believe that British culture would have ultimately spread to India one way or another. As we have discussed in class, culture is dynamic and does not revolve around one fundamental idea. It changes its form as people become interested in new trends, so I don’t believe that Gandhi’s stance on freeing themselves from modern European culture is practical. Gandhi does acknowledge that his ideas are difficult, especially “Swadeshi” which is home rule. However, he believes that it is still possible to live independent of machinery because the movement will slowly gain popularity as leaders take the initiative.

“From Beyond a Boundary” by CLR James describes his growth and self-realization in growing up in a school system verses joining the school system. His experiences epitomize how second generation children feel, as they are brought up in American culture but their immigrant parents still retain their own culture. Not only does this parallel the second generation’s struggles, but his narrative also reflects the hegemonic culture. By playing cricket, he learned to “play with the team, which meant subordinating your personal inclinations to the good of the whole” (207). He understands that to play the sport, there was self-imposed discipline, which is exactly how hegemonic culture begins. The concept of working together without conflict is so ingrained in our values that we lose sight of questioning common practices.