Journal 6

A01

In Hind Swaraj by Gandhi, the editor was convinced that violence was not the Indian way of fighting injustice for India’s Independence. The editor knew that violence was not the answer to break from European culture, but to commit to “Swaraj” - to learn to rule themselves. I think the editor makes a convincing argument because he stands against the “eye for an eye” way of thinking. He wanted to fight for India’s freedom in a peaceful, yet effective manner. I think this approach is rare in the present day because there are so many violent protests that involve harming people not involved. When violence is used to “fix” something, matters often get worse and communities become further separated. The editor stated “If they (the English) wish to remain in India along with their civilization, there is no room for them. It lies with us to being such a state of things.” Here, the editor sends a powerful message of unity within their own community in order to promote change. He’s against the English’s invasion into their land and their attempt in implementing machinery. He knew that machinery would end up changing India’s culture significantly.

Journal #6: Cricket and India

In this article, C.L.R. James recalls his schooldays in the prime of English colonialism. The main focus of the article centers around the subculture that is cricket. Immersed in English culture, where a top education and being a student was the primary goal for all, James started to realize that the ideals he was taught was not the end all be all, when his chances of playing cricket was jeopardized and he started to take on, what Robert Kelley would consider, everyday forms of resistance to protest that. He point out how he was initially a studious child, who would not bend any form of rules, because that’s what he was taught in school, but he then begins to turn the other cheek and realizes that there is so much more to life than just school and that there were things to be passionate about. This is a great, yet, subtle example of hegemony and our compliance to be ruled almost blinds us sometimes from reality and the truth and those who realize are the ones to challenge authority and develop the tension between culture and subcultures as James does when it comes to cricket.

The article from M.K. Ghandi on the other hand takes a different approach on English

colonialism in India. Ghandi, rather than taking on everyday acts of resistance, wants to flush out

western society completely and directly. He says that in order for India to regain self rule, swaraj,

they must abandon all westernized things that they have accommodated to, such as machines, and go

back to how they used to do things. Admittedly, Ghandi’s approach to regaining swaraj, is a bit

extreme. He says that when it comes to stopping the use of machines and needing things made by

machines, if they could do without it before they can do without it now. He also made a point about

how those who wish to participate in his movement are free to do so and those won’t don’t have to,

but all he’d need is a small group and others will surely follow which resonates with the last reading,

in regards to the Laotian community who came together to stand up to their government and improve

the conditions that they were subject to. This form of unionizing against a higher power, transcends

culture and is united by a collective determination to fight any form of oppression.

Journal: Hind Swaraj and Beyond a Boundary

In the reading of Hind Swaraj by Ghandi talks about how the introduction of machinery had helped enslave the people India because people are now viewed as replaceable and not valued quite as much as they were in the past. The skilled work that they would be payed a lot for isn’t as efficient as that of machine that doesn’t need food, rest nor pay. He talks about a government in the form of Swaraj where India can rule itself and that only the corrupt within India are able to save themselves from their own selfishness. Although he makes good arguments about why the machines are oppressing India I believe that the machines can be simply used in a different manner whilst allowing people of India to be free. In Beyond a Boundary by C.L.R James he writes about how Britain has brainwashed the children in the classroom of Britain being the most important thing in the world. However with this mindset it prevents these children from thinking freely and being allowed to explore. In both readings the Elite class of India and Britain have different ways of controlling their people, but they don’t care as long as they benefit from this way of thinking. In the enslavement of people in India they’re essentially making a physical cage while the British government uses the education system to make a mental one, but in the end both are used to serve the same purpose.

M.K. Gandhi, From Hing Swaraj and James "From Beyond A Boundary" Blog

It was interesting to learn there has been a struggle in India to be freed from dominance. India has been oppressed and conquered over the years by imperialism and Western powers. In “M.K. Gandhi, From Hind Swaraj," Gandhi states “home rule for India.. if the Indian people are to be free of English political and economic rule they must also free themselves from British, and modern European, culture” (200). India has been oppressed and dominated by the “Western machines and materialism” and India loses its own values and cultures. It is important for the oppressed group to stand up for themselves and counteract the dominant force and hegemony. This relates back to the idea in order for changes to occur there must be a collective action from the mass group. The people of India must resist against the hegemonic notions as this can prevent corruption and Britain from colonizing India. Resistance allows the mass group to challenge the authority in power and eventually the mass group will be recognized for their own values. Throughout history, colonized territories such as Guam are afraid to claim their own values due to dominance. In order for values and ideas to be preserved, oppressed groups will need to resist.

“From Beyond A Boundary,” James discusses “the debate of cultures of resistance versus cultures of oppression.. “everything began from the basis that Britain was the source of all light and leading, and our business was to admire, wonder, imitate learn” (205). Even though there were cultural oppression and a struggle towards resistance toward sports area, family, lifestyles in the British realm, there weren’t any questions toward how the British see the world. I believe this is because individuals are expected to instill and respect the cultures they have been given. It is often difficult to go against the notions and cultures that one has been raised as this has been a tradition and notion that has been accepted for years and many individuals fear what could happen in the future if issues were to be challenged. This goes back to the concept that there are many different cultural perspectives and ways for individuals to perceive society. It is important to know that individuals can perceive the world and influenced due to their surroundings such as class and social identities. Social classes allow individuals to perceive the notions of cultures and truth in society.    

Question: Do you believe that social classes can factor how individuals perceive the truth in society?

"Beyond a Boundary" & "Hindi Swaraj"

C.L.R. James' realization that all they have learned in their life leading up to this point has been in the ideal of British intelligence, is very true in the sense that since the British controlled the education and all the activities held in Trinidad at the time, they had influence over what the youth will perceive as normal. The thought that whoever is the conqueror/imperialist has the ultimate influence on the people of a certain area makes one realize that they may have been "brain-washed" their whole life as they were only taught through the lenses of the victors. The same idea applies to history books and stories in general, as it is the victors who usually write the books to tell the heroic tales of themselves while the losers are usually quietly trying to recuperate from their loss. James' perspective on how organized sports like cricket and soccer requires everyone on the team to give up their own individualistic ideals in order to cooperate together for the greater good is similar to how everyone agrees to get along between the colonies and the colonizers in order to reach a goal that the colonizer wants, though the colonies might not realize that they are cooperating through oppression of their own individual selves. This makes me think of a lot of team based activities that I have done in schools, such as group projects or marching band/PE sports, and how in order to reach uniformity, everyone must cooperate and give up their own ideals of what the team should do and instead conform to the rule's standards to win. 

From Gandhi's perspective on the Indian people, it is clearly seen that he believes that the whole country can be relieved of this oppression by all cooperating together and forcing out the Western/British influences that it has "poisoned" India with. Through his eyes, overthrowing the British and forcing them out of India will be the ultimate solution to allow for India to progress faster in the world without being hindered by the oppressive forces of the British powers. This need for liberation from the British reminds me of how powerful imperialistic nations are in their reach of influence on those that they colonize because they can control the beliefs that the colonies hold without having much resistance by them because in their experience, colonial uprising is very rare and in a country so big, they do not really see the whole country being able to unify as one to kick out the British. The success that Gandhi later on puts up with shows just how strong a people can be in order to rebel against the oppressors, that they can create the outcome that they want even if history has not ruled in favor of their doing so. 

Avoiding Becoming White

An interesting point that is made in "From Hindi Swaraj" is the argument that, to truly be released from the oppressive hands of European imperialists, we must also completely reject their cultural influences. The author takes one of Mahatma Gandhi's famous quotes about this, "'If the master's house is to be dismantled, it cannot be done with the master's tools" (200). Although the foundation of this argument is that one should avoid erasing the influence of their culture, and that is a seemingly obvious concept, the real conflict begins with the idea that "white culture" is something founded completely by white people. If one were to consider American culture White culture, it should be noted that culture that we would now consider as something belonging to the United States has been melded and influences by the foreign populations that built the pillars of this country. Hip-hop, commonly seen as a genre created by Americans, would never be considered a white invention. I make this distinction because the argument that one must not fall victim to the ways of the white people, the Americans, is a complicated thing to say because the culture has never really belonged to them. It is a mixture of all the ethnicity's that populate the region. I am essentially saying that people of color cannot be criticized for following trends that seem white that are popular in American and European society, because white people have no pure culture.

James C.L.R & Gandhi M.K

James C.L.R & M.K Gandhi

In James article “Beyond Boundary” there speaks of the struggle between cultures of resistance and cultures of oppression within the educational system and sports. There is a sense of power that keeps people oppressed similar to how James felt being oppressed from keeping up with his grades and being a “well rounded” student while doing sports. This idea reflects a lot about the concept of power and truth, where as those who have power and are able to create this set of public “truths” for those to go forth by it seems that everyone else in the public has to follow those set of ideals. This is not the most ideal because it would lead to more oppression by those who are seen to be not following the “truth”. A similar idea presented in the article by Gandhi in regards to the context of India during the British imperialism, he suggested that those who were oppressed were physically and mentally enslaved by cultural conformity to believe that they are suppose to do what is being told of them to do just to conform around the society they are in. I really liked how Gandhi puts into perspective the fact that we are who we think we are not but what people force or tell us to do. Our minds are so powerful that even if we are not who we think we are, we will still see it as what our mind wants us to see in perspective of. It shows that in society if we are to allow those who oppresses us to do so, they can eventually take over our thoughts, our morals and become our sole reliant for our future. I think that both articles served a very meaningful purpose as to how we are ultimately the ones in control and in order to keep in control we must know what not to believe.