Colonial Subjects: British Rule and the Transformation of Indigenous Society in Africa and South Asia

Class Description

It is widely accepted that colonialism was a deeply extractive enterprise. Whether it was silver from Peru, sugar from the Caribbean, or enslaved humans from West Africa, colonial theft goes a long way toward explaining the large and widening wealth gap between former colonial powers and the Global South. But apart from serving as a conveyer belt for resources and profits, colonial contact also reconfigured how indigenous people would come to see themselves and their place in the world. Drawing on seminal scholarship on British India and Africa, this course examines how gender and class hierarchies were grafted onto indigenous society, how colonial subjects were forced into capitalist modes of production, and how they would come to identify as members of distinct ethnic communities.

Fahad Sajid, PhD, is an administrator and lecturer at the University of Chicago, where he completed his PhD in political science. His dissertation examined colonial policymaking in the British Empire with a focus on British India.

All virtual classes are recorded and made available to participants registered in the class. These recordings are password-protected and available for up to two weeks after the class ends.

What to Expect

Format: Virtual

Class Capacity: 18

Class Style: Mostly discussion; participation-based

Materials List

Required

• Digital Course Packet

First Reading

• Bruce Berman, “Review: The Perils of Bula Matari: Constraint and Power in the Colonial State,” Canadian Journal of African Studies 31, no. 3 (1997): 556-70.
• Judith Van Allen, “‘Sitting on a Man’: Colonialism and the Lost Political Institutions of Igbo Women,” Canadian Journal of African Studies 6, no. 2 (1972): 165-81.

A Brief Syllabus

1. Introduction: Coming to Grips with the Colonial Situation
2. Collaborating, Adapting, Surviving
3. Changing Fortunes in the Countryside
4. Law and Social Change
5. Ethnicity in Africa
6. Communalism in India

Cost and Registration

6 Sessions, $245 ($220.50 for Newberry members, seniors, and students). Learn about becoming a member.

We offer our classes at three different price options: Regular ($245), Community Supported ($225), and Sponsor ($265). Following the models of other institutions, we want to ensure that our classes are accessible to a wider audience while continuing to support our instructors. You may choose the price that best fits your situation when registering through Learning Stream.

To register multiple people for this class, please go through the course calendar in Learning Stream, our registration platform. When you select the course and register, you’ll be prompted to add another registrant.

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