Thanks to a sabbatical at the University of Pennsylvania, which ended up completely coinciding with a lockdown, 2020 was a year when I read more than I’ve read in the past many years put together. This also makes it difficult for me to pick just one book this year.
My first recommendation is VD Savarkar’s Indian War of Independence 1857. I must admit that I have still not read anything by Savarkar on Hindutva, a term he used after he had written the 1857 book. I would recommend this especially for people who oppose the RSS-BJP, whose ideological roots come from Savarkar’s world view.
While there could be better accounts of the 1857 mutiny, Savarkar does not even maintain the pretence of writing the book as an objective historian. The text has a son-of-the-soil lament throughout. The author expresses joy when the British suffer losses and pain when they ultimately win. What’s remarkable is a reflection of the “proud Hindu” within Savarkar in the commentary. He’s okay with Bahadur Shah Zafar being the leader of the revolt — the book actually ends with a couplet by Zafar — because by then Shivaji had inflicted defeat on the Mughals and Hindus could deal with them on respectful terms. The point of recommending this book is not to argue that everything Savarkar wrote in it should be acceptable to those who celebrate Savarkar today. It is to understand that political views, even of the most polarising historical figures can change drastically, perhaps as a result of the political environment around them and what they want to make of it.
Another book which also deals with the question of polarisation, this time in the US, is Why We’re Polarized by Ezra Klein, editor at large at Vox. Klein mixes political psychology with American history to explain why American society has become so polarised. The US election results and partisan behaviour around even mask-wearing have left little doubt about that. The point again, is not to endorse of all Klein’s arguments. It is to open ourselves to the admission that the world is perhaps too complicated to be changed by just one factor. Many of us often tend to prioritise one of these (economy, race, religion etc.) while explaining the drastic shifts which have surprised us all in the past few years. Such an approach is unlikely to help, is what Klein’s book tells me.
{{/usCountry}}Another book which also deals with the question of polarisation, this time in the US, is Why We’re Polarized by Ezra Klein, editor at large at Vox. Klein mixes political psychology with American history to explain why American society has become so polarised. The US election results and partisan behaviour around even mask-wearing have left little doubt about that. The point again, is not to endorse of all Klein’s arguments. It is to open ourselves to the admission that the world is perhaps too complicated to be changed by just one factor. Many of us often tend to prioritise one of these (economy, race, religion etc.) while explaining the drastic shifts which have surprised us all in the past few years. Such an approach is unlikely to help, is what Klein’s book tells me.
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