The state of indigenous education, its dislocation; Orientalist – Anglicist controversy. The introduction of western education in India; The rise of press, literature and public opinion; The rise of modern vernacular literature; Progress of science; Christian missionary activities in India.
PYQs: Social and Cultural Developments [1985-2026]
- Review the educational policy of the English East India Company. To what extent did it serve the imperial interests of Great Britain? (1988)
- ‘Nowhere was the influence of the missionaries felt more than in relation to the women’s movement.’ Comment in about 200 words. (1989)
- What was the Anglicisit – Orientalist controversy about? How was it resolved and with what results? (1990)
- “India broke her British fetters with western hammers.” Comment. (1997)
- The Christian Missionary propaganda from 1813 onwards was “often insensitive and wounding.” Comment. (1999)
- “India broke her British fetters with Western hammers.” Comment. (2002)
- Examine the impact of British rule on Indian Society in the 19th Century. (2004)
- “The vernacular press in the nineteenth century was both newspaper as well as ‘viewspaper* that enlightened the dormant masses”. Comment. (2008)
- “Orientalism produced a knowledge the past to service the needs of the Colonial State.” Elucidate. (2011)
- “The vernacular press in nineteenth century India served not just as newspapers but more importantly as views – papers.” Comment. (2011)
- ‘“The current practice of categorization of ‘Early Modem India’ is based on a shift from the old imperialist periodization of ‘Muslim India’- ‘British India’ to the more secularist one of ‘Medieval India’ – ‘Modern India’, which puts Indian history in a universalist chronological structure.” Critically examine. (2012)
- Do you agree with the view that the growth of vernacular literature in the 19th and the 20th centuries paved the way for social reform and cultural revival in India? (2016)
- Assess the role of press in arousing awareness on important social issues in the second half of the nineteenth century. (2017)
- What was the significance of Orientalist Anglicist controversy in nineteenth century India? Analyse. (2018)
- Examine the forces at work for the introduction of western education in India. Analyse the thrust given to it by the Christian Missionaries. (2019)
- Critically examine the following statement in about 150 words: The introduction of Western education transformed India in unforeseen ways. (2021)
- Critically examine the following statement in about 150 words: The Vernacular Press Act of 1878 was designed for better control of the vernacular press and to empower the government with more effective means of punishing and repressing seditious writings. (2021)
- Was the Western education a harbinger of cultural awakening or an instrument of colonial hegemony? Discuss. (2022)
- ‘Within a limited scope the Indian Scientists could pursue original scientific research in colonial India’. Critically examine. (2022)
- To accomplish the aims of education, ‘political propaganda and formation as well as propagation of nationalist ideology’, the press became the chief instrument. Comment. (2023)
- “The tug of war between the two principles of freedom and control of the press made its influence felt on the colonial rulers’ attitude to the press.” Discuss. (2025)
- “The Orientalist-Anglicist controversy of the 19th century constituted a turning point in shaping colonial educational policy in India.” Examine. (2026)
