[(Subaltern Lives: Biographies of Colonialism in the Indian Ocean World, 1790-1920 )] [Author: Clare Anderson] [May-2012]

Critical Perspectives on Empire

by Clare Anderson

Subaltern Lives uses biographical fragments of the lives of convicts, captives, sailors, slaves, indentured labourers and indigenous peoples to build a fascinating new picture of colonial life in the nineteenth-century Indian Ocean. Moving between India, Africa, Mauritius, Burma, Singapore, Ceylon, the Andaman Islands and the Australian colonies, Clare Anderson offers fresh readings of the nature and significance of 'networked' Empire. She reveals the importance of penal transportation for colonial expansion and sheds new light on convict experiences of penal settlements and colonies, as well as the relationship between convictism, punishment and colonial labour regimes. The book also explores the nature of colonial society during this period and embeds subaltern biographies into key events like the abolition of slavery, the Anglo-Sikh Wars and the Indian Revolt of 1857. This is an important new perspective on British colonialism which also opens up new possibilities for the writing of history itself.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Biography

Unknown Binding

First published April 1, 2012

Reviews

[Shayan Tadayon]

I only read the first two chapters for a class discussion.

[v for vgna · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read it a month ago for my history course. I'm still counting it. Sue me.

[Julie Greene · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating study of convict labor in the British empire of the 19th century. Anderson's research is terrific. Stylistically the book is hampered by her constant telling us what she is arguing. It distracts from the power of her primary source findings. Still, this is a must-read for anyone interested in global labor and/or imperial history.

[Lynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful study of accounts of transportation in the late 18th, 19th century. Transportation was the term given by the British for taking those convicted of crimes in the British Empire and transporting them to penal colonies set up in more remote parts of the empire. The American colonies, especially Georgia was set for transportation earlier on but when the creation of the United States made that option not available, Australia was used as well as Van Diemen's Island, an island near Australia for British, Irish and European prisoners. As Britain sought to control other colonies especially their prize India, they transported Indian peoples throughout their colonies to places such as Mauritius, Singapore, and Burma. The upper class Indians were terrorized into supporting British rule by threats of transportation for life. The Sikhs who held themselves apart from other Indians, were once fierce defiers of British rule and eventually the people who used their force to enforce British rule on other Indians. Transportation replaced slavery but had many aspects as it was often a sentence for life and ensured a valuable workforce for the development of the British Empire. It was a control that allowed the British to keep people subjugated and in fear. I understand more why it took until World War II to allow subaltern people (powerless people) to rebel. The Japanese had overrun many of the British strongholds where they had maintained penal colonies and their own country was in such disarray that the British were powerless and disinclined to fight back as they had before. This is a scholarly work by Claire Anderson and uses records and accounts to trace the lives of several people who suffered transportation. People who were not European in descent often didn't have the ability to read or write and most stories are lost so she pieced together accounts of those whom she could follow as best she could.
Dullah was a man of indigenous descent from India. He was deported for life from India to Mauritius and rose to commander of others in the work force camps. George Morgan was an African who was sentenced to 7 years in Burma but escaped. His sentenced was doubled when he was recaptured but was able to convince the judge of his Europeaness, therefore sent to Van Diemen's Island instead where conditions were less harsh. While Britain has abolished slavery, they often raided slaving ships and took their cargo for their own use, especially children who might not be able to say where they came from. The other examples of transportation are just as interesting and I thought this was a great book. Slavery can often be renamed and called something else.