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Dr Benjamin Zachariah
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Major Publications
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Biography
Benjamin Zachariah read history at Presidency College, Calcutta, and at Trinity College, Cambridge. He joined the department in September 2001, having previously taught at the School of Oriental and African Studies, London, the University of Sussex, the University of East London, and Presidency College, Calcutta. His life outside the academic bubble includes an interest in playing music and taking photographs. Research
Current Research His current research projects place him in the emerging field described as 'transnational history', a label with which he is uncomfortable but with which he is willing to compromise, at least temporarily. He is also committed to exploring the connections between academic historical scholarship, popular historical consciousness and political activities and activism. Dr Zachariah's current project is on Indian exiles in Berlin in the interwar period. During the period 2008-2012, he is on secondment to the Zentrum Moderner Orient in Berlin [www.zmo.de/index.html], where he will be based in order to conduct this research.
Research Interests Dr Zachariah's research interests centre on the social and intellectual history of colonial and postcolonial South Asia, in particular the intellectual history of development in its late colonial, postcolonial and Cold War contexts; interactions between metropolitan and Indian ideas; and political culture, political rhetoric and standards of political legitimacy in colonial and postcolonial India. Related research interests include the social and intellectual history of Bengal, post-Second World War decolonisation, the political economy of imperialism and South Asia's connections with the post-war Commonwealth; international connections among socialists; and sectarian conflicts in colonial South Asia.
Teaching and Research Supervision Dr Zachariah's teaching interests are closely connected to his research interests. His undergraduate courses include a survey course on South Asian history c. 1885-1947 at Level 2, and at Level 3 a course on war, decolonisation and partition in South Asia, 1939-1950, a course on the invention of Hinduism c. 1760-2000, and one on Gandhi, Gandhism and the limits of non-violent political protests. He lectures on imperialism and modernity at Level One, teaches issues of postcolonial theory and subalternity at Level 2, and is involved in teaching on issues relating to empire, power and representations for Masters level programmes. Other teaching interests include the organisation and disorganisation of the anti-imperialist left in the 1930's and '40's; politics, gender and sexuality in colonial India; science, technology and society in colonial India; constructions of identity in colonial and postcolonial India. Dr Zachariah would be glad to supervise graduate students in any aspect of modern South Asian history, particularly in connection with the above interests. PhD student: Responsibilities
Dr Zachariah is on secondment to the Zentrum Moderner Orient in Berlin [www.zmo.de/index.html] from summer 2008 until 2012, during which period he is not part of the administrative establishment. Previous roles include work on Teaching Committee, including planning curriculum matters, designing new degree programmes and redesigning existing ones; Admissions Committee; and coordinating the Level One compulsory course Paths from Antiquity to Modernity (HST112) and the Level One option The Making of the Twentieth Century (HST117). Selected Publications
Books / Special Issues - Playing the Nation Game: The Ambiguities of Nationalism in India (Delhi: Yoda, 2011) - Developing India: A Social and Intellectual History c. 1930-1950 (Delhi: Oxford University Press, 2005) - Nehru, (London: Routledge, 2004) - 'In Search of Authenticity: Bengali Narratives of Their Past and the Coloniser's Ubiquitous Presence', in Beate Eschment and Hans Harder (ed.), Looking at the Coloniser (Würzburg: Ergon Verlag, 2004), pp. 225-250. - 'Rewriting Imperial Mythologies: The Strange Case of Penderel Moon', South Asia, Vol. 24 No. 2 (December 2001) - 'Uses of Scientific Argument: The Case of "Development" in India, c. 1930-1950, Economic and Political Weekly, Vol. XXXVI No. 39 (September 29, 2001)
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