Anthropological Writings in Women’s Journals of Colonial Bengal: A Gendered Reading of Intellectual Public Sphere/ ঔপনিবেশিক বাংলার নারী পত্রিকায় নৃতাত্ত্বিক রচনা : বৌদ্ধিক-পরিসরের একটি লিঙ্গগত পাঠ

Abstract

In the social landscape of nineteenth-century colonial Bengal, the nationalist-reformist discourses that existed as a dominant form within Bengali societies. Within this milieu, Hindu women of the upper and middle classes encountered numerous social barriers. Their education was confined to domestic spheres, where they were groomed to embody the ideals of “Perfect Wife” or “Ideal Mother” through instructional materials found in Bengali women’s periodicals. This observation is a recurring theme in various historical discourses. But women’s journals not only offered guidance on ideal homemaking, child rearing and domestic chores but also provided some readings that offered women a reprieve from the overwhelming pressures of their patriarchal domestic duties. One example of such readings includes anthropological writings penned by women and featured in various women’s journals. Anthropology, the study of human societies, cultures and their evolution, was initially introduced in India by British colonial administrators. However, in Bengal, its practice began early through the publication of various mainstream journals by educated Bengali bhadralok. Women’s journals, akin to mainstream journals, began featuring diverse writings on societies and cultures of foreign nations authored by women. Given this fact, this article is to seek answers to the following two questions: Firstly, beyond the thrill of reading, how the anthropological writings published in the women’s journal expanded the horizon of knowledge of women of the first decade of the twentieth century. Moreover, how the anthropological writings of the women writers about the conditions of women of different cultures reflected their own shares of gendered struggle vis-à-vis the overarching presence of male in every arena of society. This present study will argue that these writings, mainly anthropological in nature, and mostly written by women created a gender consciousness in the public intellectual space and shaped the women’s struggle to build up a self-identity for themselves. 

          The exploration of the aforementioned issues primarily focuses on three women’s journals: Bamabodhini, edited by Shri Umeschandra Dutta, Antapur, edited by Smt. Hemantakumari Devi and Mahila, edited by Shri Girishchandra Dutta. Additionally, certain articles from Prabashi and Navya-Bharat journals have been incorporated to further enrich the discourse.