The Partition of India: History Across Borders
The Partition of British India in 1947 heralded in the end of European empires in Asia. Simultaneously, religious and linguistic communities were violently divided as millions crossed the new national borders between Hindu-majority India and Muslim-majority Pakistan. In this course we will explore how to write histories across borders and use alternative sources to examine Partition’s impact on everyday life, its place in national memory, and enduring trans-border connections. Drawing on fiction, film, and the digital Partition Archive, we will study Partition as way to view decolonization, the relationship of violence to nationalism, and the formation of borders and citizenship. This course counts as elective credit toward the History major.