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J .W. Kaye's India: Romanticism, Orientalism and Militarism in Victorian Narratives of Conquest
From: Science Museum and The Victoria and Albert Museum
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Douglas Peers |
EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION |
J.W. Kaye was the pre-eminent historian and biographer of the British in India for the early to mid Victorian era. His oeuvre spanned five novels, four histories of different periods of British India, five biographies and at least 143 articles and reviews for periodicals. They shaped contemporary impressions of India and laid the foundations for future historians' understanding of the era. Being as ensconced in the Anglo-Indian world as he was in the world of British media and military affairs, Kaye was uniquely placed, able to bridge the gap between British and Anglo-Indian cultural spheres.
In this lecture given at the "Locating the Victorians" conference held at the Science Museum in June 2001, Douglas Peers argues that, through Kaye, we can gain valuable insights into the communities that Kaye straddled and their colonial preoccupations. He argues that crucial to Kaye's success was his emphasis on the army's role, both in securing colonial rule and in demonstrating Britain's fitness to rule. His military narratives were suited to the dominant discourses of the day, combining gender, race and class with the fashionable zeal for Romantic narrative. |
Douglas Peers discusses the life and works of J W Kaye.
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