Syllabus

Lectures for this course will be delivered via PowerPoint presentations with audio, linked to this page by the weekly (or biweekly) segments. When you click on a link, the prompt will ask you to open a PowerPoint file; after doing so, click on ‘play Powerpoint.’ Each slide has an audio icon, so be sure to click on it as you go to each page in the presentation.

WEEKS 1 & 2, March 30-April 1, 6-8 Introduction: Contextualizing History, Culture and Society
This week’s lecture   Cultural issues

Film to be screened: The Story of India

We will explore the cultural background of the Great Traditions of Hinduism and Islam in the subcontinent, the basis of social organization as well as cover the social impact of the British Raj.

Required Readings:

  • Crabtree “Introduction,” pp. 6-19
  • Guneratne & Weiss “Introduction: Situating Domestic Politics in South Asia,” pp. 1-18, “The Colonial Legacy,” pp. 21-92
  • Kumar & Goyal “Introduction: towards New Beginnings in South Asia,” pp. xv-xxi
  • Talbot “Introduction,” pp. 1-10, “Land, Society, Environment,” pp. 32-46, “British Rule,” pp. 65-79, and “The ‘High Noon’ of Empire,” pp. 80-97

Thank you for submitting your preferences for which country and what topic you would like to research for your paper. I have tried to accommodate your preferences as best as possible. The full list is here.  Please refer to the Project Information page for more details about this.

WEEKS 3 & 4, April 13-15, 20   Post-Independence Political and Economic Goals and Challenges: India

Lecture on India: Part 1   Part 2

Discussion questions about India ⇐ instructions on class to be conducted via Zoom, Wednesday April 15 during class time (2-3:20 pm), included here.

Required Readings:

  • Crabtree, Parts 1 (“Ambaniland,” pp. 23-49, “The Good Times Begin,” pp. 50-79, “Rise of the Bollygarchs,” pp. 80-109) and Part 2 (“India Modified,” pp. 113-136, “Cronyism goes South,” pp. 189-217)
  • Guneratne & Weiss “India” (through the section ‘Identity Politics’), pp. 105-147
  • Kumar & Goyal “Reviewing Regional Cooperation in South Asia,” pp. 1-11
  • Talbot “The Nation and Beyond,” pp. 117-129, “Independence with Partition,” pp. 130-145, “Nehru and the ‘New India’,” pp. 149-163, “Challenges to Nehruvian India,” pp. 181-195
    *Adam Roberts “View from a Stopping Train” Superfast Primetime Ultimate Nation: the Relentless Invention of Modern India (New York: Public Affairs, 2017), pp. 3-19

WEEKS 4 & 5, April 22 & April 27  Post-Independence Political and Economic Goals and Challenges: Pakistan
Lecture on Pakistan: Part 1 Part 2

Discussion questions about Pakistan  ⇐ instructions on class to be conducted via Zoom, Wednesday April 22 during class time (2-3:20 pm), included here.

Required Readings:

  • Guneratne & Weiss “Pakistan” (through the section ‘Identity Politics’), pp. 169-207
  • Kumar & Goyal “Politics in Pakistan Today: the Challenge of Securing Democracy,” pp. 96-108
  • Talbot, “Pakistan’s Failure in Democratic Consolidation” (pp. 164-177), “Pakistan’s National Crisis and the Birth of Bangladesh” (pp. 196-209), “Bangladesh since Independence” (pp. 210-225), “Pakistan since 1991” (pp. 226-241)

WEEK 5, April 29   Why Inequality Matters: The Social Costs of Militarism in the Region

As this was meant to be a 1-class segment, we will only have the live Zoom class during class time (2-3:20 pm) to discuss these questions, and not a separate lecture.

Link to discussion questions

Required Readings:

  • Crabtree “House of Debt,” pp. 221-247
  • Guneratne & Weiss “Social Costs of Militarism” in India pp. 153-157, in Pakistan pp. 216-218, in Sri Lanka pp. 271-274, in Nepal pp. 330-332, in Bangladesh pp. 390-393
  • Talbot “Borders and Boundaries,” pp. 20-31, “The Contemporary International Relations of South Asia” pp. 254-269

WEEK 6, May 4  In-Class Mid-term Examination
This will be administered through CANVAS. You will have two hours to take it, anytime between the morning of May 3 and the evening of May 4.

WEEK 6, May 6   Regional Concerns: the Promise of SAARC and SAFTA

Lecture on SAARC

Required Readings:

  • Kumar & Goyal “Changing Face: the Trials and Fortunes of Regional Cooperation under SAARC,” pp. 25-40, “SAARC and Economic Cooperation,” 42-52, “Nepal, SAARC and South Asia,” 134-142
  • SAARC website: Look at “Areas of Cooperation”

From now on, the class format will change, and we will be fully engaged with each of the five countries of South Asia. On Mondays, Professor Weiss’ lectures will discuss the larger arenas of the issue as well as the readings; these are selected readings, for you to read as you would like (but do read some of them each week!).

Prepare a written brief (report) 12-15 pp. addressing what are the crucial problems confronting your country in this area. Reports are to be typewritten, double-spaced, written in report style (as opposed to term paper style, so use bullet points as appropriate), and include a bibliography. Email your paper to Professor Weiss (either as a Word or pdf document) by noon on the due date and she will then link the papers by themes on the respective Presentation Page of this website.

Then by Wednesday of that week, prepare a 5-7 minute PowerPoint presentation with audio of the most important points you have made in your paper. Please first convert your pptx file to a video file (mp4) by going to “File”, “Export”, “Create a Video” in your PowerPoint program. (If your version of PowerPoint does not support this feature, please simply email the file and we will convert it.) Email it to Michelle at: mnikfarj@uoregon.edu. She will then group all five presentations together and create a playlist noting the week and topic within Panopto (in CANVAS). We will rely on these papers and PowerPoint presentations as sources for writing the final essay.

WEEK 7, May 11-13  Women’s Empowerment: Literacy, Employment and Legal Reforms

Week 7 lecture: Part 1   Part 2
Presentation page

Required Readings:

  • Guneratne & Weiss “Women’s Power and Kinship Networks in Political Life” in India, pp. 147-153, in Pakistan pp. 207-216, in Sri Lanka pp. 268-271, in Nepal pp. 327-330, in Bangladesh pp. 385-390, and “Struggles over Rights: the Women’s Movement in Sri Lanka” pp. 274-278
  • Kumar & Goyal “SEWA’s Sister-to-Sister Initiative for Peace and Work,” pp. 176-182

WEEK 8, May 18-20  Urban Environmental Challenges and Poverty Alleviation

The link for the final essay is here. The essay is to be based largely on what you have learned from each other’s presentations. The essay will be open for submission via Canvas on Thursday June 4 and will close for submissions one week later, June 11, at 2 pm. (In other words, you have a week to submit it through the Canvas portal.)

Week 8 lecture
Presentation Page

Required Readings:

  • Crabtree “Conclusion: a Progressive Era?”, pp. 355-366
  • Kumar & Goyal “South Asia’s Mounting Ecological Challenge: Regional Cooperation is the Only Answer,” pp. 53-64
  • Talbot “India Shining,” pp. 242-253

WEEKS 9 & 10, May 27 & June 1  Political Challenges and Religious/Ethnic Conflict
Lecture:
Presentation page

Required Readings:

  • Crabtree “The Nation wants to Know,” pp. 303-328
  • Guneratne & Weiss “Pakistan – Struggles over Rights: Case Study of the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) in Swat,” pp. 218-221
  • Kumar & Goyal “Diversity Management in SAARC Countries,”
    pp. 239-251

WEEK 10, June 3  Discussion: Struggles over Rights and Seeking Common Ground  ⇐ please plan to participate in a final class to be conducted via Zoom today during class time (2-3:20 pm)!

Final essay: The Canvas portal for submitting your essay will remain open for one week (you can submit it any time during that week). It will open for submissions on Thursday June 4 at 2 pm and will close for submissions one week later, June 11, at 2 pm.

This last day of class, we’ll be discussing various struggles over rights discussed in Guneratne & Weiss, exploring the results of the group process and the final essays, our visions of South Asia’s future, and have a final wrap-up of our remote teaching/learning experience.

Required Readings:

  • Guneratne & Weiss “India – Struggles over Rights: a Case Study,” pp. 157-163, “Nepal – Struggles over Rights: the 2007 Madhes Rebellion,” pp. 332-337, “Bangladesh – Struggles over Rights: the Nagorik Committee Initiative,” pp. 393-399

New Recommended Reading!
Many of you have expressed concern about the impact of COVID-19 on South Asia. I thought you might find this of interest:

Hussain Haqqani & Aparna Pande “Crisis from Kolkata to Kabul: Covid-19s Impact on South Asia“ The Hudson Institute, May 26, 2020