ID:
508299
Duration (hours):
40
CFU:
6
SSD:
STORIA E ISTITUZIONI DELL'ASIA
Year:
2025
Overview
Date/time interval
Secondo Semestre (23/02/2026 - 29/05/2026)
Syllabus
Course Objectives
- A solid understanding of key moments in the modern and contemporary history of the Indian Subcontinent and Southeast Asia.
- The ability to critically analyze and evaluate historical events and their interpretative approaches.
- Proficiency in analyzing past events and historical issues in relation to their significance to issues relevant to contemporary political and social movements in South Asia and Southeast Asia.
- A good understanding of the role of subaltern, feminist, and Dalit historical inquiry in the post-colonial Indian discourse.
- The capacity to independently and critically formulate a research question on issues related to the politics and society of South Asia and Southeast Asia.
- The capacity to develop an interpretative framework for further exploration of contemporary history issues in India and Southeast Asia
- The ability to critically analyze and evaluate historical events and their interpretative approaches.
- Proficiency in analyzing past events and historical issues in relation to their significance to issues relevant to contemporary political and social movements in South Asia and Southeast Asia.
- A good understanding of the role of subaltern, feminist, and Dalit historical inquiry in the post-colonial Indian discourse.
- The capacity to independently and critically formulate a research question on issues related to the politics and society of South Asia and Southeast Asia.
- The capacity to develop an interpretative framework for further exploration of contemporary history issues in India and Southeast Asia
Course Prerequisites
A good knowledge of both written and spoken English is essential for accessing the bibliographic resources and attending the seminars with international professors.
I encourage you to start the course with a good understanding of the political geography of South Asia and Southeast Asia. Numerous online resources are available to help you achieve this. Here are some examples:
Wikimedia Commons
https://www.luc.edu/asianstudies/map_resources.shtml
I encourage you to consult geographical maps with a critical mindset
I encourage you to start the course with a good understanding of the political geography of South Asia and Southeast Asia. Numerous online resources are available to help you achieve this. Here are some examples:
Wikimedia Commons
https://www.luc.edu/asianstudies/map_resources.shtml
I encourage you to consult geographical maps with a critical mindset
Teaching Methods
Lectures, seminars, text analysis, group discussions, and collective study activities
Assessment Methods
The final exam is divided into two parts:
1) an oral assessment on the contents of the lectures and the reading materials. You are expected to demonstrate an in-depth knowledge of the course programme and a capacity to critically analyse the texts read through direct answers to questions;
2) a 15-minute presentation on a topic of their choice. It is advisable (but not mandatory) to choose your topic from those covered during the second part of the course. To prepare the presentation, you should formulate a research question and address it based on the reading materials provided during the course and group/class discussions. Alternative readings may be agreed with the lecturer based on the topic chosen for the presentation.
1) an oral assessment on the contents of the lectures and the reading materials. You are expected to demonstrate an in-depth knowledge of the course programme and a capacity to critically analyse the texts read through direct answers to questions;
2) a 15-minute presentation on a topic of their choice. It is advisable (but not mandatory) to choose your topic from those covered during the second part of the course. To prepare the presentation, you should formulate a research question and address it based on the reading materials provided during the course and group/class discussions. Alternative readings may be agreed with the lecturer based on the topic chosen for the presentation.
Texts
TEACHING MATERIALS
Throughout the course, I will upload the teaching materials to the Kiro page of the course
COURSE’S REFERENCE LIST
1) General texts
The following books are necessary for the preparation of the general part of the examination programme. You can find the books in the library of the Department of Political and Social Sciences.
1. Barbara D. Metcalf and Thomas R. Metcalf (2012 third edition) A Concise History of Modern India, Cambridge University Press.
2. Owen Norman G. (2005) The emergence of modern Southeast Asia: a new history, University of Hawai’i Press.
CHAPTERS:
Introduction: Places and Peoples (pp. 1-18); Part I (pp. 19-74); Part II (pp. 75-92; 137-146); Part III (pp. 161- 282); Part IV (pp. 312 -334); Part V (414 -430; 497-506).
You can use the following book for further reference on the History of India:
- Michelguglielmo Torri (2007) Storia dell’India, Laterza
2) Supplementary bibliography
The following texts will be analysed and discussed during the lessons in the second part of the course. You should come to class having read at least one of the two readings indicated for the day's lesson, in order to allow for group discussion and restitution in the classroom (please, refer to the Kiro course page to stay updated on any changes to the supplementary bibliography).
On the basis of the readings and thanks to the analytical tools developed during the course, students will be invited to identify and explore one of the topics covered in a geographical area of their choice in South or South-East Asia, and prepare a 15-minute presentation to be delivered orally during the final exam. The reading and analysis of these texts are essential for exam preparation, especially to guide students in their choice of topic for the presentation that will be assessed during the exam. The texts will be made available to students in advance on the course's Kiro page.
- Guha Ranajit, (1982) “On Some Aspects of the Historiography of Colonial India”. Subaltern Studies: Writings on South Asian History and Society, Delhi: Oxford University Press.
- Sarkar Mahua (2008) “Introduction: Writing Difference” in Visible Histories, Disappearing Women. Producing Muslim Womanhood in Colonial Bengal, Duke University Press, pp. 1-26
- Datta Arunima (2023)”Coolie Women in the Empire's Rubber Garden” in Fleeting Agencies. A Social History of Indian Coolie Women in British Malaya, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp.1-26.
- Daut, Nur. (2026). “Indian Muslims and “Bumiputera status” in Malaysia”. In M. Cogan (ed) Indo-Pacific Diaspora in Peace and Conflict. Unity and Division in the Age of Transnational Repression. Londong: Routledge.
- Abdul Rahman, Embong, (2018) “Ethnicity and Class: Divides and Dissent in Malaysian Studies”, Southeast Asian Studies 7(3): 281-307.
- Kheng Cheah Boon (2009) “ The Communist Insurgency in Malaysia 1948-90: Contesting the Nation-state and Social Change”, New Zeland Journal of Asian Studies 11(1):132-52.
Alpa Shah (2019 [2018]) “Mezzo Secolo di Resistenza Armata”, in Marcia Notturna. Nel Cuore della Guerriglia Rivoluzionaria Indiana, Meltemi, pp. 45-76.
- Agnes Flavia, (2012) “From Shah Bano to Kausar Bano: Contextualizing the ‘’Muslim Woman’’ within a Communalized Polity”, in Asia Loomba and Ritty A. Lukose (eds) South Asian Femınısms, Durham and London: Duke University Press, pp.33-53.
- Mangiarotti Emanuela (2023) “Kashmir as Frontier in Narendra Modi’s Ethno-Nationalist Idea of India”, in S. Beretta et al. (eds.), India’s Foreign Policy and Economic Challenges, Springer, Cap. 9.
- Faris A. Khan, (2019) “Translucent Citizenship: Khwaja Sira Activism and Alternatives to Dissent in Pakistan”. South Asia Multidisciplinary Academic Journal [Online], 20 URL: http://journals.openedition.org/samaj/5034
- Hashmi Fahad, (2022) “Citizenship, Religion, and the Politics of Belonging: A Case Study of Shaheen Bagh”. South Asia Multidisciplinary Academic Journal [Online], 28. URL: http://journals.openedition.org/samaj/7690
- Bowser, M. J. (2020). Partners in Empire? Co-colonialism and the Rise of Anti-Indian Nationalism in Burma, 1930–1938. The Journal of Imperial and Commonwealth History, 49(1), 118–147.
Hirschman, C. (1986). The Making of Race in Colonial Malaya: Political Economy and Racial Ideology. Sociological Forum, 1(2), 330–361.
- Arunima Datta. 2023. "Coolie Women in the Empire's Rubber Garden" in Fleeting Agencies: A Social History of Indian Coolie Women in British Malaya. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
Throughout the course, I will upload the teaching materials to the Kiro page of the course
COURSE’S REFERENCE LIST
1) General texts
The following books are necessary for the preparation of the general part of the examination programme. You can find the books in the library of the Department of Political and Social Sciences.
1. Barbara D. Metcalf and Thomas R. Metcalf (2012 third edition) A Concise History of Modern India, Cambridge University Press.
2. Owen Norman G. (2005) The emergence of modern Southeast Asia: a new history, University of Hawai’i Press.
CHAPTERS:
Introduction: Places and Peoples (pp. 1-18); Part I (pp. 19-74); Part II (pp. 75-92; 137-146); Part III (pp. 161- 282); Part IV (pp. 312 -334); Part V (414 -430; 497-506).
You can use the following book for further reference on the History of India:
- Michelguglielmo Torri (2007) Storia dell’India, Laterza
2) Supplementary bibliography
The following texts will be analysed and discussed during the lessons in the second part of the course. You should come to class having read at least one of the two readings indicated for the day's lesson, in order to allow for group discussion and restitution in the classroom (please, refer to the Kiro course page to stay updated on any changes to the supplementary bibliography).
On the basis of the readings and thanks to the analytical tools developed during the course, students will be invited to identify and explore one of the topics covered in a geographical area of their choice in South or South-East Asia, and prepare a 15-minute presentation to be delivered orally during the final exam. The reading and analysis of these texts are essential for exam preparation, especially to guide students in their choice of topic for the presentation that will be assessed during the exam. The texts will be made available to students in advance on the course's Kiro page.
- Guha Ranajit, (1982) “On Some Aspects of the Historiography of Colonial India”. Subaltern Studies: Writings on South Asian History and Society, Delhi: Oxford University Press.
- Sarkar Mahua (2008) “Introduction: Writing Difference” in Visible Histories, Disappearing Women. Producing Muslim Womanhood in Colonial Bengal, Duke University Press, pp. 1-26
- Datta Arunima (2023)”Coolie Women in the Empire's Rubber Garden” in Fleeting Agencies. A Social History of Indian Coolie Women in British Malaya, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp.1-26.
- Daut, Nur. (2026). “Indian Muslims and “Bumiputera status” in Malaysia”. In M. Cogan (ed) Indo-Pacific Diaspora in Peace and Conflict. Unity and Division in the Age of Transnational Repression. Londong: Routledge.
- Abdul Rahman, Embong, (2018) “Ethnicity and Class: Divides and Dissent in Malaysian Studies”, Southeast Asian Studies 7(3): 281-307.
- Kheng Cheah Boon (2009) “ The Communist Insurgency in Malaysia 1948-90: Contesting the Nation-state and Social Change”, New Zeland Journal of Asian Studies 11(1):132-52.
Alpa Shah (2019 [2018]) “Mezzo Secolo di Resistenza Armata”, in Marcia Notturna. Nel Cuore della Guerriglia Rivoluzionaria Indiana, Meltemi, pp. 45-76.
- Agnes Flavia, (2012) “From Shah Bano to Kausar Bano: Contextualizing the ‘’Muslim Woman’’ within a Communalized Polity”, in Asia Loomba and Ritty A. Lukose (eds) South Asian Femınısms, Durham and London: Duke University Press, pp.33-53.
- Mangiarotti Emanuela (2023) “Kashmir as Frontier in Narendra Modi’s Ethno-Nationalist Idea of India”, in S. Beretta et al. (eds.), India’s Foreign Policy and Economic Challenges, Springer, Cap. 9.
- Faris A. Khan, (2019) “Translucent Citizenship: Khwaja Sira Activism and Alternatives to Dissent in Pakistan”. South Asia Multidisciplinary Academic Journal [Online], 20 URL: http://journals.openedition.org/samaj/5034
- Hashmi Fahad, (2022) “Citizenship, Religion, and the Politics of Belonging: A Case Study of Shaheen Bagh”. South Asia Multidisciplinary Academic Journal [Online], 28. URL: http://journals.openedition.org/samaj/7690
- Bowser, M. J. (2020). Partners in Empire? Co-colonialism and the Rise of Anti-Indian Nationalism in Burma, 1930–1938. The Journal of Imperial and Commonwealth History, 49(1), 118–147.
Hirschman, C. (1986). The Making of Race in Colonial Malaya: Political Economy and Racial Ideology. Sociological Forum, 1(2), 330–361.
- Arunima Datta. 2023. "Coolie Women in the Empire's Rubber Garden" in Fleeting Agencies: A Social History of Indian Coolie Women in British Malaya. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
Contents
Contemporary political and social dynamic in South and Southeast Asia are deeply entangled with the history of colonial empires and of XIX and XX century’s political movements. The course analyses, on one hand, how principles of colonial governance contributed to solidifying political representation and economic and social relationships in terms of majorities and minorities. On the other hand, it explores the emergence and the trajectories of social and political movements that challenged such frameworks, articulating struggles around civil rights, and issues of citizenship and social justice. Particular attention will be paid to women, subaltern castes and religious and sexual minorities in India and more broadly in South Asia.
The course is divided into two parts. The first part, which combines lectures with moments of collective discussion, aims to introduce some key moments in colonial and post-colonial history in India and Southeast Asia. We will focus specifically on South Asia and other areas that share a history of British colonial occupation. The second part of the course unfolds through seminar-style lectures. They are conceived as moments of debate and collective study. The topics covered include the historiographical and sociological debate on issues of political and social history, as well as contemporary politics in South and Southeast Asia.
At each lesson, two readings will be assigned. You will be required to choose one to read and analyse before the class. Your preliminary reading work is necessary for the collective study activities we will carry out in the classroom during the second part of the course.
Throughout the semester, as part of the 'India and South Asia seminar series,' you will have the opportunity to attend seminars led by external and international professors. These seminars will be associated to relevant reading materials and are an integral part of the course and examination program. I will communicate the seminar dates both via email and on the Kiro page of the course.
TOPICS COVERED IN THE FIRST PART:
- Introduction to the history of India and Southeast Asia
- The British Empire in Asia
- Nationalisms and social movements in the colonial space
- Independence and Partition of the Indian Subcontinent
- The Nehruvian era
- The rise of right-wing Hindu nationalism
TOPICS COVERED IN THE SECOND PART OF THE COURSE:
- Post-colonial historiography and Subaltern studies
- The making of race in British Malaya
- Imperial dynamics: migration and labour in British colonies in Asia
- Seminar: Indian Muslims and “Bumiputera Status” in Malaysia
- Beyond nationalisms in India and Malaysia: communist insurgencies and maoist guerrilla
- The rise of right-wing Hindu nationalism
The course is divided into two parts. The first part, which combines lectures with moments of collective discussion, aims to introduce some key moments in colonial and post-colonial history in India and Southeast Asia. We will focus specifically on South Asia and other areas that share a history of British colonial occupation. The second part of the course unfolds through seminar-style lectures. They are conceived as moments of debate and collective study. The topics covered include the historiographical and sociological debate on issues of political and social history, as well as contemporary politics in South and Southeast Asia.
At each lesson, two readings will be assigned. You will be required to choose one to read and analyse before the class. Your preliminary reading work is necessary for the collective study activities we will carry out in the classroom during the second part of the course.
Throughout the semester, as part of the 'India and South Asia seminar series,' you will have the opportunity to attend seminars led by external and international professors. These seminars will be associated to relevant reading materials and are an integral part of the course and examination program. I will communicate the seminar dates both via email and on the Kiro page of the course.
TOPICS COVERED IN THE FIRST PART:
- Introduction to the history of India and Southeast Asia
- The British Empire in Asia
- Nationalisms and social movements in the colonial space
- Independence and Partition of the Indian Subcontinent
- The Nehruvian era
- The rise of right-wing Hindu nationalism
TOPICS COVERED IN THE SECOND PART OF THE COURSE:
- Post-colonial historiography and Subaltern studies
- The making of race in British Malaya
- Imperial dynamics: migration and labour in British colonies in Asia
- Seminar: Indian Muslims and “Bumiputera Status” in Malaysia
- Beyond nationalisms in India and Malaysia: communist insurgencies and maoist guerrilla
- The rise of right-wing Hindu nationalism
Course Language
Italian
More information
There are no additional requirements for students who do not attend the lectures. However, I encourage non-attending students to get in touch with me to discuss the topic of their presentation.
I hope that this course contributes to building a supportive learning community that fosters the sharing of ideas, experiences, and knowledge while respecting differences in gender, sexual orientation, age, ableness, color, religion, nationality, and status.
I encourage you to make use of my the office hours by scheduling an appointment via email. I am available to discuss any issues related to the course with you.
I hope that this course contributes to building a supportive learning community that fosters the sharing of ideas, experiences, and knowledge while respecting differences in gender, sexual orientation, age, ableness, color, religion, nationality, and status.
I encourage you to make use of my the office hours by scheduling an appointment via email. I am available to discuss any issues related to the course with you.
Degrees
Degrees
AFRICAN AND ASIAN STUDIES
Master’s Degree
2 years
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