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Dipesh Chakrabarty combines a history of the jute-mill workers of Calcutta with a fresh look at labor history in Marxist scholarship. Opposing a reductionist view of culture and consciousness, he examines the milieu of the jute-mill workers and the way it influenced their capacity for class solidarity and "revolutionary" action from 1890 to 1940. Around and within this empirical core is built his critique of emancipatory narratives and their relationship to such Marxian categories as "capital," "proletariat," or "class consciousness." The book contributes to currently developing theories that connect Marxist historiography, post-structuralist thinking, and the traditions of hermeneutic analysis. Although Chakrabarty deploys Marxian arguments to explain the political practices of the workers he describes, he replaces universalizing Marxist explanations with a sensitive documentary method that stays close to the experience of workers and their European bosses. He finds in their relationship many elements of the landlord/tenant relationship from the rural past: the jute-mill workers of the period were preindividualist in consciousness and thus incapable of participating consistently in modern forms of politics and political organization.
This book re-examines the history of working-class movements in Bengal by challenging conventional Marxist interpretations of class consciousness and solidarity. Dipesh Chakrabarty investigates the jute-mill workers of Calcutta between 1890 and 1940, exploring how their specific milieu shaped their capacity for collective action. He critiques emancipatory narratives within Marxist scholarship, questioning the applicability of categories like 'capital' and 'class consciousness' to the lived experiences of these workers. The study integrates Marxist historiography with post-structuralist and hermeneutic analytical traditions, ultimately proposing a documentary method that prioritizes the experiences of both workers and their European employers.
The book is recognized for its innovative approach to labor history, particularly its engagement with Marxist scholarship and post-structuralist thought. Scholars have noted Chakrabarty's meticulous focus on the specific experiences of the jute-mill workers, which challenges universalizing Marxist explanations. The work is appreciated for its sensitive documentary method and its contribution to theories connecting historiography with critical philosophical traditions. It is considered a significant text for understanding the complexities of class formation and political consciousness in colonial Bengal.
Page Count:
272
Publication Date:
2018-06-05
Publisher:
Princeton University Press
ISBN-10:
0691188211
ISBN-13:
9780691188218
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