Hindu Nationalism

Since the ascent of Narendra Modi as Prime Minister of India in 2014, Hindu nationalism has dominated headlines concerning India across the globe. However, the influence that Hindu nationalism has had in shaping beliefs about citizenship, belonging, religion, and the nation has a history that predates the Modi regime by around a hundred and fifty years. This class will examine the history of Hindu nationalism from the nineteenth to the twenty-first century by examining primary texts and academic analysis. This class will not only read the writings of key Hindu nationalist thinkers but will also examine how different media and technologies have affected how Hindu nationalists communicate with different publics. In particular, this class will examine topics such as space/ geography, caste and community, gender, technology and media, and diasporic Hindutva.