India Living with Modernity

Author: Javeed Alam
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Year: 1999
Language: English
Pages: 241
ISBN/UPC (if available): 0195645251

Description

A vital book for anyone interested in secularism, nationality, and the dynamics of 'third world' societies under increasing threat from globalize capitalist economies.

The most pertinent economic and political issues confronting India today crucially center around the question of modernity. How can the country work towards a viable future without being homogenized by the dominant version of modernity which is but a hand-maiden of capitalist global drives? Are the indices of modernity that we use to measure ourselves against, capable of bringing about 'preferred futures' in relation to our heritage and practices? And what kinds of ethical choices are entailed in living according to particular versions of modernity.

In India: Living with Modernity, Javeed Alam seeks to untangle the complex, and often contradictory, trajectories of modernity. He suggests new ways of approaching modernity which are emancipatory, rather than oppressive, and may help in the struggle for a more equitable and just society both within the country and in the wider world.