CONTENTS
PARADOXES OF
Anglo-Indian Life Writing: Why It Matters By Kathleen J. Cassity
Framing
IMPORTANCE OF ORAL HISTORY IN THE CONSERVATION OF ANGLO-INDIAN CULTURE By Catherina Moss
Stereotypes and Countertypes:
Living Stories of Anglo-Indian Women in Kolkata By Sudarshana Sen
Working with Anglo-Indian Life Stories: Emotional Labour and Ethics
By Robyn Andrews
EDITORIAL
Editorial - International Journal of Anglo-Indian Studies, March 2014
By: Robyn Andrews and Brent Howitt Otto
This issue is the second of a two-part series on
the theme of Anglo-Indian life story collection and life writing. The catalyst
for this issue and the last (Volume 13, August 2103) was the Kolkata workshop
held at St Xavier’s College, Kolkata in January 2013 which we co-convened
immediately after the 9th World Anglo-Indian Reunion. Current
research was presented by scholars from the USA, Canada, Russia, Australia, New
Zealand, as well as India. For these two issues focussed on life story
collection and writing we also invited papers that had been presented at other
events, in particular the symposium held at the Anglo-Indian Reunion in January
2013, and at the 8th Biennial Conference of the International
Auto/Biography Association ‘Framing Lives’ conference, held in Canberra,
Australia, in July 2012.
In this issue we have four articles, two of which
explore the value and urgency of writing the life stories of Anglo-Indians. The
other two articles employ life stories that the authors have themselves
collected; one addresses the implications of social class for Anglo-Indians,
while the other examines one of the difficulties of authentic life-story
writing.
Kathleen J. Cassity, an
Anglo-Indian living in the U.S., argues in “Anglo-Indian Life Writing: Why It
Matters” that life writing is important both for the community itself – as a
record of experience and as a corrective to stereotypical portrayals – and
because it provides a valuable contribution to other areas of scholarship
relating to diasporic communities generally.
Catherina Moss, an Anglo-Indian living in Kolkata,
also picks up the theme of value of life story collection in her article,
“Importance of Oral History in the Conservation of Anglo-Indian Culture”. She
argues that collecting stories in a systematic and comprehensive way needs to
be pursued with some urgency, and looks to examples from around the world where
such projects have been undertaken with other communities to provide models
that could be adapted for an Anglo-Indian oral history project. The details and
references she provides will be valuable to aspiring life story collectors. As
an educator she also presents ideas for Anglo-Indian youth-led projects.
Sudarshana Sen’s “Living
Stories of Anglo-Indian Women in Kolkata” uses the life stories of two women
from different social classes to illustrate the significance of class position,
relative to advantages they have of being able to identify as an Anglo-Indian.
The life stories were collected as part of her PhD research which looked at the
experiences of two generations of Anglo-Indian women in Kolkata.
Robyn Andrews’ in her essay, “Working with
Anglo-Indian Life Stories: Emotional Labour and Ethics,” reflects on the
experiences of collecting a particular life story, one which recounted
traumatic episodes in the life of the narrator. In her article she explores
some of the difficulties inherent in writing stories such as these.
Our hopes for the next couple of issues include one
with a general Anglo-Indian studies focus, and another on nationalism and
national identity for Anglo-Indians. We will call for papers but welcome
submissions at any time. We are also looking for book reviews of recently
published works in the area of Anglo-Indian studies. Please contact us with
submissions and queries about submissions.
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Dr. Robyn Andrews holds a Ph.D. in social anthropology from Massey
University in New Zealand, where she is a senior lecturer in anthropology. Her
Ph.D. thesis was on the Anglo-Indian Community (2005), about which she
continues to research and write extensively in collaboration with other
scholars in Anglo-Indian Studies who belong to various disciplines. Contactable
via R.Andrews@massey.ac.nz
Brent Howitt Otto, S.J. holds a dual M.A./M.Sc. in history from Columbia University and the London
School of Economics (2010), where his research and thesis was on the Anglo-Indian
Community (from which his maternal ancestry derives). He teaches history
occasionally at St. Peter’s University, U.S.A., while currently also a
postgraduate student of theology at Santa Clara University, U.S.A. He is a
Jesuit seminarian, preparing to be ordained a Catholic priest. Contactable via botto@scu.edu