Reviews

ENGLISH

Woman and Society: By N. A. Sarma (Introduction by Sri Kamaladevi–Padmaja Publications, Baroda, Price Rs. 4/-).

Sri Sarma’s book is a scholarly treatise on a live topic. His style is facile and even the chapter which gives a sketch of the historic growth of feminism, which might ordinarily tax the reader, is not heavy. His is a scientific approach to the subject of feminism. As any ardent feminist would feel, and justly too, he sums up thus: “Woman’s place in society is one of the reliable criteria for assessing social progress. It is possible to correlate emancipation of womanhood and human development. She must be free to shape her career and her life, and it is only through such free development that the degree and differentiation in the natural abilities of man and woman can be realised and gauged.”

A noteworthy contribution of the author to the much debated subject of feminism is in making it explicit that a career, domestic life and motherhood are not inimical to one another. Since the modern woman is growing conscious of new values in life, he urges that it is the duty of society to so arrange that a career would not supplant but supplement home life. He cites the example of Soviet Russia and Sweden as an ‘eye opener’ to other societies. In Sweden particularly, motherhood is a happy prospect to contemplate because of Sweden’s two planned policies, viz., while having complete equality of opportunity with man, woman is given all facilities for the promotion of security and happiness in family life through the provision of educational, medical, and health services; also through recreation and cultural facilities, and maternity and child welfare benefits both in cash and kind, the emancipated woman cherishes motherhood with pride.

Great truth lies in the author’s statement that not a differentiation of sex but the fact of common humanity should be the deciding factor. With the harmonious development of the personality of men and women alike, the community will achieve progress. There are thinkers of merit who have made much of the biological and psychological difference between man and woman. According to this view, woman’s emotional nature is said to be a great drawin her fight for equality. But Sri Sarma has succeeded in pointing out that emotion is an essential quality, ennobling woman. It is because of her depth of emotion that she is capable of universal love. By nature, woman is a lover of welfare, peace and harmony. In woman the element of feeling leads to positive action, to remedy the ills of society. The author recognises that woman’s sentiments are fine and creative. Emotion is the basis for creative imagination. These two together further civilisation. Men are by no means devoid of emotion, but their feeling’s often manifest themselves in destructive action like warfare.

Sri Sarma’s work would have been exhaustive, had he been more explicit in describing woman as a religious animal. In spite of equality, and economic, political, and intellectual freedom, anything that does not help to stir the latent potentialities, i.e., the faith element in her, will not appeal to her. Woman happens to be the earliest and the best educator of the human race. She perceives the one truth behind all the great religions. Only such knowledge can combat the fanaticism leading to communal hatred and massacres. In a country like India, where diverse creeds and faiths are allowed to survive, it is not possible to wipe out religion nor can an artificial geographical barrier solve the problem. Hence the urgent need for a rational interpretation of religion. To do this in a peaceful manner, woman is eminently fitted. She must be given maximum opportunities to develop her ‘spiritual self’.

 

Shardamma

Indian Writers in Council:–(Proceedings of the First All India Writers’ Conference, Jaipur, 20-22nd October 1945, organised by the All India Centre of the P.E.N.–Edited by Dr. K. R. Srinivasa Iyengar. Published by the International Book House Ltd., Ash Lane, Fort, Bombay. Price Rs.7-8-0.)

The Indian P.E.N. has done excellent pioneering work in the matter of promoting contacts among the English educated literary persons working m the Indian languages. Madame Sophia Wadia, its gifted Founder, has devoted herself to this work in a spirit of dedication; and the First Conference of Indian Writers at Jaipur, meeting on the invitation of Sir Mirza Ismail in that ancient city, afforded ample proof of her great organising ability and of the abiding value of the great work she had undertaken. Distinguished literary men from all over India participated–distinguished alike in literature and in public life–and delivered learned and interesting discourses like “The Development of the Indian Literatures as a uniting force” by Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, “Popularisation of Indian Literatures outside India” by Mrs. Gertrude Emerson Sen, “Moral values in Literature” by Dr. S. Radhakrishnan, “Fellowship of learning and International Intellectual Co-operation” by Sir Rustum Masani, “The Philosophical Basis of toleration” by Mr. Kshiti Mohan Sen, “The Indian Law of Copyright” by Sir Maurice Gwyer, “Aesthetic Values in Literature” by Sri N.C. Mehta, and “A Vernacularist’s Confession of Faith” by Sri Masti Venkatesa Iyengar. In this compilation are also included papers submitted to the Conference, like “Conditions of Freedom in Literature” by Sri D. V. Gundappa and “Freedom and Creative Imagination” by Prof. Humayun Kabir, which amply repay perusal. The organisers and the Editor deserve congratulations on making the proceedings available to a wider public in this permanent form, though one feels that the verbatim reproduction of the extempore remarks made in the course of discussion, often inconsequential and desultory in character, may well have been omitted or considerably abridged.

Suggestions were made regarding the protection of the rights of Indian writers with the help of the Indian Copyright Law and the compilation of an All India Encyclopaedia which one hopes will be implemented in due course.

The Second Session of the All India Writers’ Conference met recently at Benares. It is a matter for great gratification that, amidst the turmoils of contemporary Indian Life, this movement which is of enduring significance is not merely kept alive but gathering strength and momentum.
K.S.G.

India, A Conflict of Culture: By Kewal Motwani (Thacker & Co, Bombay, 1947. Pp. xv-99. Price Rs. 3/-)

This book purports to give a ‘correct picture’ of the conflict between an alien culture and the age-old culture of India, from a ‘scientific and sociological viewpoint’. It is a long lament on the evils of the culture of the machine and science, (though the author is often in two minds on the question, as when he says, ‘both science and machine will have to be pressed into service to counteract the poison of communalism’), and an excited plea for the true Indian ideal of ‘power through repose’, and ‘calm relaxed reflexion’. The author starts with the ‘Birth of India as an Idea in the mind of the Maker’ and arrives, after some adventurous thinking, at the conclusion, ‘The future has no silver lining’! The book is full of attractive over-statements and facile generalisations. The following are a few examples: ‘We have no torchbearers of Truth.’ ‘Gandhiji has never paid any attention to the interplay of world forces.’ ‘Not one Vice-Chancellor (in India) has the ghost of an idea of educational problems.’
N. K.

Gandhi, Tagore and Nehru: By K. R. Kripalani, (Hind Kitabs Ltd., Bombay, 1947. Pp. 104, Price Re. 1-8/-)

This book is a collection of ten essays by a scintillating writer. They may well be considered as his answers to a question paper of a Free India University, reading as follows: 1.Compare and contrast the ideals and achievements of Tagore and Gandhi. 2. Write what you know of the Sindhi poet, Shah Latif. 3. Describe, briefly, the relations between Andrews, Rothenstien and Tagore. 4. “Nehru without Gandhi would be ineffective, and Gandhi without Nehru, incomplete”: Comment. 5. Illustrate from Tagore’s writings his attitude to the Soviet State. 6. ‘As for myself,’ India from now on is not a foreign land.’ (Romain Rolland, 1923.) Bring out the significance of the words, ‘from now on’. 7. Do you recommend Britain as a model for India in the adoption of non-violence in public life? Give reasons……Most of the answers are brilliant and interesting.
N. K.