The Case for India

Besant, Annie, 1847-1933Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.2

Word count: 106K words
Chapters: 11

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.The Case for India by Annie BesantAuthor: Besant, Annie, 1847-1933,Language: English, Class: DS: History: General and Eastern Hemisphere: Asia, Release Date: Jul 5, 2004

Editor's review

The Case for India is Annie Besant's polemical work on the Indian question, falling under Asian history and political history. Besant was long involved in Indian social and political affairs, and her argument carries the distinct stance and personal observation of its time; it offers some reference value for understanding the intellectual background of India's nationalist movement in the early twentieth century. The book is freely distributed by Project Gutenberg, making it easily accessible and well suited as supplementary material for studying or reading modern Indian history. Readers should note its period of writing and polemical intent and not treat it as a neutral general history. Reading it alongside other historical sources is recommended for a more balanced judgment.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Students and scholars studying modern Indian history and the nationalist movement
Readers interested in political polemics from the colonial period
Readers seeking free access to original English historical sources

Not a good fit for

Beginners expecting a systematic general history or textbook-style narrative
Readers seeking analysis of the Indian question from a contemporary perspective
General readers unaccustomed to English polemical prose

Reading tips

Learn about Besant and the historical context of her writing before starting the text.
Read alongside other contemporary works on the Indian question to discern differences in stance.
Mark polemical statements as you read, distinguishing factual claims from assertions.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is this book a general history or a polemical work?

It is a polemical work that sets out claims and arguments on the Indian question rather than a chronological general history. Readers should focus on the author's stance and argumentation and not use it as a neutral textbook.

What are the features of the Gutenberg edition?

Project Gutenberg provides a free electronic text that is easy and cheap to obtain, suitable for quick consultation of the original. However, such editions usually lack modern scholarly annotation, so readers must supply background material themselves.

How difficult is the English, and is it suitable for non-native readers?

The text is early twentieth-century English polemical prose with long sentences, posing a challenge for non-native readers. A good foundation in English reading, or supplementary background material, is recommended.

Comments

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About the author

Besant, Annie, 1847-1933 Author

Annie Besant (Besant, Annie, 1847-1933) was an active thinker and writer from the late nineteenth to the early twentieth century. Publicly available details of her life are quite limited, yet her works address a strikingly wide range of themes. The library holds 18 of her titles, spanning autobiography, social reform, religious philosophy, and moral inquiry. Notable among them are Annie Besant: An Autobiography and Autobiographical Sketches, which use personal experience to reflect the issues of her time; My Path to Atheism, Marriage, As It Was, As It Is, and As It Should Be, and The Basis of Morality examine faith, the institution of marriage, and the foundations of ethics with a sharp, argumentative edge. Esoteric Christianity and Avatâras turn to esoteric religion and spiritual themes, while The Case for India shows her concern with political realities. She is often categorized under inspirational growth, but her writing is more reflective and reform-minded, best seen as the work of a writer who combines personal testimony with social critique.