History is not just about the dramatic events in the world. It is equally about the small things in our lives. Everything around us has a history . the clothes we wear, the food we eat, the music we hear, the medicines we use, the literature we read, the games we play. All these have evolved over time. Since we relate to them in our daily lives, their history escapes us. We never pause to think what things were like a century ago; or how people in different societies see these everyday things . food and clothing for instance . differently. In India has captured the imagination of the nation for some decades. News of cricket today hits the headline of newspapers. Cricket matches are organised to establish friendship between nations and cricketers are seen as ambassadors of the country. The game has, in fact, come to represent the unity of India. At one time, a century and half ago, cricket was an English game. It had been invented in England and became intimately linked to the culture of nineteenth century Victorian society. The game was expected to represent all that the English valued . fair play, discipline, gentlemanliness. It was introduced in schools as part of a wider programme of physical training through which boys were to be moulded into ideal citizens. Girls were not to play games meant for boys. With the British, cricket spread to the colonies. There again it was supposed to uphold the values of Englishness. The colonial masters assumed that only they could play the game as it ought to be played, in its true spirit. They were, in fact, worried when the inhabitants of the colonies not only began to play the game, but often played it better than the masters; and at times beat the English at their own game. The game of cricket thus got linked up closely with the politics of colonialism and nationalism. Within the colonies the game had a complex history. It was connected to the politics of caste and region, community and nation. The emergence of cricket as a national game was the result of many decades of historical development. You will see how a history of clothing can tell us so much about the history of societies. The clothes people wear are shaped by the rules and norms of societies. They reflect people.s sense of beauty and honour, their notions of proper conduct and behavior. As societies change, these norms alter. But these changes in the norms of society and styles of clothing come about as a consequence of long years of struggle. They have a history. They do not just happen naturally.Read More...
History is not just about the dramatic events in the world. It is equally about the small things in our lives. Everything around us has a history . the clothes we wear, the food we eat, the music we hear, the medicines we use, the literature we read, the games we play. All these have evolved over time. Since we relate to them in our daily lives, their history escapes us. We never pause to think what things were like a century ago; or how people in different societies see these everyday things . food and clothing for instance . differently. In India has captured the imagination of the nation for some decades. News of cricket today hits the headline of newspapers. Cricket matches are organised to establish friendship between nations and cricketers are seen as ambassadors of the country. The game has, in fact, come to represent the unity of India. At one time, a century and half ago, cricket was an English game. It had been invented in England and became intimately linked to the culture of nineteenth century Victorian society. The game was expected to represent all that the English valued . fair play, discipline, gentlemanliness. It was introduced in schools as part of a wider programme of physical training through which boys were to be moulded into ideal citizens. Girls were not to play games meant for boys. With the British, cricket spread to the colonies. There again it was supposed to uphold the values of Englishness. The colonial masters assumed that only they could play the game as it ought to be played, in its true spirit. They were, in fact, worried when the inhabitants of the colonies not only began to play the game, but often played it better than the masters; and at times beat the English at their own game. The game of cricket thus got linked up closely with the politics of colonialism and nationalism. Within the colonies the game had a complex history. It was connected to the politics of caste and region, community and nation. The emergence of cricket as a national game was the result of many decades of historical development. You will see how a history of clothing can tell us so much about the history of societies. The clothes people wear are shaped by the rules and norms of societies. They reflect people.s sense of beauty and honour, their notions of proper conduct and behavior. As societies change, these norms alter. But these changes in the norms of society and styles of clothing come about as a consequence of long years of struggle. They have a history. They do not just happen naturally.Read More...
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