The Oppressive Present: Literature and Social Consciousness in Colonial India

In this book Chandra attempts to better understand the dominant structure of social consciousness in modern India through a study of various literary and social texts written in Hindi, Bengali, Gujurati, and Marathi during the late colonial period. Chandra's skillful reading of texts that are often inaccessible to readers of English, as well as the insight he provides into the nature of social consciousness and the complex processes by which it develops, makes this an important resource for anyone interested in India's literary and social history.