Law and Imperialism Criminality and Constitution in Colonial India and Victorian England

Author/creator Nijhar, Preeti Author
Format Electronic
Publication InfoLondon : Pickering & Chatto Publishers, Limited
Description256 p. 23.400 x 015.600 cm.
Supplemental ContentFull text available from Ebook Central - Academic Complete
Subjects

SeriesEmpires in Perspective Ser.
Summary Annotation Tension between colonizers and the colonized lies at the heart of this study. The colonial identity was founded in response to its difference from that of the native population and its 'dangerous' elements. Laws that were imposed by colonizers were therefore as much an attempt to confirm their own identity as to control the more dangerous elements of a potentially unruly populace. This, in turn, means that instead of Victorian England being the driving force behind colonial law, the reverse was true, with the tensions experienced in India having a direct effect on the British judicial system.Primary source material from both British Parliamentary Papers and colonial archive material is used to provide evidence of legal change and response. Evidence is presented on the shared experience of 'dangerous' groups of people in both India and in Victorian England, as well as unique information on the status of South Asians in Britain. A case-study on the process of criminalization on the Sansi in colonial Punjab provides a fascinating example of how criminality can be produced by the creation of stereotypes based on fear ('dangerousness'), and an illustration of how science and taxonomy assisted the law in constructing Victorian and colonial identities.
Access restrictionAvailable only to authorized users.
Technical detailsMode of access: World Wide Web
Genre/formElectronic books.
ISBN9781851966394
ISBN1851966390 (Trade Cloth) Active Record
Standard identifier# 9781851966394
Stock number00022547