Priya Satia

Last updated

Priya Satia is an American historian of the British Empire, with a particular focus in the Middle East and South Asia. [1] Satia is the Raymond A. Spruance Professor of International History at Stanford University. [2] She was educated at Stanford (attaining both a B.A. in international relations and a B.S. in Chemistry) and the London School of Economics, and received her PhD from the University of California, Berkeley in 2004. [1] [3] Satia grew up in Los Gatos, California. [3]

Contents

In addition to her academic publications, Satia has written for The Nation [4] , Slate [5] , The New Republic [6] and Foreign Policy Magazine [7] . She has also contributed opinion pieces for CNN online. [8]

Themes

Satia's research focuses on how the material and intellectual foundations of the modern world were shaped by the era of British imperialism. She investigates the development of government bodies, military advancements, ideas about progress, and the resulting anti-colonial movements to understand how British imperialism continues to influence the present day and how the moral challenges it raised were addressed historically. More recently, Satia has also explored whether concepts of selfhood and individual agency, inherited from 'Western' ideals of classical liberalism and the Age of Enlightenment, are helpful or hurtful in understanding the impact of colonization on former colonized societies.

Time's Monster: How History Makes History

Her book "Time's Monster" examines how the discipline of history itself enabled and justified British colonialism by promoting a linear vision of historical progress, derived from the ideas of the Enlightenment in Europe. She further examines how the idea of inevitable progress, enabled British imperialists to justify what she deems morally reprehensible colonial actions by suspending ethical judgment and prioritizing future outcomes above all else. This sensibility was not limited to the British liberalism of the time but permeated British thought in general, serving as a flexible tool to rationalize contradictory actions across different imperial contexts. This work bridges the gap between public debates on the legacy of the British Empire and academic discussions on Liberalism's complicity in imperialism. The book raises questions about the limitations and alternatives to this historical sensibility, prompting further inquiry into the complex relationship between historical thought and imperial actions. [9] [10]

Essay on the American Natural History Museum

In a June 2024 essay published in Indian online paper ThePrint, Satia argues that the "Hall of Asian Peoples" in the American Museum of Natural History in New York is problematic because it portrays Asian cultures as static and frozen in time, often relying on outdated, harmful and racist stereotypes. One of the examples Satia mentions is the specific way Indian society is presented in an exhibit titled 'Indian Cycle of Life' because it "...suggests India is an exclusively Hindu society, with a single, heteronormative vision of life". Another example of a statement made in another exhibit about Arab culture that Satia deems problematic is that “Islamic civilization arose primarily out of Arab respect for Greek and Roman accomplishments.” [11] Satia believes the various misrepresentations can lead to misunderstandings and perpetuate harmful biases against Asian people and suggests that the museum needs to update its exhibits to reflect the dynamism and diversity of Asian and Middle Eastern cultures, and to do so in a way that is accurate. [11]

Her essay was criticized by Samuel Abrams, who serves as a Nonresident Senior Fellow of the conservative-leaning American Enterprise Institute, Faculty Fellow at NYU's Center for Advanced Social Science Research and as a Professor of Politics at Sarah Lawrence College. [12] Abrams states that "Critiquing an outdated museum is fine, but nothing about Satia’s thread was constructive or helpful. Satia is a powerful voice as a tenured Stanford professor; she has expertise that would be of value to the museum. Rather than put her expertise to good use, Satia only presented the self-righteous rage that is common among so many professors." [13]

Reception of work

Time's Monster

In an article titled "The book that changed me: how Priya Satia’s Time’s Monster landed like a bomb in my historian’s brain," historian Mark LeVine discusses the impact of Priya Satia's book on his understanding of history's role in justifying and normalizing violence. LeVine highlights Satia's exploration of how 18th- and 19th-century British historians used their craft to rationalize imperial expansion, creating a historical narrative that obscured what he sees as the violence and exploitation inherent in colonialism. The article emphasizes and reiterates Satia's call for historians to confront their discipline's complicity in perpetuating injustice, urging a reckoning with the ethical implications of historical narratives. [14]

Writing in the Financial Times, Tony Barber states that "Satia’s book raises an important question about whether historians are prosecutors and history is a court in which judgments should be passed on accused individuals." [15]

Maya Jasanoff of the New Yorker praised Satia for the book's probing analysis of how British historians have shaped, and often distorted, the nation's view of its imperial past. Jasanoff finds Satia's arguments compelling, particularly her focus on the role of historians like James Mill in perpetuating the idea that imperialism brought progress to colonized lands. The book is also commended for highlighting the erasure of historical records by British officials, further obscuring the true nature of imperial rule. [16]

A more critical review came from author Zareer Masani. He criticizes Satia for conflating history, historiography, and historicism stating that "Most of Satia’s charge-sheet uses these terms as though they are interchangeable", and for relying on selective evidence, and making generalizations. The review finds fault with Satia's alleged moral equivalence between British imperialism and Nazism, as well as her misrepresentation of Indian history by overlooking positive contributions of British colonialism and internal conflicts within Indian society. Masani believes one example of this is when "..[Satia] castigates British Orientalists for perpetuating notions of Oriental despotism, but ignores the work of Orientalists like Sir William Jones and James Prinsep in rediscovering and celebrating India’s classical heritage." [17] Additionally, Satia's own argument is seen as potentially teleological, presenting a predetermined narrative of evil empire as the inevitable outcome of liberal imperialism. Overall, while the book raises important questions about the role of historians in shaping narratives, the review finds its approach to be flawed and misleading due to its selective evidence, generalizations, and biases. [17]

Publications

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Colonialism</span> Control by foreign groups

Colonialism is the pursuing, establishing and maintaining of control and exploitation of people and of resources by a foreign group. Colonizers monopolize political power and hold conquered societies and their people to be inferior to their conquerors in legal, administrative, social, cultural, or biological terms. While frequently advanced as an imperialist regime, colonialism can also take the form of settler colonialism, whereby colonial settlers invade and occupy territory to permanently replace an existing society with that of the colonizers, possibly towards a genocide of native populations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Imperialism</span> Extension of rule over foreign nations

Imperialism is the practice, theory or attitude of maintaining or extending power over foreign nations, particularly through expansionism, employing both hard power and soft power. Imperialism focuses on establishing or maintaining hegemony and a more or less formal empire. While related to the concepts of colonialism, imperialism is a distinct concept that can apply to other forms of expansion and many forms of government.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">American imperialism</span> Expansion of American political, economic, cultural, media, and military influence

American imperialism is the expansion of American political, economic, cultural, media, and military influence beyond the boundaries of the United States of America. Depending on the commentator, it may include imperialism through outright military conquest; military protection; gunboat diplomacy; unequal treaties; subsidization of preferred factions; regime change; economic or diplomatic support; or economic penetration through private companies, potentially followed by diplomatic or forceful intervention when those interests are threatened.

<i>Orientalism</i> (book) 1978 book by Edward W. Said

Orientalism is a 1978 book by Edward W. Said, in which the author establishes the term "Orientalism" as a critical concept to describe the West's commonly contemptuous depiction and portrayal of The East, i.e. the Orient. Societies and peoples of the Orient are those who inhabit the places of Asia, North Africa, and the Middle East. Said argues that Orientalism, in the sense of the Western scholarship about the Eastern World, is inextricably tied to the imperialist societies who produced it, which makes much Orientalist work inherently political and servile to power.

Caroline Elkins is Professor of History and African and African American Studies at Harvard University, the Thomas Henry Carroll/Ford Foundation Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School, Affiliated Professor at Harvard Law School, and the Founding Oppenheimer Faculty Director of Harvard's Center for African Studies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of colonialism</span>

The historical phenomenon of colonization is one that stretches around the globe and across time. Ancient and medieval colonialism was practiced by the Phoenicians, Greeks, Romans, Turks, Han Chinese, and Arabs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A. G. Hopkins</span> British historian (born 1938)

Antony Gerald Hopkins, is a British historian specialising in the economic history of Africa, European colonialism, and globalisation. He is Emeritus Smuts Professor of Commonwealth History at the University of Cambridge, an Emeritus Fellow of Pembroke College, Cambridge and a fellow of the British Academy.

The history of external colonisation of Africa dates back to antiquity.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Historiography of the British Empire</span> Studies and methods used by scholars to develop a history of Britains empire

The historiography of the British Empire refers to the studies, sources, critical methods and interpretations used by scholars to develop a history of the British Empire. Historians and their ideas are the main focus here; specific lands and historical dates and episodes are covered in the article on the British Empire. Scholars have long studied the Empire, looking at the causes for its formation, its relations to the French and other empires, and the kinds of people who became imperialists or anti-imperialists, together with their mindsets. The history of the breakdown of the Empire has attracted scholars of the histories of the United States, the British Raj, and the African colonies. John Darwin (2013) identifies four imperial goals: colonising, civilising, converting, and commerce.

William Roger Louis CBE FBA, commonly known as Wm. Roger Louis or, informally, Roger Louis, is an American historian and a professor at the University of Texas at Austin. Louis is the editor-in-chief of The Oxford History of the British Empire, a former president of the American Historical Association (AHA), a former chairman of the U.S. Department of State's Historical Advisory Committee, and a founding director of the AHA's National History Center in Washington, D. C.

<i>Ornamentalism</i>

Ornamentalism: How the British Saw Their Empire is a book by David Cannadine about British perceptions of the British Empire. Cannadine argues that class, rank and status were more important to the British Empire than race. The title of the work Ornamentalism is a direct reference to Edward Said's book Orientalism, which argues the existence of prejudiced outsider interpretations of the East, shaped by the attitudes of European imperialism in the 18th and 19th centuries. It has also been argued to borrow tones from the title of Joseph Schumpeter's "Imperialism and Social Classes", which some historians see as the origins of the 'Ornamentalist' perspective in academic history'.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gerald Horne</span> American historian (born 1949)

Gerald Horne is an American historian who holds the John J. and Rebecca Moores Chair of History and African American Studies at the University of Houston.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maya Jasanoff</span> American academic

Maya R. Jasanoff is an American academic who serves as Coolidge Professor of History at Harvard University, where she focuses on the history of Britain and the British Empire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anti-imperialism</span> Political stance in opposition to interventionist or expansionist policies

Anti-imperialism in political science and international relations is opposition to imperialism or neocolonialism. Anti-imperialist sentiment typically manifests as a political principle in independence struggles against intervention or influence from a global superpower, as well as in opposition to colonial rule. Anti-imperialism can also arise from a specific economic theory, such as in the Leninist interpretation of imperialism, which is derived from Lenin's 1917 work Imperialism, the Highest Stage of Capitalism. People who categorize themselves as anti-imperialists often state that they are opposed to colonialism, colonial empires, hegemony, imperialism and the territorial expansion of a country beyond its established borders.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Porter–MacKenzie debate</span> Historiographical controversy about the British Empire

The Porter–MacKenzie debate is a historiographical controversy in the field of Modern British and Imperial history. It focuses on the extent to which colonialism was an important influence within British culture during the 19th and 20th centuries. The debate was characterised by disagreement between the academic historians Bernard Porter and John MacKenzie, beginning in 2004. Porter argued that British imperial expansion during the era of New Imperialism had little effect on ordinary people in the United Kingdom, while MacKenzie argued that colonialism dominated British popular culture for much of the period.

Faramerz Noshir Dabhoiwala is a historian and senior research scholar at Princeton University where he teaches and writes about the social history, cultural history, and intellectual history of the English-speaking world, from the Middle Ages to the present day.

<i>The Anarchy: The Relentless Rise of the East India Company</i> 2019 book by William Dalrymple

The Anarchy: The Relentless Rise of the East India Company is a 2019 history book by William Dalrymple. It recounts the rise of the East India Company in the second half of the 18th century, against the backdrop of a crumbling Mughal Empire and the rise of regional powers.

Andrew MayFRAS is an Australian social historian. He is a professor of Australian history in the School of Historical and Philosophical Studies of the University of Melbourne.

Legacy of Violence: A History of the British Empire is a 2022 nonfiction history book by American historian and professor Caroline Elkins. The book covers the history of the British Empire from the Great Bengal famine of 1770 through the post-World War II period of recurring end-of-empire insurgencies up until the present-day, including the Mau Mau High Court case and the ongoing imperial history wars. The book was short-listed for the 2022 Baillie Gifford Prize for Non-Fiction.

Alan Lester is a British historian, historical geographer and author who has worked for Sussex University since 2000. He was appointed Professor of Historical Geography in 2006. He is known for his research on imperial networks, colonial humanitarianism and imperial governance.

References

  1. 1 2 "Priya Satia". tec.fsi.stanford.edu. Retrieved March 6, 2024.
  2. ↑ "Priya Satia". Stanford University. Archived from the original on October 26, 2020. Retrieved October 29, 2020.
  3. 1 2 "Priya Satia". Heyman Center. Archived from the original on December 25, 2019. Retrieved October 29, 2020.
  4. ↑ "Priya Satia". The Nation. April 2, 2010. Retrieved July 7, 2024.
  5. ↑ "Priya Satia". Slate Magazine. Retrieved July 7, 2024.
  6. ↑ "Priya Satia". The New Republic. Retrieved July 7, 2024.
  7. ↑ Satia, Priya (July 24, 2024). "Democracy Isn't Just About Voting". Foreign Policy. Retrieved July 7, 2024.
  8. ↑ Satia, Priya (July 28, 2014). "How WWI gave us drones". CNN. Retrieved July 7, 2024.
  9. ↑ "Roundtable Panel—Priya Satia's Time's Monster: How History Makes History". Toynbee Prize Foundation. Retrieved July 6, 2024.
  10. ↑ Malik, Kenan (October 26, 2020). "Time's Monster by Priya Satia review – living in the past". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved July 6, 2024.
  11. 1 2 Satia, Priya (June 29, 2024). "America, your Natural History museum has a problem. 'Hall of Asian Peoples' is a hall of shame". ThePrint. Retrieved July 6, 2024.
  12. ↑ "Samuel Abrams". www.sarahlawrence.edu. Retrieved July 6, 2024.
  13. ↑ Abrams, Samuel (June 11, 2024). "The Wrong Way to Help Improve a Museum". American Enterprise Institute. Retrieved July 6, 2024.
  14. ↑ Rees, Yves (June 21, 2022). "The book that changed me: how Priya Satia's Time's Monster landed like a bomb in my historian's brain". The Conversation. Retrieved July 6, 2024.
  15. ↑ "Is it time to strike back at empire?". www.ft.com. Retrieved July 6, 2024.
  16. ↑ Jasanoff, Maya (October 26, 2020). "Misremembering the British Empire". The New Yorker. ISSN   0028-792X . Retrieved July 6, 2024.
  17. 1 2 "Priya Satia, Time's Monster: History, Conscience & Britain's Empire - History Reclaimed". August 12, 2021. Retrieved July 6, 2024.
  18. ↑ Reviews of Spies in Arabia:
  19. ↑ Reviews of Empire of Guns:
  20. ↑ Reviews of Time's Monster:


This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.