The Home and the World

The Home and the World (in the original Bengali, ঘরে বাইরে Ghôre Baire, lit. "At home [and] outside") is a 1916 novel by Rabindranath Tagore. The book illustrates the battle Tagore had with himself, between the ideas of Western culture and revolution against the Western culture. These two ideas are portrayed in two of the main characters, Nikhil, who is rational and opposes violence, and Sandip, who will let nothing stand in his way from reaching his goals. These two opposing ideals are very important in understanding the history of the Bengali region and its contemporary problems. There is much controversy over whether or not Tagore was attempting represent Gandhi in Sandip. Many argue that Tagore would not even venture to personify Gandhi in his characters because Tagore was a large admirer of Gandhi. Also, Gandhi was anti-violence, while Sandip would utilize violence to get what he wanted. The book shows "the clash between new and old, realism and idealism, the means and the end, good and evil" (p xxiv) within India and southern Asia.

The novel is set in early 20th century India. The story line coincides with the National Independence Movement taking place in the country at the time, which was sparked by theIndian National Congress. There were various national and regional campaigns of both militant and non-violent ideas which all had the common goal of ending British colonial rule. Militant nationalism had a strong showing in the early part of the 20th century, especially during the World War I period. Some examples of this movement are the Indo-German Pact and Ghadar Conspiracy, unfortunately both of these failed. The latter stages of the movement saw a transition to non-violent forms of resistance led by Mohandas Gandhi. India remained a British colony until 1947, when Pakistan (14 August) and India (15 August) gained their freedom. On 26 January 1950, India adopted a constitution and became its own republic. At the time of Indian Independence, the Muslim dominated north west and eastern parts of the country were separated to form West Pakistan and East Pakistan (which later became Bangladesh). Particularly important to the novel is an understanding of the Swadeshi movement, as a part of the Indian Nationalist Movement. The Swadeshi Movement started in response to the Partition of Bengal by Lord Curzon which occurred in 1905. The Swadeshi movement was a successful resistance policy against the British colonisation. Indian citizens were encouraged to boycott British goods to foster Indian identity and independence. This movement was important in fostering "the new spirit in India," and separating India from Britain, which was largely thought to be responsible for the subsequent widespread poverty.