HST31031 - Tools of Empire? Medicine, Science and Colonialism, 1800-1950

HST31031: Tools of Empire? Medicine, Science and Colonialism, 1800-1950

40 credits (semesters 1 and 2)

Module Leader: Dr Saurabh Mishra (2024-25)

Module Summary

Western science and biomedicine have, for long, been seen as agents of progress. Research in the last two decades has, however, revealed their close ties with the history of colonial conquest and rule. As a result, scientific inventions such as guns and steamboats are now seen as 'tools of empire'. Also, medical discoveries such as quinine are seen as serving a similar purpose, as they allowed European colonizers to survive the 'disease-ridden jungles' of Africa and Asia.

But how and why did this image of Asia and Africa as the 'white man's grave' come to be formed? What lay behind the idea of the 'Tropics'? How, and in what ways, were the 'Tropics' supposed to affect the European body or constitution? What role did the idea of race play in forming these perceptions? These are some of the questions this module will address.

Another theme that we will discuss in detail is the question of the formation of western science and medicine. We will examine the assumption that modern science and medicine were created solely in the West, and subsequently retailed across the 'uncivilized world'. We will also ask whether various modern scientific disciplines (such as Botany, Geology, Cartography etc) would have been possible without colonialism. The module will also examine ’indigenous’ role in the formation of modern science and medicine. Finally, this module will also study various aspects of modern medicine, as practiced in the colonies, in great detail. We will, for instance, look at the developing notions of madness and psychiatry, the idea of ‘public health’, the impact of epidemics, and the development of new branches of medicine such as bacteriology/laboratory medicine.

In discussing these and other questions, the main focus of the module will be on colonial India, but we will also use examples and readings from other colonial situations, where relevant.

Sub-themes

The following sub-themes will be discussed as part of the module:

• Science and Medicine as Tools of Empire

• The diffusion of 'western Science'

• Theories for the Spread of Science/Medicine: Of Centres, Peripheries, and the 'Moving Metropolis'

• Indigenous Agency and the Formation of Modern Science

• Colonialism and 'Traditional Medicine' (such as Ayurveda)

• Public health and Epidemics in the Colonies

• Anthropometry, Phrenology (the science of studying human skulls) and racialist science

• Eugenics and the idea of race in the nineteenth century

• Medicine/Science, and Modernity in the Colonies

• Indigenous Responses to Western Medicine

• Madness, Psychiatry, and Empire

• The Idea of the Tropics

• Tropical Medicine as a New Discipline

• Hill- Stations of the Raj (such as Simla, or Darjeeling)

• Science and Medicine in Post-colonial Times

Module Aims

This module will familiarise students with a new sub-discipline of history -- the history of medicine and science, which has become very influential in the last few decades. It will also equip students with analytical skills so that they are able to dissect and analyse seemingly uncontroversial issues such as the idea of scientific progress. Students will also be able to look at the history of a number of formerly colonised regions, such as the Americas, Africa, and Asia, though India will be the major focus of our discussions.

Teaching

Seminar discussion of primary and secondary sources will help students to acquire an in-depth knowledge of the historiography of this period and of the principal varieties of primary source material available to historians. Through discussion of these primary and secondary materials students will develop their understanding of medicine, science and technology in the former colonies.

Assessment

Please see this page for more information about assessment.

Intended Learning Outcomes

By the end of the module students will be expected to have acquired:

• A detailed knowledge of historiographical trends with respect to the history of medicine, science and technology in the colonies.

• Knowledge of significant scientific or medical developments during colonial times, starting from the late eighteenth century. Also, knowledge of their involvement in the colonial enterprise.

• Knowledge of the various ways in which science and medicine interacted with the larger society. This will hopefully allow students to also analyse current scientific discourse with a critical eye.

• The ability to analyse a range of primary sources and evaluate their significance in the historiographical context.

• The ability to present material in seminars and participate intelligently in discussion with both the tutor and fellow students.

• The ability to write informed and coherent commentaries on documents.