The Harem: Gender, Family and Power in Early Modern and Modern South Asia

Undergraduate / Graduate

Even today, the word "harem" evokes orientalist imaginings of an exotic east. Popular images drawn from colonial-era representations continue to define our understanding of this complex institution. In this course we will work to complicate this understanding through considering the harem as a site of interplay between gender, family ties, and power. Taking into account influences from the larger Islamicate world as well as more local, Indic practices, we will historicize the harem, tracking its changes over the course of this long period, and critiquing its various (mis)representations. We will explore how the harem constituted a diverse space including not only elite women and their male relatives, but also other figures such as slave girls, eunuchs and guards. We will furthermore look at how this space was transformed in the era of European expansionism and colonial rule in the subcontinent, becoming a flash point over questions of social reform and Indian nationalism. Materials will include not just secondary literature but also excerpts from contemporary historical accounts, paintings, short stories, photographs, and films. No prior knowledge of South Asian history required.