Our Age has sometimes been characterized as “The Age of Resentment.”  This talk will discuss the varieties of political resentment that mark contemporary politics. It will discuss the different philosophical and sociological  dimensions of the concept and the ways in which these play out in political and literary contexts. Through the category of resentment this talk will try and shed light on the character of many political movement of our time, including populism, nationalism, new forms of post colonialism and movements for justice.

Pratap Bhanu Mehta is a political scientist and columnist. He has previously taught at Harvard, JNU, NYU Law School and most recently Ashoka University. He has been President of the Center for Policy Research, one of India’s leading think tanks, and Vice-Chancellor Ashoka University.  He has published papers widely on political theory, constitutional law and Indian politics. His recent books include (as co-editor) The Oxford Handbook to the Indian Constitution; The Oxford Companion to Politics in India; and Rethinking India’s Public Institutions. He is also Editorial Consultant to the Indian Express, where he writes a regular column. He is a recipient of the Infosys Prize 2011, for the Social Sciences. 

(Organizer’s note: Those of you who follow the news in India may be aware that about a week or two ago our speaker created a storm by resigning from his university in protest of the Indian government’s authoritarian pressure on the university and other academicians to disallow freedom of thought and expression. His resignation was followed by another resignation by the leading economist in the country in support of Mehta. The students and faculty are actively protesting the administration’s cowering to government pressure. Of course, the lecture was scheduled before all this happened. I am just glad the schedule can be honored by the speaker.)

 

Satadru Sen Memorial Lecture

The Idea of Political Resentment: India in Comparative Context

Pratap Bhanu Mehta

 

14 April 2021 10 30 AM Eastern Time,

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