In this Page we have given West Bengal Class 8 English Medium History Solution Chapter 5 Reaction to Colonial Rule: Co-operation and Revolt Question and Answer for our Students of West bengal Class 8 English Medium. Hope this following Question Answer will help our Students.
1) Match the following
Answers:
Hindu Patriot – Last Mughal Emperor
Bahadur Shah Zafar – Movementagainst Sati
Raja Rammohan Roy – Brahmo Samaj
Bijaylaishna Goswami – Sidhu and Kanhu
Santhal Rebellion – IndigoRebellion
2) Find the odd one out.
a) Pandita Ramabai,Begum Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain, Sister Subhalaxmi, Rani Laxmibai.
Ans: Begum Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain
b) Atmaram Pandurang,Mahadev Govind Ranade,Jyotirao Phule,Vireshlingam Pantulu.
Ans: Jyotirao Phule
c) Rammohan Roy, Debendranath Tagore, Keshab Chandra Sen,Dayanand Saraswati.
Ans: Debendranath Tagore
d) Bahadur Shah Zafar,Nana Saheb, Titumir,Mangal Pandey
Ans: Bahadur Shah Zafar
3) Answer briefly (30-40 words)
a) Who are called “middle class”incolonial India?
Ans: People who were at the intermediate stage of financial well-being were collectively called middle class in colonial India.
b) Against which social customs did theYoungBengal groupprotest?
Ans: Young Bengal group expressed their views against various social customs and practices. They raised their voice against the caste system, child marriage, polygamy etc.
c) What was the aim of the reforms of Sir Syed Ahmed?
Ans: The reforms of Sir Syed Ahmed included spreading English education in the Muslim society, popularising cultivation of science among Muslims, translating various books of science into urdu language. He wanted to interpret Koran (Qur’an) in the light of modern rationalistic approach and science.
d) Against whom did Titumir revolt?
Ans: Titumir revolted against local landlords, indigo planters and also against the British regime.
4) Write in your own words : -(120-160 words)
a) Analyse the main similarities between the movements against the practice ofSati andmovement for Widow Remarriage.What stepsdid Vidyasagar initiate for the education ofwomen?
Ans: Raja Rammohan Roy contribution to the abolition of Sati was of great significance. By passing an act, LordBentinck abolished Sati custom in 1829A.D. Rammohan also put up a strong defence for recognition of legal right of women to property.
In the middle of the nineteenth century, Iswar Chandra Vidyasagar organised a movement for remarriage of widows. Like Rammohan, Vidyasagar too urged the British administration to enact a law conferring legality to remarriage of widows. Hindu Widow Remarriage Act was introduced in 1856. But re-marriage of widows did not gain much popularity at all among different sections of the society. However, a few widow remarriages were solemnized through the personal efforts of Vidyasagar.
Vidyasagar played a key role to initiate for the education of women. Largely due to his initiative, the Kayastha children got the opportunity to learn Sanskrit along withchildren of Brahmin and Vaidya families. Vidyasagar the need of English education along with Sanskit education. He realised the necessity of establishing a link between the vernacular and English. In 1850, he authored a number of text books for students. Side by side, with a view to fostering the study of mathematics, Vidyasagar included the syllabus of modern mathematics written in English. Vidyasagar also paid a lot of attention to the spread of education among women. He took personal care to ensure attendance of girls in Bethune School. While working as Inspector of school, Vidyasagar established several schools for girls. A large number of girls used to study in these school spread over different districts of Benga1.
b) What was the main aim of the ‘Brahmo Movement’? Analyse the limitations of the Brahmo movement.
Ans: In 1828, Brahmo Samaj was established Atmiya Sabha. After Rammohan, Debendranath Tagore strengthened the Brahmo movement. In the 1860s under the stewardship of Keshab Chandra Sen and Bijaykrishna Goswami the Brahmo movement spread to different districts from the confines of the educated society in Calcutta. Bijaykrishna built a bridge between popular Vaishnavite tradition and the Braimo ethos.The reformist movement patronized by Bengal’s Brahmo leaders Rajnaran Basu and Nabagopal Mitra showed marked tendencies of Hindu revivalism. In this respect, the Jatiya Gourav Sammilani of Rajnarayan Basu and the Jatiya Mela of Nabagopal Mitra playedan important role. Jatiya Mela later came to be known as Hindu Mela. The objective of Hindu Mela was to restore the dignity of the Hindu religion and to rejuvenate all by inculcating the spirt of patriotism.
But in practice, the Brahmo movement got stuck within the elites of the society. Consequently the liberal religious outlook of the Brahmos could not keep pace with the aggresive religious preaching of the neo indus.
c) Make a comparative analysis of the “Santhal Rebellion”and “Indigo Rebellion”.What was the role of the Hindu Patriot in both cases?
Ans: The poor Santhals were subjected to torture and extortion by the Dikus. After the news, Santhals rebellion reached Calcutta, many among the educated Hindu Bengalis opposed the rebellion.They did not even criticize the repressive acts of the British against the Santhals, except Harish Chandra Mukhopadhyay. He realised that eonomic exploitation had forced the Santhals to the rebellion. In his paper Harish Chandra wrote that there were many reasons behind the uprising of the peaceful Santhals. There were instances of forcefully empolying the Santhals to work without wages. Besides, they were compelled to pay additional land revenue. He also mentioned thatthose whohad driven the peaceful Santhals to rebellion by torturing them, should themselves be punished. Santhals only wished to live their lives freely.
The Indigo rebellion was organized in 185-60 in Bengal against the oppression of indigo planters and against the indigo plantation. BishnuCharan Biswas and Digamber Biswas were the two leaders of the rebellion.Many among the Bengali educated class expressed their support with the Indigo rebellion. Cultivation of indigo inBengal had almost stopped.
The newspaper Hindu Patriot and its editor Harish Chandra Mukhopadhyay took a sympathetic view of the Indigo rebellion.Hestarted writing in favour of the cultivators who were fighting theplanters.In 1858, Harish Chandra wrote that indigo cultivation in Bengal was nothing but organized swindling and a means for cultivation.
In 1858, Harish Chandra wrote that indigo cultivation in Bengal was nothing but organized swindling and means of persecution. He further observed thatby taking up indigo cultivation, the cultivator stands to loose, rather than gain. Once cultivator takes up indigo cultivation, he would never get any respite during his life time, and ifdared to oppose hewould invitetheplanter’s wrath and retaliation.The planter never paid fair price to the cultivator. Because of the untiring news ofHarish Chandra, news about the indigo rebellion spread among the educated people of Bengal.
d) Do you think the Revolt of 1857 was merely a ‘Sepoy Mutiny?’Give reasonsfor your answer.
Ans: Since the beginning of the Revolt of 1857, debates have continued on the character of the Revolt of 1857. Most Britsh commentators are of the opinion that the Revolt was limited to the only sepoys. Common people took advantage of the disorder to express their own discontent. But during the revolt a question arose in the British Parliament itself whether the Revolt of 1857 was merely a revolt of the sepoys, or, was it gradually transforming itself into a ‘national revolution.’ During the revolt,Karl Marx had written that what wasbeing thought of as a revolt of soldiers was actually a ‘national revolution.’ Gradually, the nationalist began to interpret the revolt of 1857 as the “Indian War of Independence”. Some element of emotion wasno doubt attached to such an interpretation. That was because those who participated in the revolt of 1857 had no idea about nationalism. Rather, many among the rebel leadership opposed one another. Besides, those involved in the rebellion wanted to bring back the Mughal rule.
In conclusion I would say, ‘Sepoy Mutiny’ did not bring out the comprehensiveness of the revolt.
5) Imagine and write (200 words)
a) Imagine you have met Rammohon Roy and Iswar Chandra Vidyasagar.Write an imaginary dialogue with them on the abolition of Sati and introduction of Widow Remarriage.
Ans:
Me: Hello sir! How are you?
Rammohon Roy: I’m good. Tell me more.
Iswar Chandra Vidyasagar: I am doing very good. How are you?
Me: I’m fine, but there are something which made me call for the meeting.
Rammohon Roy: Tell us.
Me: I think you are aware of the heinous and inhuman custom practices like ‘sati’ and ‘widow remarriage’ which are practiced in India, since a very long time. Well these practices are affecting women at a large scale and the patriarchy is maintained over a wide scale.
Iswar Chandra Vidyasagar: What you are saying is very true! Even I was going to raise my voice against this. Tell us what are you planning to do about it.
Me: I want to ban these two practices, and I need both of you to handle each matter. ‘
Rammohon Roy: I will talk to Lord William Bentick into passing a law to ban ‘Sati’ as people are killing innocent women in the name of religion.
Iswar Chandra Vidyasagar: I will look into the remarriage of widows as if men have the right to do it, then why should the women live alone for the rest of her life, if her husband dies. I will also talk to the British administration, and request them to make new laws.
Me: Thank you everyone!
b) Imagine you are ajournalist. You havegained experience and knowledge about the Revolt of 1857 by visiting different placesin Indiaduringthe Revolt. Write a newspaper report based on your experience.
Ans: “The Revolt of 1857”
Calcutta, 1857: Word went round of the people of Dum Dum Cantonement area, when they heard that cartridges of the new Enfield rifles had cow andpig fat as grease. Before being inserted in the rifle, those cartridges had to be ripped open by teeth, which was not at all acceptable to the sepoys.
Towards the end of March 1857, Sepoy Mangal Pandey fired an European army officer in the Barrackpore Cantonment. The fellow sepoys refused to arrest Mangal despite orders from superiors. They were arrested without delay and were ordered to be hanged. Thereafter discontent erupted in different cantonments of the country.
There were strong agitation in areas such as Ambala, Lucknow and Meerut. Inthe middle of May, the troops at Meerut revolted. Thus began the revolt of the sepoy regiments against the Company
Col. Carmichael Smith had put 85 sepoys behind bars because of their refusal to use cartridges of Enfield rifles.The Sepoys of Madras and Bombay regiments stood aside. The Punjabi and Gorkha sepoys took active part in suppressing the rebel Sepoys.The sepoys of the Bengal army mainly led the revolt. Actually, most of the Indian sepoys were attached to the Bengal regiment. That is, nearly half of the sepoys under the Company were in the Bengal regiment.
Along with the rebel sepoys, the members of the general public also organised themselves against colonial rule in different parts of the country.
In Case You have missed: Chapter 4 The Nature of Colonial Economy Solution