Analysis of Indias Potential in the New World Order

Analysis of Indias Potential in the New World Order INTRODUCTION Background Dramatic changes at the global level have initiated a process of reorientation of the power distribution and emergence of new powers in international politics. The changes initiated with the disintegration of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republic (USSR ), the unification of Europe in pursuit of an identity of its own ,a sharp decline of communism has set in a process of transition in world affairs, the sudden and consistent rise of asian countries mainly China, India ASEAN Bloc, emergence of resurgent Russia and establishment of new economic power blocs like the G20, BRIC RIC. The emergence of USA as the sole super power and its global war on terror have changed the security scenario for all and sundry. The existing obscurity has given rise to new opportunities, new speculations and new considerations regarding power distribution. A gradual shift from a geo-political world order to a geo-economical world order has come to stay. There is no doubt that any future order would have th e considerations such as comprehensive national power to incl Economy and the power it wields albeit indirectly, at the centre of any international power game. Global shifts happen rarely and are even less often peaceful. The transfer of power from west to east will dramatically change the context of dealing with international challenges. In the early 20th century the imperial order and the aspiring states of Germany and Japan failed to adjust to each other. That led to wars which devastated the better part of the world. The coming shift in power will have a greater impact globally and will require assimilation of diverse political and cultural systems. Todays rising powers seek redress of past grievances, are proudly nationalistic and want to claim their rightful place in the comity of nations. Asian rise in economic terms will translate into greater political and military power, thus increasing the potential damage from conflicts. Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair has noted that- In the next two decades China and India will undergo industrialisation four times the size of the United States and at five times the speedFor the first t ime in many centuries, power is moving East. Blair added that In this new world, we must clear a path to partnership, not stand off against each other competing for power. The worldcannot afford a return to the 20th century struggles for hegemony.[1] India being a part of this evolutionary and revolutionary strategic economic process needs to apprise herself of these changes and redefine: if required, her goals and objectives to emerge as a reckonable force from the present mesh of contradictions and complexities. The term reckonable force can be redefined as a regional power when one views Indias prospects vis-Ã  -vis her size, geo-strategic location, abundant natural resources, size of economy and military capability. The Indian nation is not just a nation, but a subcontinent. Being a subcontinent not only in size, but by its population which is in excess of One Billion, sets it apart in a World with a total population of a little above Five Billion means that in every Five Human being on Earth one is an Indian. It is on record that the Indian Armed Forces is the Fourth Largest in the World. India has since the past Twenty Eight years been exerting her influence in the South Asian sub-region. Thus India has functioned for over half her period of independence as a regional power in the literal sense. It is instructive that given the New World Order in which the US is about the only Super power, it is pertinent that in order to maintain the Balance of Power, that Nations like Brazil and India with a long period of History devoid of expansionist propensity, should emerge as a Super power to enhance the balance of power in the South Asian sub-region, and the World in general. The Indo-Pak conflict of 1971 leading to the emergence of Bangladesh, peace keeping operations in Sri Lanka, quick repression of an attempted coup in Maldives, deployment of Indian navy in Gulf of Aden and the enhanced engaegemnt and involvement of India in various international forums both on strategic geopolitical stage provide ample evidence that India possesses many of the attributes of a regional power. The emergence as a knowledge based economy and as a Human resource powerhouse, make India a force to reckon with today and strong vibrant economy in future. In the recent past, India enhanced role in plethora of world fora and the Indo-US Nuclear deal and subsequent ratification by Nuclear Suppliers Group IAEA. However, in some areas like all round economic development, poverty, population explosion, literacy rates and foreign policy to some extent, India is lacking at the moment. For India to emerge as a regional power, these unfavourable areas need critical attention and rea ppraisal. The Indian economy is growing at an average rate of 8 per cent a year. Most Indian and foreign observers are confident that India will sustain this tempo of growth in the near future, and will go on to become one of the worlds leading economies and a global political power in 2020. A few voices draw attention to the tremendous economic, political and social challenges facing India that the country must overcome before it can lay claim to being a world power [2]. Indians have always known that their nation has the potential to be significant power in a way in which citizens of nations with smaller populations do not. Nehru himself , for all that he emphasized the benign nature of Indian power, was clear in his mind that India, with its vast population, will always make a difference in the world Fate , he said, has marked for us big things.[3] Thus we need always be mindful of the developments that are occurring behind the veil of regional instability that is drawn across Indias rise to power. If that veil were ever to be drawn back, the world might witness the quite sudden advent of India onto the wider Indian Ocean stage as a significant pan regional player. That is not to say that India will quickly overcome the organizational and internal political difficulties alluded to above ; it is to make the point, rather, that as far as Indias Indian Ocean region is concerned, its power potential is very high when viewed in comparative terms. In this sense, it would be quite wrong to set India against the powers of the northern Pacific and to judge its power potential according to those standards.[4] Statement of the Argument A countrys role in the international system is not a random occurrence or a result of an accident; but is basically a function of its power position in the international hierarchy. To have a Subject Role in international politics is to be a part of the power structure and the inner circle that makes vital decisions about the fate and destiny of the international system and the nations within it. The Object Role nations are at the receiving end of the decisions made by the subject role nations. A third in-between category is that of an independent centre of power. These nations do not have the leverage to influence the course of the international system as a whole, but do possess enough capability to have, within a given configuration of power, a considerable degree of autonomy and the capability to resist the application of unwelcome and forced decisions. While subject nations have global influence, independent centres of power are often dominant or pre-eminent in a certain region. T hey may, therefore may also be referred to as Regional Powers . Typically a subject nation resists the emergence of a regional power; for to accommodate others to a similar role is to diminish ones own power. The tendency is to extend ones own power and exercise domination over others so as to reduce the emerging regional powers to the status of a mere object nation.[5] India gained pre-eminence in South Asia in the aftermath of the Indo-Pak war of 1971 but more recently with the steady economic growth, growing international stature and active interaction and involvement in various world forums have made it an independent power centre (regional power) in South Asia. With the recent changes in the world politics and diffusion of power, countries with regional prominence have come to possess a great capacity for asserting themselves. In this context, India has the capability and the potential to be elevated to the status of a regional power. An analysis of various factors in the light of international power structure would facilitate the prognosis of the status India is likely to achieve by 2020 AD i.e. Regional Power. Aim To assess Indias potential in the new world order so as to forecast the prospects of India emerging as a regional power in South Asia by 2020 AD. Justification for the Study Ever since gaining independence in 1947, India has moved slowly but steadily towards its role as a regional power. Historically, India has been the seat of famous ancient civilisations. It invokes memories of past greatness, though episodic; and of epochs of creativity, not only in Philosophy and Literature but also in Science and Mathematics. The fact that the last several centuries saw India under alien rule only makes aspirations in the restoration of greatness all the more deeply felt'[6]. Today, with the rapid economic growth and military stature, Indias influence in South Asia in particular and the world in general, is beginning to emerge and being felt by all and sundry A study of various factors that would aid Indias emergence, as well as various impediments that retard this process merit analysis. India is a fast steadily developing country and today stands among the top few industrial nations in the world and has a rapidly growing industrial service sector. Although pover ty, illiteracy and health deficiencies are some of the vexing problems, yet only few nations have larger pools of trained professionals, scientific, technological and executive talents than that in India. India, as a nation is about over half a century old not considering her ancient and erstwhile status as one of the oldest civilisations. In this period of her independence, she has exhibited character and pedigree. She was instrumental to the creation of the Non Aligned Movement in the cold war era immediately after independence and show her aspiration of emerging as an independent power centre in world polity. She has on the issue of Nuclear Non proliferation taken a consistent stance even though this posture has met with the ire of the developed world has not deterred her. This attitude was demonstrated by her refusal to sign the CTBT and also the NPT. It is on record that it took her more than a quarter of a century to carry out a follow up nuclear test. This could be placed at the doorstep of the fact that her good neighbours China and Pakistan have continued to arm themselves with these offensive weapons. India in her nuclear policy states that she would abide with the principle s of no-first strike, nuclear deterrence as the cornerstone of that policy. And to continue to advocate for a ban on nuclear weapons like the type achieved on Chemical and Biological warfare weapons and the ban on use of land mines. These stated positions have recently been understood and appreciated by the entire world polity and the Indo-US Nuclear deal and its subsequent ratification at Nuclear Supplier Group (NSG) International Atomic Energy Asssociation (IAEA) have largely vindicated Indian stance on these issues. The engagement and involvement of India in G8, BRIC, RIC, ASEAN, IBSA in the geopolitical arena. The positions on WTO Climate change are also a case in point for growing stature of India on world stage. The Information Technology (IT) propels the world of technology in the present scenario. In this field, India has demonstrated outstanding abilities and progressed leaps and bounds in various facets, be it hardware or technology or software development. In the Silicon Valley of American, it is reported that 60,000 Indians operating there could collectively boast of assets worth more five hundred billion dollars. This is no mean achievement and the corresponding effect on India is the collateral development of the Asian Silicon Valley in Bangalore, Karnataka. In the field of IT, the Indian nation has arrived on the regional and the world stage. For this simple reason, her Engineers, Scientists, Doctors and Technologists are being sought across the globe. This is not to talk of the influence of Indian business houses and management gurus, in the entire world more so in the developing world, where they command an imposing stature in the fields of Textile technology and Pharmaceuticals. Indias stature as an IT Knowledge base powerhouse is a major factor in its rise at the world stage. India is a single democratic political entity, though slightly marred by mass/ public development issues and religious regional strifes varying from state to state. In view of the existing fluidity in the Asian region following the global paradigm, shift in the power distribution and the present status of India, an attempt to foresee Indias evolution as a regional power in South Asia by 2020 would be relevant. Scope The scope of this paper would be limited to analysing various factors governing the emergence of India as a regional power in South Asia by 2020 AD. Indias performance as an independent state would be given a brief overview along with her present status in the region. Preview To analyse the future, it is essential to critically evaluate Indias power potential as well as the impediments en-route. India has inherited a volatile, ethnic, religious and social mix that generates strong cross-currents of tension between the states of the region and added to this are the domestic under-currents of religious fundamentalism, communal tensions, demand for autonomous/ independent states and inherent problems of a multi-lingual and multi-racial society. Indias quest for the regional power status in this turbulent environment is underwritten by an increasingly open and vibrant economy and a Military Industrial complex that stretches deep into the bureaucratic structure of the nation. However, Indias attention has been primarily focused more on the problems associated with nation building and its immediate neighbourhood and, than on the Indian Ocean region, let alone the world. It is ironic that while on one hand, it is the problems of the neighbourhood that have largely driven Indias military build up, on the other hand it is these very problems that continue to limit its strategic reach. It is this combination of a drive for a great power status and intensifying regional and national problems that pose a number of questions about Indias future. This paper endeavours to understand and answer some of these questions. Source of the Data The source of the data are the various books in the college library, various magazines and articles written by various people from time to time. Internet was extensively used for collection of data, various study reports and articles. Bibliography is attached at Appx A. BRIEF HISTORY AND PRESENT STATUS The colonial powers that ruled India for centuries apparently visualised her potential and attempted to undermine it through a process of gradual disintegration. Formation of Pakistan is one vivid example of such designs. After independence, the citizens of India have displayed remarkable resilience to destructive forces. Despite impediments like poverty, corruption, ailing bureaucracy and population explosion, India has made significant progress in various fields to incl Education, Manufacturing, Knowledge based industry, IT, Space Technology, Pharmaceutical Industry. Today, India ranks among fastest growing economies of the world and IT Knowledge based industry powerhouse. In the past sixty years after independence, India has acquired great maturity and realism in the management of its strategic environment albeit with considerable pain and sacrifice. Indias posture has been based on a realistic assessment of its capabilities. It projects a defensive, progress oriented stance rather than an expansionist or a hegemonistic stance. India has continued to follow and propagate the ideology of non-alignment and is now on the threshold of coming out of its shell to play an important role at the world stage as a Global player if not as atleast as a major regional player. The case in point of the growing stature and understanding of the Indian nation has been- The nuclear agreement, which followed three weeks later, calling for the separation of Indias nuclear facilities into civilian and military, and bringing Indias civilian facilities under international safeguards in exchange for nuclear energy cooperation, demonstrated the growing strategic convergence bet ween the US India. Domestic political considerations have come in the way of the Indian government operationalising the nuclear deal. That notwithstanding, the deal was widely welcomed in India because it opened the doors for India to participate in civilian nuclear commerce with members of the NSG while allowing it to retain its nuclear weapons programme despite being outside the NPT. [7] PRESENT STATUS Contemporarily, India enjoys a leading status in South Asia. Militarily, she has displayed her potential either in a direct conflict, coercion or allaying any belligerence by its potential adversaries. Birth of Bangladesh, intervention in Sri Lanka Maldives, Indian Naval involvement in Gulf of Aden are a few indicators that India has acquired a great measure of the regional hegemony. Power status takes into account an ideological or political role and above all the economic health of a nation. Regional hegemony or dominance implies the existence of local military pre-ponderance and the availability of non-military instruments of pressure, including economic coercion. Studies of strategic power in the world politics commonly assign to India the status of a middle power of some regional significance, but little more'[8]. A nation state such as India, by virtue of its size, resources and geographical location, finds herself a power in regional terms whether or not it seeks the label and despite the fact that all its capabilities for regional dominance are not yet fully exploited. Indias current pre-eminence over its neighbours, however, is so substantial that its position has been recognised by the entire world, and implicitly so by all South Asian states as well.'[9] Recent years have witnessed a steady growth in Indias power, based upon a strong economic performance. According to the World Bank, Indias per capita income is now higher than Chinas and some reports put its rate of economic growth above Chinas in real terms. This increase in the underlying growth of the economy is what has underwritten Indias substantial growth in conventional military power. By virtue of its military growth, India has acquired , by default, a Maximalist position that would enable it to have a strategic reach throughout the Indian Ocean. Furthermore, with the prospect of a declining role for the superpowers in the region, Indias growth in military capability is likely to leave it stronger in relative as well as absolute terms. The erstwhile Soviet Union is no longer a major factor in the Indian Ocean and the peace dividend in the world politics may eventually lead to a reduced presence on the part of the United States. [10] While Indias emerging role is well acknowledged in the world, there are clear limitations both upon the current extent of Indias power and upon the rate at which that power will accrue. With India, it has been very much the question of WATCH THIS SPACE .'[11] INDIAS POWER POTENTIAL Geo-Strategic Location. India shares its borders with China, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Nepal and Bhutan. It has close proximity to Sri Lanka and the Maldives. Therefore, in South Asia, it has to directly interact with many neighbours. Strategically, India lies astride the Indian ocean, flanking the Persian Gulf and the Straits of Malacca. It lies across the routes from West Asia to South-East and East Asia and dominates the world trade routes. Therefore, the dominating position of India and its island territories would enable it to control the sea lines of communication between the Atlantic and the Pacific Oceans and consequently the world trade. Natural Resources. India has abundant natural resources. Its soil varies greatly from region to region. It is alluvial in the northern plains, sandy in the western desert, black in the Deccan Plateau and coarse in the hilly terrain. Each type is suitable for a particular group of crops. There are areas where trees grow on their own. They form the source of timber, pulp, resin, lac, gum and cane. Indias hydro-electric and coal reserves are massive. Oil exploration is limited but off shore potentials suggest a great amount of self reliance. Indias Thorium reserves are large. Its known reserves of Iron ore, which represent 10% of the worlds total and those of a wide range of other minerals suggest that India has the potential for a relatively independent economy.'[12] Human Resources. Human resources are of paramount importance in any economy. A human being comes not only with a mouth and a belly for consumption, but also with two hands to work. The adverse effects of unchecked population growth cannot be ignored; however, given the right direction and awakening, the population can be utilised constructively. A large young population helps to boost demand by providing an extensive and growing market for industrial products. It can lower wages, increase profits and output, encourage industrial development and open employment avenues. This is borne out by the fact that numerous MNCs are investing huge sums of money to tap the cheap Indian labour and the immense ready market. Economic Base. Till recently, multiple restrictions on private business co-operation and the goal of achieving economic self reliance had shackled the Indian economy by hindering unprejudiced co-operation from industrial nations. With the adoption of a liberalised economic policy, an extensive economic relation is now growing. The new economic policy lays greater emphasis on private enterprise and intensified competition for dynamic industrial progress and mordenisation. Prospects for a substantial upswing of economic growth seem to be favourable now. India has huge reserves of important raw material and a large domestic market. It also has a large group of entrepenures and managers experienced in organising and managing industrial enterprises under difficult circumstances. Given the improved setting for entrepreneurial activities, the large number of scientists and engineers, some of them highly qualified professionals, trained overseas or with practical foreign experience, could be of immense benefit to the country[13]. The expectations of economic development are based on an economic policy that is yet in its infancy. For long term stability the creation of a congenial atmosphere for foreign investment is necessary. Our focus would have to shift from development of industrial sector to the improvement of institutional framework for long term development. Greater efforts to improve social security are needed to cushion the effects of intensified industrial competition and to open up new possibilities for the impoverished classes to take a share in the economic development. Science and Technology. India began to develop its capabilities in science and technology soon after independence. However, the overall programme while impressive compared to that of other poor countries is inadequate and poorly organised in relation to the countrys potential and requirements[14]. Of the total research and development in the country, only 25% is used to promote innovation in industry and agriculture, while the major chunk contributes to development in areas like atomic energy, space programme and defence equipment. The latest thrust to uplift the economy has renewed the vigour in the sphere of science and technology also. The private sector has shown great promise to measure upto the national requirements and a healthy competition with other nations can be seen specially in areas like computer software and electronics. Numerous institutions are doing some original and promising research in various fields. Political System Indias political system was initially dominated by the small urban elite comprising leaders of the nationalist movement and an elitist civil service. At the state level, elected representatives wielded impressive influence in directing benefits to their constituencies and acting as channels of complaint and pressure within the bureaucracy. The system moved rapidly to broaden its base of support by bringing the bulk of peasantry into the system and also by including small business and trading interests. The evolution of such a system from the authoritarian colonial rule was accompanied by tension and uneven progress. India had managed to operate a complex ; constitutional, federal, parliamentary and party dominated political system with remarkable effectiveness. Indias manifold diversity and communal problems often raise the spectre of disintegration; these are common to a nation state building process that the developed countries experienced a century ago. In the Indian democratic set-up, its people have displayed a great amount of maturity in preserving their rights. Any display of authoritarianism by a democratically elected government has met with stiff opposition. A vivid example is the imposition of emergency in 1975 by Mrs Gandhi and her subsequent electoral defeat in 1977. The emergency and the general elections of 1977 were a test of democracy, equivalent in significance to a social revolution[15]. A seemingly large section of illiterate electorate is well aware of its might and is critical of the people who represent them in higher offices. India has managed to solve or at least contain major disputes on language policy and regional autonomy. At the same time religious, caste based and even communist organisations have been brought in and operate in a largely peaceful democratic institution. Indias political leaders have shown a firm resolution in making of both foreign and defence policies. The military also operates under political direction. Inherent stability is provided to the system by the presence of well established institutions like judiciary, banking and stock exchange. Future political crisis no doubt loom large, but this can only be expected considering the countrys social and economic metamorphosis. The durability and resilience of the Indian democratic system indicates that not only would it continue in the coming years but would also gain more strength and experience. Military Capability. Since their debacle in the 1962 Sino- Indian conflict, the Indian Armed Forces have come a long way. Today India possesses adequate defence capability to look after her interests. India is able to produce diverse military items such as small arms, field and anti-aircraft recoilless guns, howitzers, support electronic items, anti-tank, anti-aircraft and naval missiles, armoured vehicles, supersonic aircraft, helicopters, anti-submarine frigates, fast patrol boats and missile boats[16]. It has also demonstrated Intermediate Range Ballistic Missile (IRBM) technology. In space science, India is amongst the world leaders. All this has been achieved at a moderate expenditure of 3% of GNP per annum. Nuclear Potential. Having successfully exploded its first nuclear device on 18 May 1974; India has continued to maintain a stance of using nuclear energy for peaceful purposes alone. However, the potential of India to develop a nuclear bomb cannot be denied. Indias nuclear structure is quite diversified. Beginning with the construction of Asias (outside erstwhile USSR ) first nuclear reactor in 1956, India has acquired the following major facilities[17]:- Half a dozen nuclear research reactors, all but one built without foreign assistance or participation. The ability to design and construct from equipment manufactured indigenously one 500 MW nuclear power station every second year. The competence to fabricate all sensitive nuclear instruments, fuelling assemblies, special alloys and materials, fissile plutonium and thorium from its own processes and plants. Asias first indigenously constructed variable energy cyclotron. Numerous other nuclear activities and support facilities, isotope production, mines, medicines, seismic arrays, fissile U-223, extraction processes, fusion, uranium enrichment research and so on. Openness and Resilience. Except for the brief period of emergency, India has had an open society with an active press and an intellectual community. Indian political and economic affairs are subject to constant criticism. Critics find information on India more readily available than for China, Pakistan and several developing countries. In addition, there is a constant flow of constructive criticism from internal sources. Viewed and used correctly, this criticism provides important inputs for betterment. Indian resilience is a widely recognised phenomenon. Many hostile designs to covertly disintegrate India became ineffective owing to the conciliatory approach of the polity. Factional and religio ethnic conflicts can only be expected in a country comprising of people with widely diversified religious faith. The phenomenon of sporadic flare ups is likely to continue in the coming decades too. At the same time, India would be able to absorb such irritants and continue its march forward into the 21st century. RELATIONSHIP WITH THE NEIGHBOURS South Asian Strategic Environment. The gridlock imposed by the Cold War over South Asian relationships meant that an unprecedented number of lethal weapons were introduced into the region in the 1970s and 1980s. The Cold War also contributed directly to the introduction opf technology associated with nuclear weapons and the means to deliver them.the most obvious example was the case of Pakistan. Because United States needed Pakistan as a front line state in its efforts to dislodge the Soviet Union from Afghanistan, Washington turned a blind-eye to Pakistans nuclear activities and continued to supply it with sophisticated conventional weapons throughout the 1980s. Similarly, the close relationship that developed between China and Pakistan under the structure of the Cold War assisted the transfer of ballistic missiles, ballistic missile technology and possibly also nuclear weapons technology between the two.[18] The strategic environment in South Asia has been remarkably conflict laden; characterised by wars or hostile relations between neighbours, especially between India and her neighbours. Despite this history of war, nations do engage each other in peaceful competition as well as in a large amount of outright co-operation. The changes in the Indian foreign and security policy since the end of the Cold War have been rapid and radical. They have taken place as a reaction to the perceived rather far reaching changes in the global and regional security environments. The growing problem with terrorism, in terms of domestic, Kashmiri and international terrorism, manifested itself in attacks in major Indian cities, the hijacking of an Indian Airlines flight and the attack against the Indian parliament. Moreover, the exponentially growing power of China, its strategic assistance to Pakistan and the sudden disappearance of the Soviet backing to balance Chinas growing global and regional power re sulted in a feeling of encirclement and Analysis of Indias Potential in the New World Order Analysis of Indias Potential in the New World Order INTRODUCTION Background Dramatic changes at the global level have initiated a process of reorientation of the power distribution and emergence of new powers in international politics. The changes initiated with the disintegration of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republic (USSR ), the unification of Europe in pursuit of an identity of its own ,a sharp decline of communism has set in a process of transition in world affairs, the sudden and consistent rise of asian countries mainly China, India ASEAN Bloc, emergence of resurgent Russia and establishment of new economic power blocs like the G20, BRIC RIC. The emergence of USA as the sole super power and its global war on terror have changed the security scenario for all and sundry. The existing obscurity has given rise to new opportunities, new speculations and new considerations regarding power distribution. A gradual shift from a geo-political world order to a geo-economical world order has come to stay. There is no doubt that any future order would have th e considerations such as comprehensive national power to incl Economy and the power it wields albeit indirectly, at the centre of any international power game. Global shifts happen rarely and are even less often peaceful. The transfer of power from west to east will dramatically change the context of dealing with international challenges. In the early 20th century the imperial order and the aspiring states of Germany and Japan failed to adjust to each other. That led to wars which devastated the better part of the world. The coming shift in power will have a greater impact globally and will require assimilation of diverse political and cultural systems. Todays rising powers seek redress of past grievances, are proudly nationalistic and want to claim their rightful place in the comity of nations. Asian rise in economic terms will translate into greater political and military power, thus increasing the potential damage from conflicts. Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair has noted that- In the next two decades China and India will undergo industrialisation four times the size of the United States and at five times the speedFor the first t ime in many centuries, power is moving East. Blair added that In this new world, we must clear a path to partnership, not stand off against each other competing for power. The worldcannot afford a return to the 20th century struggles for hegemony.[1] India being a part of this evolutionary and revolutionary strategic economic process needs to apprise herself of these changes and redefine: if required, her goals and objectives to emerge as a reckonable force from the present mesh of contradictions and complexities. The term reckonable force can be redefined as a regional power when one views Indias prospects vis-Ã  -vis her size, geo-strategic location, abundant natural resources, size of economy and military capability. The Indian nation is not just a nation, but a subcontinent. Being a subcontinent not only in size, but by its population which is in excess of One Billion, sets it apart in a World with a total population of a little above Five Billion means that in every Five Human being on Earth one is an Indian. It is on record that the Indian Armed Forces is the Fourth Largest in the World. India has since the past Twenty Eight years been exerting her influence in the South Asian sub-region. Thus India has functioned for over half her period of independence as a regional power in the literal sense. It is instructive that given the New World Order in which the US is about the only Super power, it is pertinent that in order to maintain the Balance of Power, that Nations like Brazil and India with a long period of History devoid of expansionist propensity, should emerge as a Super power to enhance the balance of power in the South Asian sub-region, and the World in general. The Indo-Pak conflict of 1971 leading to the emergence of Bangladesh, peace keeping operations in Sri Lanka, quick repression of an attempted coup in Maldives, deployment of Indian navy in Gulf of Aden and the enhanced engaegemnt and involvement of India in various international forums both on strategic geopolitical stage provide ample evidence that India possesses many of the attributes of a regional power. The emergence as a knowledge based economy and as a Human resource powerhouse, make India a force to reckon with today and strong vibrant economy in future. In the recent past, India enhanced role in plethora of world fora and the Indo-US Nuclear deal and subsequent ratification by Nuclear Suppliers Group IAEA. However, in some areas like all round economic development, poverty, population explosion, literacy rates and foreign policy to some extent, India is lacking at the moment. For India to emerge as a regional power, these unfavourable areas need critical attention and rea ppraisal. The Indian economy is growing at an average rate of 8 per cent a year. Most Indian and foreign observers are confident that India will sustain this tempo of growth in the near future, and will go on to become one of the worlds leading economies and a global political power in 2020. A few voices draw attention to the tremendous economic, political and social challenges facing India that the country must overcome before it can lay claim to being a world power [2]. Indians have always known that their nation has the potential to be significant power in a way in which citizens of nations with smaller populations do not. Nehru himself , for all that he emphasized the benign nature of Indian power, was clear in his mind that India, with its vast population, will always make a difference in the world Fate , he said, has marked for us big things.[3] Thus we need always be mindful of the developments that are occurring behind the veil of regional instability that is drawn across Indias rise to power. If that veil were ever to be drawn back, the world might witness the quite sudden advent of India onto the wider Indian Ocean stage as a significant pan regional player. That is not to say that India will quickly overcome the organizational and internal political difficulties alluded to above ; it is to make the point, rather, that as far as Indias Indian Ocean region is concerned, its power potential is very high when viewed in comparative terms. In this sense, it would be quite wrong to set India against the powers of the northern Pacific and to judge its power potential according to those standards.[4] Statement of the Argument A countrys role in the international system is not a random occurrence or a result of an accident; but is basically a function of its power position in the international hierarchy. To have a Subject Role in international politics is to be a part of the power structure and the inner circle that makes vital decisions about the fate and destiny of the international system and the nations within it. The Object Role nations are at the receiving end of the decisions made by the subject role nations. A third in-between category is that of an independent centre of power. These nations do not have the leverage to influence the course of the international system as a whole, but do possess enough capability to have, within a given configuration of power, a considerable degree of autonomy and the capability to resist the application of unwelcome and forced decisions. While subject nations have global influence, independent centres of power are often dominant or pre-eminent in a certain region. T hey may, therefore may also be referred to as Regional Powers . Typically a subject nation resists the emergence of a regional power; for to accommodate others to a similar role is to diminish ones own power. The tendency is to extend ones own power and exercise domination over others so as to reduce the emerging regional powers to the status of a mere object nation.[5] India gained pre-eminence in South Asia in the aftermath of the Indo-Pak war of 1971 but more recently with the steady economic growth, growing international stature and active interaction and involvement in various world forums have made it an independent power centre (regional power) in South Asia. With the recent changes in the world politics and diffusion of power, countries with regional prominence have come to possess a great capacity for asserting themselves. In this context, India has the capability and the potential to be elevated to the status of a regional power. An analysis of various factors in the light of international power structure would facilitate the prognosis of the status India is likely to achieve by 2020 AD i.e. Regional Power. Aim To assess Indias potential in the new world order so as to forecast the prospects of India emerging as a regional power in South Asia by 2020 AD. Justification for the Study Ever since gaining independence in 1947, India has moved slowly but steadily towards its role as a regional power. Historically, India has been the seat of famous ancient civilisations. It invokes memories of past greatness, though episodic; and of epochs of creativity, not only in Philosophy and Literature but also in Science and Mathematics. The fact that the last several centuries saw India under alien rule only makes aspirations in the restoration of greatness all the more deeply felt'[6]. Today, with the rapid economic growth and military stature, Indias influence in South Asia in particular and the world in general, is beginning to emerge and being felt by all and sundry A study of various factors that would aid Indias emergence, as well as various impediments that retard this process merit analysis. India is a fast steadily developing country and today stands among the top few industrial nations in the world and has a rapidly growing industrial service sector. Although pover ty, illiteracy and health deficiencies are some of the vexing problems, yet only few nations have larger pools of trained professionals, scientific, technological and executive talents than that in India. India, as a nation is about over half a century old not considering her ancient and erstwhile status as one of the oldest civilisations. In this period of her independence, she has exhibited character and pedigree. She was instrumental to the creation of the Non Aligned Movement in the cold war era immediately after independence and show her aspiration of emerging as an independent power centre in world polity. She has on the issue of Nuclear Non proliferation taken a consistent stance even though this posture has met with the ire of the developed world has not deterred her. This attitude was demonstrated by her refusal to sign the CTBT and also the NPT. It is on record that it took her more than a quarter of a century to carry out a follow up nuclear test. This could be placed at the doorstep of the fact that her good neighbours China and Pakistan have continued to arm themselves with these offensive weapons. India in her nuclear policy states that she would abide with the principle s of no-first strike, nuclear deterrence as the cornerstone of that policy. And to continue to advocate for a ban on nuclear weapons like the type achieved on Chemical and Biological warfare weapons and the ban on use of land mines. These stated positions have recently been understood and appreciated by the entire world polity and the Indo-US Nuclear deal and its subsequent ratification at Nuclear Supplier Group (NSG) International Atomic Energy Asssociation (IAEA) have largely vindicated Indian stance on these issues. The engagement and involvement of India in G8, BRIC, RIC, ASEAN, IBSA in the geopolitical arena. The positions on WTO Climate change are also a case in point for growing stature of India on world stage. The Information Technology (IT) propels the world of technology in the present scenario. In this field, India has demonstrated outstanding abilities and progressed leaps and bounds in various facets, be it hardware or technology or software development. In the Silicon Valley of American, it is reported that 60,000 Indians operating there could collectively boast of assets worth more five hundred billion dollars. This is no mean achievement and the corresponding effect on India is the collateral development of the Asian Silicon Valley in Bangalore, Karnataka. In the field of IT, the Indian nation has arrived on the regional and the world stage. For this simple reason, her Engineers, Scientists, Doctors and Technologists are being sought across the globe. This is not to talk of the influence of Indian business houses and management gurus, in the entire world more so in the developing world, where they command an imposing stature in the fields of Textile technology and Pharmaceuticals. Indias stature as an IT Knowledge base powerhouse is a major factor in its rise at the world stage. India is a single democratic political entity, though slightly marred by mass/ public development issues and religious regional strifes varying from state to state. In view of the existing fluidity in the Asian region following the global paradigm, shift in the power distribution and the present status of India, an attempt to foresee Indias evolution as a regional power in South Asia by 2020 would be relevant. Scope The scope of this paper would be limited to analysing various factors governing the emergence of India as a regional power in South Asia by 2020 AD. Indias performance as an independent state would be given a brief overview along with her present status in the region. Preview To analyse the future, it is essential to critically evaluate Indias power potential as well as the impediments en-route. India has inherited a volatile, ethnic, religious and social mix that generates strong cross-currents of tension between the states of the region and added to this are the domestic under-currents of religious fundamentalism, communal tensions, demand for autonomous/ independent states and inherent problems of a multi-lingual and multi-racial society. Indias quest for the regional power status in this turbulent environment is underwritten by an increasingly open and vibrant economy and a Military Industrial complex that stretches deep into the bureaucratic structure of the nation. However, Indias attention has been primarily focused more on the problems associated with nation building and its immediate neighbourhood and, than on the Indian Ocean region, let alone the world. It is ironic that while on one hand, it is the problems of the neighbourhood that have largely driven Indias military build up, on the other hand it is these very problems that continue to limit its strategic reach. It is this combination of a drive for a great power status and intensifying regional and national problems that pose a number of questions about Indias future. This paper endeavours to understand and answer some of these questions. Source of the Data The source of the data are the various books in the college library, various magazines and articles written by various people from time to time. Internet was extensively used for collection of data, various study reports and articles. Bibliography is attached at Appx A. BRIEF HISTORY AND PRESENT STATUS The colonial powers that ruled India for centuries apparently visualised her potential and attempted to undermine it through a process of gradual disintegration. Formation of Pakistan is one vivid example of such designs. After independence, the citizens of India have displayed remarkable resilience to destructive forces. Despite impediments like poverty, corruption, ailing bureaucracy and population explosion, India has made significant progress in various fields to incl Education, Manufacturing, Knowledge based industry, IT, Space Technology, Pharmaceutical Industry. Today, India ranks among fastest growing economies of the world and IT Knowledge based industry powerhouse. In the past sixty years after independence, India has acquired great maturity and realism in the management of its strategic environment albeit with considerable pain and sacrifice. Indias posture has been based on a realistic assessment of its capabilities. It projects a defensive, progress oriented stance rather than an expansionist or a hegemonistic stance. India has continued to follow and propagate the ideology of non-alignment and is now on the threshold of coming out of its shell to play an important role at the world stage as a Global player if not as atleast as a major regional player. The case in point of the growing stature and understanding of the Indian nation has been- The nuclear agreement, which followed three weeks later, calling for the separation of Indias nuclear facilities into civilian and military, and bringing Indias civilian facilities under international safeguards in exchange for nuclear energy cooperation, demonstrated the growing strategic convergence bet ween the US India. Domestic political considerations have come in the way of the Indian government operationalising the nuclear deal. That notwithstanding, the deal was widely welcomed in India because it opened the doors for India to participate in civilian nuclear commerce with members of the NSG while allowing it to retain its nuclear weapons programme despite being outside the NPT. [7] PRESENT STATUS Contemporarily, India enjoys a leading status in South Asia. Militarily, she has displayed her potential either in a direct conflict, coercion or allaying any belligerence by its potential adversaries. Birth of Bangladesh, intervention in Sri Lanka Maldives, Indian Naval involvement in Gulf of Aden are a few indicators that India has acquired a great measure of the regional hegemony. Power status takes into account an ideological or political role and above all the economic health of a nation. Regional hegemony or dominance implies the existence of local military pre-ponderance and the availability of non-military instruments of pressure, including economic coercion. Studies of strategic power in the world politics commonly assign to India the status of a middle power of some regional significance, but little more'[8]. A nation state such as India, by virtue of its size, resources and geographical location, finds herself a power in regional terms whether or not it seeks the label and despite the fact that all its capabilities for regional dominance are not yet fully exploited. Indias current pre-eminence over its neighbours, however, is so substantial that its position has been recognised by the entire world, and implicitly so by all South Asian states as well.'[9] Recent years have witnessed a steady growth in Indias power, based upon a strong economic performance. According to the World Bank, Indias per capita income is now higher than Chinas and some reports put its rate of economic growth above Chinas in real terms. This increase in the underlying growth of the economy is what has underwritten Indias substantial growth in conventional military power. By virtue of its military growth, India has acquired , by default, a Maximalist position that would enable it to have a strategic reach throughout the Indian Ocean. Furthermore, with the prospect of a declining role for the superpowers in the region, Indias growth in military capability is likely to leave it stronger in relative as well as absolute terms. The erstwhile Soviet Union is no longer a major factor in the Indian Ocean and the peace dividend in the world politics may eventually lead to a reduced presence on the part of the United States. [10] While Indias emerging role is well acknowledged in the world, there are clear limitations both upon the current extent of Indias power and upon the rate at which that power will accrue. With India, it has been very much the question of WATCH THIS SPACE .'[11] INDIAS POWER POTENTIAL Geo-Strategic Location. India shares its borders with China, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Nepal and Bhutan. It has close proximity to Sri Lanka and the Maldives. Therefore, in South Asia, it has to directly interact with many neighbours. Strategically, India lies astride the Indian ocean, flanking the Persian Gulf and the Straits of Malacca. It lies across the routes from West Asia to South-East and East Asia and dominates the world trade routes. Therefore, the dominating position of India and its island territories would enable it to control the sea lines of communication between the Atlantic and the Pacific Oceans and consequently the world trade. Natural Resources. India has abundant natural resources. Its soil varies greatly from region to region. It is alluvial in the northern plains, sandy in the western desert, black in the Deccan Plateau and coarse in the hilly terrain. Each type is suitable for a particular group of crops. There are areas where trees grow on their own. They form the source of timber, pulp, resin, lac, gum and cane. Indias hydro-electric and coal reserves are massive. Oil exploration is limited but off shore potentials suggest a great amount of self reliance. Indias Thorium reserves are large. Its known reserves of Iron ore, which represent 10% of the worlds total and those of a wide range of other minerals suggest that India has the potential for a relatively independent economy.'[12] Human Resources. Human resources are of paramount importance in any economy. A human being comes not only with a mouth and a belly for consumption, but also with two hands to work. The adverse effects of unchecked population growth cannot be ignored; however, given the right direction and awakening, the population can be utilised constructively. A large young population helps to boost demand by providing an extensive and growing market for industrial products. It can lower wages, increase profits and output, encourage industrial development and open employment avenues. This is borne out by the fact that numerous MNCs are investing huge sums of money to tap the cheap Indian labour and the immense ready market. Economic Base. Till recently, multiple restrictions on private business co-operation and the goal of achieving economic self reliance had shackled the Indian economy by hindering unprejudiced co-operation from industrial nations. With the adoption of a liberalised economic policy, an extensive economic relation is now growing. The new economic policy lays greater emphasis on private enterprise and intensified competition for dynamic industrial progress and mordenisation. Prospects for a substantial upswing of economic growth seem to be favourable now. India has huge reserves of important raw material and a large domestic market. It also has a large group of entrepenures and managers experienced in organising and managing industrial enterprises under difficult circumstances. Given the improved setting for entrepreneurial activities, the large number of scientists and engineers, some of them highly qualified professionals, trained overseas or with practical foreign experience, could be of immense benefit to the country[13]. The expectations of economic development are based on an economic policy that is yet in its infancy. For long term stability the creation of a congenial atmosphere for foreign investment is necessary. Our focus would have to shift from development of industrial sector to the improvement of institutional framework for long term development. Greater efforts to improve social security are needed to cushion the effects of intensified industrial competition and to open up new possibilities for the impoverished classes to take a share in the economic development. Science and Technology. India began to develop its capabilities in science and technology soon after independence. However, the overall programme while impressive compared to that of other poor countries is inadequate and poorly organised in relation to the countrys potential and requirements[14]. Of the total research and development in the country, only 25% is used to promote innovation in industry and agriculture, while the major chunk contributes to development in areas like atomic energy, space programme and defence equipment. The latest thrust to uplift the economy has renewed the vigour in the sphere of science and technology also. The private sector has shown great promise to measure upto the national requirements and a healthy competition with other nations can be seen specially in areas like computer software and electronics. Numerous institutions are doing some original and promising research in various fields. Political System Indias political system was initially dominated by the small urban elite comprising leaders of the nationalist movement and an elitist civil service. At the state level, elected representatives wielded impressive influence in directing benefits to their constituencies and acting as channels of complaint and pressure within the bureaucracy. The system moved rapidly to broaden its base of support by bringing the bulk of peasantry into the system and also by including small business and trading interests. The evolution of such a system from the authoritarian colonial rule was accompanied by tension and uneven progress. India had managed to operate a complex ; constitutional, federal, parliamentary and party dominated political system with remarkable effectiveness. Indias manifold diversity and communal problems often raise the spectre of disintegration; these are common to a nation state building process that the developed countries experienced a century ago. In the Indian democratic set-up, its people have displayed a great amount of maturity in preserving their rights. Any display of authoritarianism by a democratically elected government has met with stiff opposition. A vivid example is the imposition of emergency in 1975 by Mrs Gandhi and her subsequent electoral defeat in 1977. The emergency and the general elections of 1977 were a test of democracy, equivalent in significance to a social revolution[15]. A seemingly large section of illiterate electorate is well aware of its might and is critical of the people who represent them in higher offices. India has managed to solve or at least contain major disputes on language policy and regional autonomy. At the same time religious, caste based and even communist organisations have been brought in and operate in a largely peaceful democratic institution. Indias political leaders have shown a firm resolution in making of both foreign and defence policies. The military also operates under political direction. Inherent stability is provided to the system by the presence of well established institutions like judiciary, banking and stock exchange. Future political crisis no doubt loom large, but this can only be expected considering the countrys social and economic metamorphosis. The durability and resilience of the Indian democratic system indicates that not only would it continue in the coming years but would also gain more strength and experience. Military Capability. Since their debacle in the 1962 Sino- Indian conflict, the Indian Armed Forces have come a long way. Today India possesses adequate defence capability to look after her interests. India is able to produce diverse military items such as small arms, field and anti-aircraft recoilless guns, howitzers, support electronic items, anti-tank, anti-aircraft and naval missiles, armoured vehicles, supersonic aircraft, helicopters, anti-submarine frigates, fast patrol boats and missile boats[16]. It has also demonstrated Intermediate Range Ballistic Missile (IRBM) technology. In space science, India is amongst the world leaders. All this has been achieved at a moderate expenditure of 3% of GNP per annum. Nuclear Potential. Having successfully exploded its first nuclear device on 18 May 1974; India has continued to maintain a stance of using nuclear energy for peaceful purposes alone. However, the potential of India to develop a nuclear bomb cannot be denied. Indias nuclear structure is quite diversified. Beginning with the construction of Asias (outside erstwhile USSR ) first nuclear reactor in 1956, India has acquired the following major facilities[17]:- Half a dozen nuclear research reactors, all but one built without foreign assistance or participation. The ability to design and construct from equipment manufactured indigenously one 500 MW nuclear power station every second year. The competence to fabricate all sensitive nuclear instruments, fuelling assemblies, special alloys and materials, fissile plutonium and thorium from its own processes and plants. Asias first indigenously constructed variable energy cyclotron. Numerous other nuclear activities and support facilities, isotope production, mines, medicines, seismic arrays, fissile U-223, extraction processes, fusion, uranium enrichment research and so on. Openness and Resilience. Except for the brief period of emergency, India has had an open society with an active press and an intellectual community. Indian political and economic affairs are subject to constant criticism. Critics find information on India more readily available than for China, Pakistan and several developing countries. In addition, there is a constant flow of constructive criticism from internal sources. Viewed and used correctly, this criticism provides important inputs for betterment. Indian resilience is a widely recognised phenomenon. Many hostile designs to covertly disintegrate India became ineffective owing to the conciliatory approach of the polity. Factional and religio ethnic conflicts can only be expected in a country comprising of people with widely diversified religious faith. The phenomenon of sporadic flare ups is likely to continue in the coming decades too. At the same time, India would be able to absorb such irritants and continue its march forward into the 21st century. RELATIONSHIP WITH THE NEIGHBOURS South Asian Strategic Environment. The gridlock imposed by the Cold War over South Asian relationships meant that an unprecedented number of lethal weapons were introduced into the region in the 1970s and 1980s. The Cold War also contributed directly to the introduction opf technology associated with nuclear weapons and the means to deliver them.the most obvious example was the case of Pakistan. Because United States needed Pakistan as a front line state in its efforts to dislodge the Soviet Union from Afghanistan, Washington turned a blind-eye to Pakistans nuclear activities and continued to supply it with sophisticated conventional weapons throughout the 1980s. Similarly, the close relationship that developed between China and Pakistan under the structure of the Cold War assisted the transfer of ballistic missiles, ballistic missile technology and possibly also nuclear weapons technology between the two.[18] The strategic environment in South Asia has been remarkably conflict laden; characterised by wars or hostile relations between neighbours, especially between India and her neighbours. Despite this history of war, nations do engage each other in peaceful competition as well as in a large amount of outright co-operation. The changes in the Indian foreign and security policy since the end of the Cold War have been rapid and radical. They have taken place as a reaction to the perceived rather far reaching changes in the global and regional security environments. The growing problem with terrorism, in terms of domestic, Kashmiri and international terrorism, manifested itself in attacks in major Indian cities, the hijacking of an Indian Airlines flight and the attack against the Indian parliament. Moreover, the exponentially growing power of China, its strategic assistance to Pakistan and the sudden disappearance of the Soviet backing to balance Chinas growing global and regional power re sulted in a feeling of encirclement and

Tess of the D’Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy :: Thomas Hardy Tess Urbervilles Essays

One of Thomas Hardy’s greatest works: ‘Tess of the D’Urbervilles‘ was first published in 1891, a novel set in the fictional county of Wessex, Britain. By the time of its appearance, Hardy was considered to be on of England’s leading writers and had already published several well known novels including ‘Far from the Madding Crowd’ and ‘The Woodlanders’ as well as numerous other short stories. However in spite of his reputation and fame, Hardy had immense difficulty finding a publication prepared to publish Tess when he offered it for serialization to London reviewers. The subject matter and content was considered to be- in the eyes of Victorian society, unfit for publications in which young people may read. A storyline depicting a young girl seduced and raped by a man, then married and rejected by another and then eventually murders the first man was considered to be exceptionally scandalous and inappropriate. Finally in order to pacify potential publishers, Hardy took the book apart and rewrote and edited several of the scenes before any of the weekly journals would take it as a serial. When the time came to publish the novel in book form, Hardy reassembled it was it was originally written. The novel’s subtitle- ‘A Pure Woman’ came also under a great deal of attack. Victorian critics argued that Tess could not possibly be termed of as ‘pure’ after a downfall such as hers and should instead be labeled as a ‘Fallen’ woman. Hardy’s frank (at least for the time) depictions of sex, his criticism and questioning of religion and his doubt within the narrative were too denounced to such an extent that though the story did in the end bring him immense fame and fortune, its reception at the start caused Hardy to lose confidence and the novel was one of his last. In Tess of the D’Urbervilles, Hardy uses a variety of narrative techniques in order to convey his own impressions of the society in which both he and his character Tess lived. The narrative technique of an author in any novel is crucial to the readers understanding of the narrative. The way in which a novel is written influences the way in which the reader interprets the events which occur throughout the novel and allows the author to convey the feeling of time, place, and people in the society in which the author is attempting to impart to his or her readers. Hardy’s use of a third person omniscient narrator who knows all and sees all allows the readers indirect insight into the actions and emotions of specific characters. The omniscience of the narrator allows the reader to not be influenced by the character

Discuss ‘sensibility’ in the poetry of Felicia Hemans: The Grave of a Poetess

In this essay I will define the meaning of ‘sensibility' in the poetry that I have encountered in this course. Then, I will discuss the gender writing, women's poetry and whether ‘sensibility' is a characteristic of women's poetry alone. In poetry, sensibility could be defined as a mental responsiveness and awareness, which refine sensitivity to pleasurable or painful impressions. It also, considered as a cult of feeling, which arose in the eighteenth century in response to philosophical theories. Those theories investigate the power of feeling to communicate directly between people. In the eighteenth century, sensibility celebrated the man feeling, presented with the feelings of sympathy and pity in response to the suffering of others. Sensibility takes us into an internal world of psychology. Curran argues that the link is a crucial one to understanding Romanticism when he writes that the ‘poetry of sensibility is at base a literature of psychological exploration, and it is the foundation on which Romanticism was reread' (Romantic Writing, p. 113). The images of woman on the eighteenth century, was one source of the figure of the domestic woman. Within the culture of the Romantic period, the main role for woman was taking care of children, house and husband. Literature in that era, was influenced by sensibility, and seems to celebrate feeling and femininity. Although sensibility appears among males' poems, most of them refuse sensibility and consider it as a type of feminine. Many of Wordsworth's poems return to the literature of sensibility, such as the distress suffered by a young woman and meeting an old man on the roadside. Wordsworth accepted sensibility as a male sensibility, but Blake refuse completely the sensibility, which represented in his perspective woman femininity. Sensibility meaning was different in the point of view of some women writers. Some of them take their literary identity from it, such as Williams. Whereas, others consider it as an aspect of femininity at best, and at worst, as a means to celebrate all that is most false and decadent in the contemporary emergence of male romantic poetry. No one can deny that romanticism periods' writers, such as Wordsworth, Coleridge, Keats, Byron and Shelley, had borrowed significantly from female authors and feminine types of literature. Hence, we have to admit that there is a shared culture between men and women throughout the period of romanticism. Wollstonecraft argues that to deny women the opportunities of education and an active role in society is to transform them into domestic slaves. What connects women and slaves, for Wollstonecraft, is that they are both seen and treated as commodities. The revolutionary period gave fresh movement to debate and concern about femininity and women's role in society. James Fordyce's Sermons to Young Women (1765) was One of the most frequently republished volumes. In that volume, writer expresses strong views on the dangers to women of too much novel reading. According to Fordyce, female intellect is limited, whereas, most of life activities which need human intelligence such as ‘war, commerce, politics, exercises of strength and dexterity, abstract philosophy, and all the abstruser sciences, are more properly the province of men. In thinking about the relation between gender and writing in the romantic period, we should note the Polwhele claims an inherited masculine perspective, locating his contemporary readers in the context of their fathers' experience. According to Polwhele, women's writing is an affront to God-given, ‘natural' gender roles. In this masculine way of seeing, women are objects of the male gaze, they are defined by their appearance and behaviour. It follows that if women engage in certain types of writing, this will involve the loss of the ‘softer charms' that are bound up with these ideals of femininity. (Romantic Writing, p. 180). Nevertheless There were influential poets in the beginning of the nineteenth century, such as Anna Barbauld, Anna Seward, Charlotte Smith and Mary Robinson. The work of those women writers were going through many editions, but they have subsequently been erased from literary history or pushed to its margins. Women writers were very popular, and women readers gained a new economic visibility through the rise of fashionable magazine.. the beginning of women entrance to literary marketplace was in significant numbers during the 18th and 19th centuries, but in the historical context in which they wrote, they could not easily claim to speak with authority. To write as a woman was to be transgressive: entering the literary marketplace and competing with male authors for readership challenged conventional gender boundaries. As a result, many women authors adopted authorial personae that fit, rather than challenged, conventional gender definitions. Since women were generally understood to be emotional rather than rational, women authors often wrote about feelings, emotions, and, especially, love. They often adopted styles that fit their subject matter: to seem more feminine, they employed highly emotional language. By so doing, they could find an audience yet not risk being perceived as excessively ambitious. But this created a double-bind: to speak as a woman was to play the part of an emotionally sensitive and irrational human being. And whereas male authors could cite an infinite number of literary ancestors to establish their authority, female authors had just a handful of literary antecedents. Male poets were increasingly forced to respond to women writers such as Joanna Baillie, a Scottish poet and successful dramatist, who published a 72 page polemic arguing for naturalness in poetic language two years before Wordsworth wrote his ‘Preface† to the second edition of Lyrical Ballads, in which he makes the same plea. Women Poets such as Baillie and other preceded Wordsworth and brought the vigour of common life and language to their writings. Many of the most popular poets, such as Letitia Elizabeth Landon (L.E.L), published their poems in annuals and ornamental giftbooks, which were directed towards a largely female readership. L.E.L. edited and wrote most of Health's Book of Beauty, and contributed to countless other. They promoted, particularly through their illustrations, an ideology of feminine beauty, providing models for women to emulate and confirming that the ideal woman was the object, not the subject, of the gaze. In this sense, we will represent Felicia Hemans: â€Å"The Grave of a Poetess†. Sensibility is appear obviously in this poem which succeed in transferring the human suffer among its verses. In such a poem which written by woman, the death seems strangely bound up with expression, and it show how might this bundling affect the poem's agenda. In the final stanza of The Grave of a Poetess, Felicia Hemans completes the turn of her poem from one of melancholy lament at the passing of fellow poet Mary Tighe to one instead celebrating the apparent freedom of expression that follows a poet's earthly death. In closing, Hemans writes to Tighe, â€Å"Where couldst thou fix on mortal ground / Thy tender thoughts and high? / Now peace the woman's heart hath found, / And joy the poet's eye†. The Grave of a Poetess, ends up carrying a fair amount of dramatic potency, as it both points to repression of the female voice, and implies the loss this creates for all of humanity. An effective tension is thus lent to Hemans poem through the direct and indirect of injection of her frustrated Romantic yearnings for the attainment of full expression for her and her fellow poetesses, the denial of which leads her to resort to the Christian-like notion of a vindicating afterlife seen in this poem. Charlotte Smith was born in London. Her mother Anne died when she was only three, and at the age of six Charlotte was sent by her Aunt to a school in Chichester and later a school in Kingston. At the age of sixteen she was the subject of an arranged marriage to Benjamin Smith, with whom she was to have twelve children. There life together was far from straightforward, and the couple had many financial difficulties which led to her husband being imprisoned in debtors prison for seven months. Despite all her problems she was however a talented translator, and prolific writer of prose, plays and poetry. Including the Elegaic Sonnets in 1784 of which the Glow Worm was sonnet 58. She died in 1806 and is buried in Stoke. In Charlotte Smith's sonnet, she showed a high power of sensibility and she used a power of nature to represent her feeling among the sonnet. â€Å"I love to listen to the hollow sighs/ Through the half-leafless wood that breathes the gale;/ for at such hours the shadowy phantom pale†: in these lines she express her sadness and feelings through the use of nature elements. She used the expression â€Å"half-leafless† to show that the leaves had fallen down. Also she use the expression â€Å"shadowy phantom† to show that it is as a shadow, and this expression is a kind of mystery. Dorothy Wordsworth: â€Å"Floating Island† is another example of woman poetry, which represent sensibility among her writing. Dorothy start her poem with a force of nature: â€Å"Harmonious Powers with Nature work/ on sky, earth, river, lake, and sea:/ Sunshine and storm, whirlwind and breeze/ All in one duteous task agree†. In this poem the poet employed the nature to express the feeling of security in the preface of the poem. Although common poets refused to accept feminine sensibility, their work was influenced by sensibility in getting to the mind of human feeling and describing suffering and emotion. Wordsworth show sensibility in his famous poems, such as â€Å"Lucy†. In that poem, Wordsworth describe a story of a woman and express her beauty and shy. Then he ended his poem by telling his audience that Lucy had dead and no one know where she had lived: â€Å"She lived unknown, and few could know/ But she is in her grave, and oh†. All these emotions considered as a type of sensibility. In contrasting with William Blake: â€Å"The Chimney Sweeper†, we find that the poet interest in showing a political and social suffering among his poem. In this poem the Blake is suggesting that it is a state of affairs which cannot be changed, and all we could do would be to accept our earthly fate and expect our reward in the afterlife: â€Å"And so Tome awoke, and we rose in the dark,/ So if all do their duty they need not fear harm†. Although men such as Wordsworth, Blake, Keats and Shelley refused to admit that they use sensibility in their poems, no one can deny that there is a considerable amount of shared culture between men and women throughout the period of romanticism. In comparing with women sensibility, Wordsworth, Blake, Keats and Shelley express their sensibility among their poems in their poetry, and mainly they concern in human existence and the political situation. Sensibility was appeared more in Blake poems, as he was more sensitive and involved in human and political suffering and he was considered as a radical member during the revolution. On the other hand women sensibility interest in domestic matters and social and family sadness and women suffering. Further more they interest in the story of love and families and they use gothic elements in their poetry. In conclusion, we defined sensibility as a matter of sensitivity and expression of emotions which arose in eighteenth century poetry. Both of men and women used sensibility in their poetry, but each of them employ it in a different way. The work of Wordsworth and Coleridge, Keats Byron and Shelley borrows significantly from female authors and ‘feminine' types of literature, such as sensibility, even though it seeks to mark its own works as masculine and to sever the association with female writers and readers. Sensibility arose in men's poetry as a matter of expressing the refusal to the political situation and the social suffering. Whereas, it arose in women sensibility among their awareness of domestic needs and women suffering. In men's perspective the woman is a poem not a poet, and that was what we notice in Wordsworth poem â€Å"Lucy† as he used Lucy as a passive character, he interest in describing her beauty, but there were no considered to her intelligence.

`` Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit And Jean Rhys s Wide...

Masculinity is an odd concept, because in many ways it is representative of strength and power. However, it is also represented through pop culture, literature, media, etc. as being rather fragile. In feminist literature, we see this fragility come through at incredible rates. While simply looking at a couple of novels, it is possible to evaluate how the power dynamic of masculinity puts up its walls when facing the smallest threats to its power. Through analysis of Jeanette Winterson’s Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit and Jean Rhys’s Wide Sargasso Sea, it is possible to see how the figureheads of masculinity panic as soon as they are posed with the smallest threat. The protagonists of both stories are categorized as â€Å"mad† or â€Å"abnormal† throughout the course of each respective plot. They are placed there under the pretenses that this classification is what is best for them because it allows them to get the help they need and deserve in order to get better. However, these declarations of madness are really born from the infringement of both characters upon the pre-established patterns of masculinity and the panic that ensues from the male voice as a result of this deviance from traditional norms. In Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit, the church in Jeanette’s town is clearly overseen and ruled by the men of the town. While there is female leadership within the church, it is easily undermined at the slightest hint of a threat to masculine leadership. When the church becomes aware