Research master thesis | Asian Studies (research) (MA)
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This thesis focuses on a fluid genre of glorificatory literature called Māhātmya. I critically edit, translate, and analyze a selection of Sanskrit Māhātmyas to increase our understanding of how...Show moreThis thesis focuses on a fluid genre of glorificatory literature called Māhātmya. I critically edit, translate, and analyze a selection of Sanskrit Māhātmyas to increase our understanding of how these kinds of texts come to being and how we can understand their processes of composition and transmission. I use a fourfold typology – which in itself is a result of the research – to point out different aspects of intertextuality found in the selection of texts. Analyzing these Māhātmyas contributes to a more nuanced understanding regarding issues of textual reuse, and sheds light on the concept of authorship, especially regarding the authorless religious literature of Hinduism.Show less
This thesis defines slavery in eighteenth-century Cochin. By relying on courtcases and acts of transport, this thesis shows how slavery in eighteenth-century Cochin is connected with caste, VOC-law...Show moreThis thesis defines slavery in eighteenth-century Cochin. By relying on courtcases and acts of transport, this thesis shows how slavery in eighteenth-century Cochin is connected with caste, VOC-law and categorization, and local power structures.Show less
In deze scriptie wordt onderzocht wat P.A.S. van Limburg Brouwer (1829-1873) ertoe dreef het Oude India te bestuderen. Daartoe wordt Van Limburg Brouwer op vier vlakken geanalyseerd: als filosoof,...Show moreIn deze scriptie wordt onderzocht wat P.A.S. van Limburg Brouwer (1829-1873) ertoe dreef het Oude India te bestuderen. Daartoe wordt Van Limburg Brouwer op vier vlakken geanalyseerd: als filosoof, als Indoloog, als politicus en als literair schrijver. Deze scriptie laat zien dat Van Limburg Brouwer er een Duits-idealistisch spinozistisch wereldbeeld op nahield, dat uiteindelijk in zijn roman "Akbar" ten volle tentoongesteld werd.Show less
Research master thesis | History: Societies and Institutions (research) (MA)
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This thesis is about the Parsis, a special Indian minority group who came to India more than a millenium ago. The Parsis became very wealthy and influential under British colonial rule and acquired...Show moreThis thesis is about the Parsis, a special Indian minority group who came to India more than a millenium ago. The Parsis became very wealthy and influential under British colonial rule and acquired great esteem as a colonial elite. After decolonisation of the British Indies, this picture completely turned upside town and a lot of Parsis left India for a western country such as the UK and the US. Thus, they had to reconstruct their identity both in India and the US and the UK. This thesis examines this double identity reconstruction by means of a combination of literary analysis and discourse analysis.Show less