Colonial Gaze as Reflected in the Narratives of Memsahibs

Abstract

The article seeks to explore the dimensions of ‘otherness’ in the attitudes of the Memsahibs, that is, how these women who accompanied British men to India perceived the ‘other’ in terms of the physical, cultural and moral attributes of the Indians and more significantly how they negotiate the ‘other’ in terms of language, climate, food, and so on. Do these women strive hard to bridge the gap between the ‘self’ and the ‘other’ or continue to isolate themselves in their white enclaves? Did they try to reach out to the Indians or they deliberately tried to limit the contact zones with Indians? Whether their construction of Indians and Indian society is disparaging, sympathetic or appreciative? The three narratives have been perused to provide insights into these issues. The objective of the article is to deny the meta-narrative and instead present mini-narratives that reflect their plural and diverse experiences.