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The Country Of First Boys
How do deprivations related to class, caste, and gender interrelate? Why are our political leaders so good in saying what should be done without doing anything much about them? How should we think about Sanskrit and ancient India without adding religious color? Why is it important to revive Nalanda, the worlds oldest university? The Country of First Boys is Amartya Sens intellectual journey through the past and present to seek an understanding of Indias history and the demands of its future. The themes of these essays include the hardened and extreme nature of inequality in India and what can be done about it. One of the many rewards of good schooling denied to most Indians includes the understanding that India is an integral part of a world civilization. Always sensitive to global communication and interaction, Indias own contributions vary from the development of a multiplicity of astronomically reasoned calendars and the invention of games like chess to the establishment of the foundations of several branches of modern mathematics. In this collection, Sen examines justice, identity, deprivation, inequalities, gender politics, education, the media, and the importance of getting your priorities right. These are accessible yet pioneering essays that hold the kernel of many of his seminal works.
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The Argumentative Indian
India is a very diverse country with many distinct pursuits, vastly different convictions, widely divergent customs, and a veritable feast of view points. The Argumentative Indian brings together an illuminating selection of writings from Nobel prize-winning economist Amartya Sen that outline the need to understand contemporary India in the light of its long argumentative tradition. The understanding and use of this rich argumentative tradition are critically important, Sen argues, for the success of India's democracy, the defence of its secular politics, the removal of inequalities related to class, caste, gender and community, and the pursuit of sub-continental peace.