UPSC Essentials | Mains answer practice — GS 1 : Questions on contributions of Sarojini Naidu and Sangam literature (Week 91)

QUESTION 1

Discuss the multifaceted contributions of Sarojini Naidu to India’s freedom struggle and women’s empowerment.

QUESTION 2

Discuss the significance of Sangam literature in reconstructing the history, society, and culture of ancient Tamil civilisation. How has its rediscovery contributed to Tamil historiography and archaeology?

General points on the structure of the answers

Introduction

— The introduction of the answer is essential and should be restricted to 3-5 lines. Remember, a one-liner is not a standard introduction.

— It may consist of basic information by giving some definitions from the trusted source and authentic facts.

Body

— It is the central part of the answer and one should understand the demand of the question to provide rich content.

— The answer must be preferably written as a mix of points and short paragraphs rather than using long paragraphs or just points.

— Using facts from authentic government sources makes your answer more comprehensive. Analysis is important based on the demand of the question, but do not over analyse.

QUESTION 1: Discuss the multifaceted contributions of Sarojini Naidu to India’s freedom struggle and women’s empowerment.

Introduction:

— Sarojini Naidu was a significant woman leader in India’s liberation struggle and an ardent follower of Mahatma Gandhi, with whom she had a close relationship.

— In 1925, she became the first Indian woman to be elected president of the Indian National Congress during its Kanpur session. Following independence, she became Uttar Pradesh’s first governor.

Body:

— Sarojini met Mahatma Gandhi for the first time in 1914 at his Kensington, England abode. Gopal Krishna Gokhale, her lifetime tutor, arranged for her to meet with various figures, including Gandhi. Naidu was inspired by the two individuals and joined the Indian National Movement during Bengal Partition in 1905.

— Naidu, an ardent member in the freedom movement, gave fiery speeches across the country. She discussed women’s and labour rights and asked everyone to join the cause. In 1917, she co-founded the Women’s India Association with Annie Besant and, like many others in the Constituent Assembly, concentrated on women’s education and the abolition of child marriage. As part of the Swadeshi movement, Naidu pushed women to abandon foreign clothing.

— She moved a resolution on women’s franchise at the 18th session of the Bombay Provincial Conference in Bijapur, arguing “from a national point of view” for women’s right to vote. She was convinced that “it is for the honour of the nation that the Indian womanhood, day after day, comes to the gate of death so that the Indian people may be born a million times free”.

— Sarojini Naidu’s patriotic thoughts and passion to India’s freedom are evident in many of her poetry. For “To India” she sings about: “Rise, Mother, rise, regenerate from thy gloom/And, like a bride high-mated with the spheres/Beget new glories from thine ageless womb!” Similarly, in “Awake,” she urges the country to awaken: “Wake, O Mother! Thy children beseech thee!/They kneel in thy presence to serve and worship thee!”

— Naidu was imprisoned multiple times between 1930 and 1942. During the Satyagraha against the salt tax, he led 2500 people to attack the Dharasana Salt Works in 1930, soon after the Dandi March, when Mahatma Gandhi was in prison.

— Naidu represented free India when the Versailles Peace Treaty was signed in 1919, following British control. During this period, India did not have a flag to symbolise itself. On July 22, 1947, Naidu talked at length about it during an Assembly debate, urging members to pioneer a flag. Naidu recounted an instance in which 42 countries sent women to an international conference in Berlin, where a flag march was to begin.

Conclusion:

— In “The Gift of India,” she pays tribute to Indian warriors who gave their lives for the country, writing, “Gathered like pearls in their alien graves/Silent they sleep by the Persian waves.” Naidu has also recognised the contributions of certain notable patriots, such Gopal Krishna Gokhale in her poetry “In Gokhale’s Garden” and Bal Gangadhar Tilak in “Lokmanya Tilak”.

— She was appointed as the first governor of the United Provinces (now Uttar Pradesh) and served till her death on March 2, 1949.

(Source: Sarojini Naidu: A lyrical voice of women’s empowerment and nationalism, Sarojini Naidu: I am only a woman, only a poet)

Points to Ponder

Poems of Sarojini Naidu

Political career of Sarojini Naidu

Related Previous Year Questions

What were the events that led to the Quit India Movement? Point out its results. (2024)

The women’s questions arose in modern India as a part of the 19th century social reform movement. What were the major issues and debates concerning women in that period? (2017)

QUESTION 2: Discuss the significance of Sangam literature in reconstructing the history, society, and culture of ancient Tamil civilisation. How has its rediscovery contributed to Tamil historiography and archaeology?

Introduction:

— Early classical Tamil literature is known as Sangam literature, which means ‘fraternity’ and refers to two schools of poets: aham (subjective love poems) and puram (objective, public poetry, and heroic).

— The Pandyan Kingdom was the first kingdom to be created during the Sangam period.

— The Sangam classics, which include 18 works (eight anthologies of lyrics and ten lengthy poems), are renowned for their directness of language.

— To better understand early Tamil poetry, a Tamil grammar book called Tolkappiyam was written during the period.

— The twin epics, Silappadhikaram (the narrative of the anklet) by Ilango-Adigal and Manimekalai (the story of Manimekalai) by Chattanar, were composed between A.D. 200 and 300 and provide detailed descriptions of Tamil culture at the time.

Body:

— The Sangam poems are classified into two types: akam and puram. While akam poetry focuses on love, puram poems explore subjects like war, death, community, and kingdom.

— Even though the Sangam poetry is profoundly embedded in Tamil consciousness, it was not until the late nineteenth or early twentieth centuries that these texts were’rediscovered’, resulting in their great appeal.

— U V Swaminatha Iyer and C W Damodaran Pillai are credited with’rediscovering’ these works. Iyer, also known as “Tamil Tatha (Tamil grandfather)”, taught Tamil at the Government Arts College in Kumbakonam. Iyer and Pillai collected and documented literature that was largely written on palm leaves. Many of them were on the verge of being destroyed, and several carried incomplete verses.

— Pillai’s preface to the re-printed edition of Kalithogai, the first Sangam poetry published in 1887, provides an evocative depiction of the challenges encountered in authenticating these handwritten manuscripts.

— The leaders of the early Dravidian movement, particularly the Justice Party, used the Sangam texts to assert claims on Tamil identity and Dravidian antiquity, challenging the Congress’ claims to represent the nation.

How has its rediscovery contributed to Tamil historiography and archaeology?

— K A Nilakanta Sastri, a well-known South Indian historian, argues in his book The Colas (1955) that “the main source of information on the early Cholas is the early Tamil literature of the so-called third Sangam.”

— In her 1975 article, historian R Champakalakshmi, known for her work on early and pre-modern South India, examined place names from Sangam writings in relation to habitation sites excavated from that period. Then there was K R Srinivasan, who in 1946 connected Iron Age burials or megaliths to those described in the Sangam anthologies. Historian Rajan Gurukkal made similar efforts to validate material from the texts using proper archaeological findings in the 1980s.

— According to archaeologist Sudeshna Guha, the excavations at Keeladi are “history in the making”. This history, she contends, comprises the South’s contestation with North Indian nationalism over the appropriation of India’s deep past by tracing the possibilities of Vedic and Sanskritic antiquity in India’s sophisticated urban Bronze Age culture. The Keeladi excavations are a clear attempt to demonstrate the actuality of Tamil heritage in India’s first urban communities, she adds.

Conclusion:

— The recent excavations at Keeladi near Madurai, the Tamil Nadu state archaeological department has unearthed evidence that pushes back the history of the Sangam Era.

— Sangam is a collection of works written in old Tamil that is considered to be the earliest literature from South India. The corpus includes eight poetry anthologies, ten idylls, a grammar book, and 18 smaller works. Overall, there are around 2,381 poems by 473 poets and 102 poems by unidentified authors.

(Source: The ‘rediscovery’ of Sangam literature and how it became a source of Tamil history and archaeology by Adrija Roychowdhury)

Points to Ponder

Read about Tolkappiyam, Silappadhikaram and Manimekalai

Read about the contribution of Thiruvalluvar during the Sangam age

Related Previous Year Questions

Though not very useful from the point of view of a connected political history of South India, the Sangam literature portrays the social and economic conditions of its time with remarkable vividness. Comment. (2013)

Estimate the contribution of Pallavas of Kanchi for the development of art and literature of South India. (2024)

Previous Mains Answer Practice

UPSC Essentials: Mains answer practice — GS 3 (Week 90)

UPSC Essentials: Mains answer practice — GS 3 (Week 91)

UPSC Essentials: Mains answer practice — GS 2 (Week 90)

UPSC Essentials: Mains answer practice — GS 2 (Week 91)

UPSC Essentials: Mains answer practice — GS 1 (Week 88)

UPSC Essentials: Mains answer practice — GS 1 (Week 89 and 90)

Subscribe to our UPSC newsletter and stay updated with the news cues from the past week.

Stay updated with the latest UPSC articles by joining our Telegram channel – IndianExpress UPSC Hub, and follow us on Instagram and X.