Paper short abstract:

Advice literature in India aimed at morally educating its readers while negotiating 'modern' value systems. My paper examines the colonial setting of the genre and explores how the teachings of these books establish national, educational, and gender-related moral codes.

Paper long abstract:

The first half of the twentieth century saw a rise in Hindi advice books, which were often modeled on best-selling English advice literature. Books on the formation of character, such 'Self-help' by Samuel Smiles, emphasized the importance of individual improvement and emotional control. In order to reach out to the literate Hindi-speaking audience, Indians translated, adapted, and creatively re-wrote these books. They proposed that education and the internalization of behavioral and emotional norms would facilitate a moral transformation of the individual as well as the entire society. In negotiating ethics and etiquette, the books address what it means to be modern, educated, and Indian.

My paper critically discusses the role of advice literature as a pedagogical tool used in adult education. For this, I am briefly introducing the development of the genre in connection with the colonial 'civilizing mission'. I then look at the content of the books, which predominantly address a male audience, but advise on how both men and women should act, think, and feel. Finally, I discuss the connections between normative texts and processes of community building in the context of late colonial India and how advice literature can be used as a historical source.