The History Department is proud to announce that in 2015-16, Dr. Durba Mitra will be the Andrew W. Mellon Postdoctoral fellow at the Penn Humanities Forum and the University of Pennsylvania. The theme for the 2015-16 Penn Humanities Forum is “Sex.” Mitra will be working on her book manuscript, tentatively entitled “Sex and The New Science of Society in Colonial Eastern India.” In her book, she explores the significance of female sexuality to the making of social thought in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries in eastern India. The book explores how colonial authorities and Bengali intellectuals invoked claims to “scientificity” about female sex in the constitution of new legal codes, modes of evidence, and social theories about Indian society. You can read more about her research plans here. Congratulations on this exciting fellowship, Dr. Mitra!
Tag Archives: South Asian History
Durba Mitra wins Mellon Postdoctoral Fellowship at Penn Humanities Forum, 2015-6
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In New Article, Durba Mitra Explores Medical Jurisprudence and Rape Adjudication in India
We undertook a comprehensive study of the role of forensic medicine in the legal adjudication of rape cases in postcolonial India. We studied all publications on medical jurisprudence for India from the late nineteenth century until today in South Asia and analyzed the use of medical jurisprudence in rape cases reported in the high courts in India from 1952 until 2011. Rape has received significant attention in the last two years in international media, leading to the substantial reform of rape laws in India. We argue that for legal reforms to be effective, changes must be made to textbooks, medical protocol, and the use of medical evidence in rape cases. Our research resulted in the publication of our article, “Testing Chastity, Evidencing Rape:” in Economic and Political Weekly, a key peer-reviewed publication on India that brings together academics, researchers, and policy makers.
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First Science, Technology, Environment, and Medicine Seminar to Focus on Race and Science in India
This semester, the History Department at Fordham University will be holding a seminar series on the topic of Science, Technology, Environment, and Medicine. The seminar highlights exciting new areas of research and brings together Fordham faculty with strengths in these fields with outside speakers and commentators. Our first meeting will on at 4:30PM on February 14 in room 1019 of the Lowenstein building on the Lincoln Center Campus. Our discussion will focus on the work of Dr. Projit Mukharji of the University of Pennsylvania, whose paper (abstract and paper below) is entitled “Race by Another Name: Vernacular Race Science, Caste and the Making of Serosocial Identities in India, c. 1918-60”. Continue reading
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