Fascinating theme on the relationship between English learning, gender and social reform (and nationalism).

This anthology of articles on women and English is a unique collection capturing diverse backgrounds and voices from Indian languages. It studies English not only as a language but also as a medium, culture, politics, movement, lifestyle, writing and social change. Most important aspect of this book is that it focuses on the English debates but as expressed in the Indian languages. Most of the women writers and activists whose writings form the subject of the articles argue that education, especially English education, can be liberating for women not only because it provides employment but also because its politics can emancipate women caught in the patriarchal traditions. However, the articles do not make categorical and biased statement. They attempt to debate how the discourse of English gradually evolved and how writing women engage with identities such as caste, class, gender, religion, region and language in relation to women and English.