1600 Foundation of the East India Company
The East India Company is a trade company which main trade was cotton, silk, tea and also opium.

18th Century

1757 Battle of Plassey

Victory over the Nawab of Bengal by the East India Company

19th Century

1829 Prohibition of Sati
Sati was a special funeral practice of the Hinduism.
If a husband die the woman will have to immolate herself.

1857 First Indian War of Independence
An attempt to unite India against the invading British.
It also marked the end of the Mogul empire and sealed India as a British colony for the next 100 years.

1885 Indian National Congress
The Indian National Congress was formed because of the Indian National Union which was founded to create a harmony between the English and Indian people.

20th Century

1912 The rise of Mahatma Gandhi
Mahatma Gandhi was the helm of the Indian Nation Congress.
Gandhi was strictly against violence and is known for his non-violent means of fighting. He wanted India to be independent.

1937/1939 Bose
Bose was the president of the Indian National Congress and is known for his struggle for independence. He was a very popular leader. He found the Indian National Army. In India he seems like a legend.

1947 Partition of India
The most dramatic political effect of India. The partition devided the Hindus and Muslims who had lived together for hundred of years. It led to boundary fights and wars.

1947 Independence of India

India finally managed to be independent from the British.

Questions:
- Is Miss Tietz the owner of S.M.?
- What’s wrong with A. hotel?
- Why do so many poor Europeans live in India?
- Is hijra an affront?
Character and their relations:
Olivia:
- was the first wife of Douglas but ran away with the Nawab
- relation to the Nawab (a muslim nobleman or governor in India)
- has a sister, Marcia
- avoided the look of poor circumstances -> she decorated the room
- is demurely
- didn’t agree with the opinion that the first year in India is difficult
- thinks its perfect there
-
Beth Crawford:
- was in Simla, Bombay
- has a sister, Tessie
- Great-aunt
- Didn’t want to speak about Olivia til she was old

Tessie Crawford:
- has a sister, Beth
- likes Douglas
- likes sportif activities
- Grandmother
- Didn’t want to speak about Olivia til she was old

Douglas:
- likes Tessie C.
- was once married but got divorced
- likes sportif activities
- works very hard in India
- calm and selfcontrolled person
- died when is grandchild was three

Harry:
- Knows Tessie and Beth
- had been in contact with them by means of Xmas cards

Marcia:
- sister of Olvia
- drunk herself to death
- were in contact with Olivia via letters

Neighbour of the dormitory:
- believes in god
- is pale
- had been in India for more than 30 years

Inder Lal:
- lives together with his wife and mother and three children
- lives in bad circumstances (poky, crammed and untidy rooms)
- a polite Indian
-
Actions:
/

Events:
/

Places:
- Simla, a city near the edge of Himalaya
- Bombay,
- Satipur
- Society of Mossionaries hostel
- Kafarabad, a growing town of the textile mills
- A. hotel, a hotel where you shouldn’t stay
- Khatm, the Nawab’s place

Useful wordlist:
induce sb – another word for persuade sb

… to be continued …

I’m discussing the painting „Twilight” of Ralph Albert Blakelock (1847 – 1919).The size is 20 x 30” (50.80 x 76.20cm) and it’s painted in oil on canvas.It portrays a landscape of early morning or evening. The fact about the day time is actually just guessed because of the colours of the sky. The sky is a mix of brown, orange and yellow and the more the sky is in the middle of the painting the colours get brighter. In the lower front there is a lake which reflects the colours of the sky and around it there are some plants. In the background on the right side there is a large tree which is painted in brighter colours and the plants in front of it are also brighter than the plants on the left side. They are painted in dark colours and the tree row at the horizon is nearly black. This painting expresses a calm situation and it seems harmonious because there is actually no abnormal or exciting thing in it. It seems really realistic.

The American government and the citizens – well of course the rest of the world, too – would have never expected something like that to happen: an unimaginable terror attack. It’s not just that but it also make the people realize that there isn’t anybody in the world who is definitely save. People nowadays live always in fear because something like that might happen again. Those pictures are still burned in our memories and can’t be erased. The safety control at airports is improved and also public places are watched. But it’s not sure if the Al Quaida can be stopped if they ever try to destroy something again.

In my opinion there rised a hatred deep inside each Americans against the Iraq because there weren’t any Americans who were against the Iraq War. I think this incident even harmed their proud because they don’t really had the chance to fight back simply because there wasn’t an enemy country.

My last post is not the result of that group work but my homework, thanks!

Music video: Madonna – American Life

I chosed the song “American Life” which was sung by Madonna in 2003. The song deals with the American society and portrays negative aspects of the American Dream. The music video shows a fashion show and in the background you can see how bombs shoot in the air and their blastings. In the end of the video the stage turns into a bloody mess and the audience is still impressed by it.

In the first part of the lyric Madonna portrays some prerequisites for the American Dream. She sings losing your weight and changing your name will get you far. It’s easier for you to fulfil it when you have a perfect body. To fulfil the American Dream you can’t be yourself and you must change. You have to be the best. You don’t really have friends because you aren’t yourself and you always have to take care of your position. You mustn’t make a mistake because it can damage your standing.

Quote: “I tried to find a friend” – and she knows it’s not that easy to find one when you have to take care all the time.

If you accept a life with those prerequisites it’s easier for you to reach the American Dream.

Madonna sings that at the beginning she did it for herself because she dreamd of being someone. But afterwards she didn’t realize why she wanted more, she just did it. It’s obviously that she did it for others because she wanted to prove that her standing isn’t just for a while but for a long time.

In the second half of the lyric Madonna sings about her private life. She possesses all what a human could imagine but still isn’t satisfied.

Quote: “And I just realized that nothing is what it seems”

Would someone appraise the American Dream after hearing this song it would be definitely a negative opinion because this song portrays it as something not worth trying. You may reach your dream and earn a lot of money but happiness is still unpayable.