Teaching with the News
Lesson: Partition and Beyond
This lesson, excerpted from Indian Independence and the Question of Pakistan, provides background for India: Conflicts Within, a project of the Pulitzer Center.
To join the Pulitzer Gateway's India: Conflicts Within, please contact globalgateway@pulitzercenter.org.
Objectives—Students will:
- Explore the 1947 partition of India through literature.
- Analyze the political content of selections from a work of fiction.
- Articulate the values and attitudes of the author.
Note: Teachers may want to use Kashmir Then and Now or review materials on India: Conflicts Within before doing this activity.
Handout
In the Classroom
1. Analyzing Literature
Have students read and answer questions to the selection, “Partition Through Literature: ‘Toba Tek Singh.” How does this story help to illustrate the horrors of partition in the Punjab?
Tell students that literature can be a vehicle for political expression. Call on students to extract the political meaning of the excerpts they read. Ask students what the author’s attitude about partition was. Have them find specific lines from the excerpts to support their argument.
2. Connecting Past and Present
Ask students to consider information they have learned using the reporting on “India: Conflicts Within.” Are there any connections between the excerpts from “Toba Tek Singh” and the reporting? List as many connections as they can. Did reading the excerpts from Toba Tek Singh add to their understanding of the current situation in India? Why or why not?
Have students review the differences between fiction and journalism. Ask students what the similarities are between these two types of writing. Is fiction a useful way for students to understand history? What are the possible pitfalls of reading historical fiction? How can they be avoided? Remind students of the importance that historians place on using multiple sources.
3. Predicting the Future
Review the problems facing India. Which problems are the most pressing? Most serious? Are they likely to improve or worsen over time? What steps may be necessary to solve these problems?
Reflect on the question of partition. Would British India have been better off receiving independence without partition and, therefore, without creating Pakistan?
Return to India: Conflicts Within - Lesson Plans
This lesson is excerpted from Indian Independence and the Question of Pakistan, a one-week unit developed by the Choices Program.
