Text Wars

by Francis Jarman (Editor), Hilda David (Editor)

Discourse is a battlefield, and texts (in the broadest sense) are weapons in such battles. Contemporary India has become a major battleground in these “text wars”: there is no end in sight to the crude tinkering with centuries of intellectual advance currently being indulged in by puritanical revisionists. If they succeed, India will be redefined by having its institutions forced into line with what can best be described as a nationalist agenda. This collection of texts by Indian and non-Indian authors tackles questions of free expression, communication, censorship and social pressure, but also problems of social and media responsibility. It contains essays by writers, journalists and scholars, media specialists and political commentators, and includes accounts by contributors who have themselves been the direct victims of censorship, bullying and intimidation; there are poems, too, and a cartoon comic-strip. Most of the texts are originals that were written for this publication. The book stands out because of the high calibre of the contributors, but also because of the passion of their contributions. This is, after all, a war that must not be lost.
Book scheduled for publication in August 2021.

340 pages, Hardcover

Published August 1, 2021

About the author

Francis Jarman was born in Germany but brought up and educated in England. He is a direct descendant of Charlemagne, Alfred the Great and (possibly) Attila the Hun. He is a novelist, a playwright, a specialist in cultural studies and intercultural communication, and a classical numismatist. On his travels he has met a goddess, danced in public with eunuchs, stroked a lion, sat on a snake, encountered sacred rats, and been attacked by a pig. None of these events have appeared so far in his fiction. He has also witnessed the hold-up of a train by bandits, been detained by an army patrol, and beaten or arrested by the police in three countries. He now lives (more quietly) in Berlin.