Gandhi

“A brilliant and fascinating essay on Gandhi which casts him as 'one of the most conspicuous modernizers in Indian politics.'” —Journal of Politics

In this in-depth analysis, political science professors Susanne Hoeber Rudolph and Lloyd I. Rudolph reveal that Gandhi's charisma was deeply rooted in the aspects of Indian tradition that he interpreted for his time. The key to his political influence was his ability to realize in both his daily life and his public actions, cultural ideals that many Indians honored but could not enact themselves—ideals such as the traditional Hindu belief that a person's capacity for self-control enhances his capacity to control his environment. Appealing to shared expectations and recognitions, Gandhi was able to revitalize tradition while simultaneously breaking with some of its entrenched values, practices, and interests. One result was a self-critical, ethical, and inclusive nationalist movement that eventually led to independence.

“One of the most important . . . expositions yet of the relationship between the development of [Gandhi] and his impact on India's political modernization.” —American Anthropologist