Social Trends

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Social Trends is an interdisciplinary refereed journal, published annually by the Department of Sociology, North Bengal University. All rights reserved. No part of the articles, excepting brief quotations in scholarly works, can be published/reproduced, without the written permission of the editor.

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2015 - 201912020 - 20251

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Author: search.filters.author.Sharma, Niyati RekhaHas files: Yes

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    Life in an Alien Culture: A Note in Self-Reflection
    (University of North Bengal, 2025) Sharma, Niyati Rekha
    The present paper draws its inspiration from Aristotle’s declaration that man is a social animal who is incapable of living in isolation. It begins with my encounter with a place called Mahishadal, and digs into my personal journey, which led to the process of shaping and developing a sense of a ‘self ’. The paper is presented as a narrative of self-reflective and autobiographical writing, which gives an account of my new journey and shared experiences in a chronological order. It attempts to comprehend and explore everyday life practices through the description of a few incidents, focusing on the challenges and hardships I had to go through to be socially accepted in a different cultural setting. The paper narrates the dialectical phase of my journey, the experience of isolation, alienation, frustration and the moments of conforming partially to fit into the framework of ‘generalised others’. I am to unfold the process of mundane experience of interaction with both the ‘self ’ and socio-cultural environment, which has led to the development of my present identity. The paper explores the constant negotiation of ‘self ’ and social belonging, which offers an insight into the continuous interaction that showcases the individual’s survival in a new cultural milieu.
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    Tracing the roots of missionary education in Darjeeling hills
    (University of North Bengal, 2015-03) Sharma, Niyati Rekha
    This is a brief historical narrative on the Christian missionary education in India, particularly in Darjeeling hills. The article examines whether missionary education was an agent of enlightenment, emancipation or as an instrument of colonial conquest. The history of colonial/missionary education has been examined in the light of Gramscian concept of ‘cultural hegemony’ and Althusser’s concept of ‘ideological state apparatus’, highlighting the strategies of the colonial governance. Darjeeling, a colonial enclave, more like a private domain to the ruling race then, turned out to be a hunting ground for the missionary, who, among other activities, played a lead role in spreading Western education which continued to shape post-colonial education not only in Darjeeling but in the rest of India.