3 Review(s)

A Various Universe explores the rich literature of travel which accompanied the commercial and political expansion of the British people in the second half of the eighteenth and the first half of the nineteenth centuries. The panorama of the subcontinent unfolding under the scrutiny of intelligent observers, the wealth of information on every aspect of Indian life, the memorable East—West cultural encounter, the extraordinary nature of many of the adventures and confrontations recorded: all provide exciting material, both educative and thought-provoking. The new preface to this edition encourages us to re-think some of the much-debated issues of recent intellectual discourses on cultural encounters between the West and non-West.