A Review on the Book

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Welcome
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A Review on the Book Freedom at
Midnight Chapter 1 - 10
Dr. Tajkia Haque Roll no. 5028
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Book details
Title Freedom at midnight
Writers Dominique Lapierre and Larry Collins
Publisher Vikash Publishing House Pvt. Ltd, New Delhi, India
Year 1st published in 1975 New Edition - 1997
No. of Chapter 20
Total page 629
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Authors

• Dominique Lapierre (born in 1931), a French
  writer
• Larry Collins (1929 - 2005) an American writer
• Two friends wrote a number of bestselling novels
  on historical background.
• Each wrote in his own language, and it was
  published simultaneously before being translated
  into sixteen other languages.

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Other Publications
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Overview of the book

• The book makes its reader feel like being direct
  witness of the liberation events of Indian
  subcontinent.
• An excellent narrative of the events leading up
  to India's independence.
• Authors do an excellent job of blending the human
  side of things along with the fact they take us
  on a once-in-a-lifetime kind of ride that is
  bound to change our perceptions regarding the
  history.

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Overview of the book

• This is one of the best researched history of the
  people behind India's Independence movement.
• The build up towards independence and its
  aftermath are written in such a style that it all
  appears like dramatic fiction.

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Chapter 1A Race Destined to Govern and Subdue

• Post-war pathetic condition of London is
  expressed by the pale Christmas and New year
  celebration.
• They only had the blue and gold document, the
  British passport which guarantees their entry to
  almost a quarter of the earths surface.

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A Race Destined to Govern and Subdue

• British Prime minister Clement Atlee selected
  Lord Mountbatten as the last viceroy of British
  India.

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Chapter 2Walk Alone, Walk Alone

• The image of Mahatma Gandhi is sketched in
  details.
• Riot between Hindu and Muslim outburst in greater
  India is narrated here.

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Walk Alone, Walk Alone

• Mahatma Gandhi alone continued his effort to keep
  peace in Noakhali with his Sattyagroho Ahingsa.
  

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Chapter 3Leave India to God
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Leave India to God

• The background of commonwealth formation
• Life history of Lord Mountbatten and Mahatma
  Gandhi
• House of Commons voted to end British rule in
  India by June 1948.

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Chapter 4A Last Tattoo for the Dying Raj

• The story of colourful, eventful and meaningful
  tenure of Louis Mountbatten and his glorious
  better half Edwina Mountbatten
• It was the distinct method of dealing with the
  people of this subcontinent which was based on
  psycho-social understanding.

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Chapter 5An Old Man and his Shattered Dream

• Mountbatten had a secret meeting with Nehru,
  Gandhi, Patel and Jinnah
• Jinnah was strict on having Pakistan for Muslim.
• Mountbatten finally agreed to the proposal which
  actually shattered the dream of Gandhis united
  India.

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An Old Man and his Shattered Dream
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Chapter 6A Precious Little Place

• The description of the very British-style
  summertime capital the gorgeous Shimla
• The smart interaction of Nehru with Mountbatten
  couple in defining the future of the subcontinent
  is its content.

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A Precious Little Place

• It was Suhrawardy, who claimed independent Bangla
  for the first time.

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Chapter 7Palaces and Tigers, Elephants and Jewels

• The life of the Maharajas of India.
• Various sorts of interesting, sometimes peculiar
  and even odd lifestyle of the princes are
  portrayed in the chapter.
• Although the positive stories are undermined in
  respect of the pessimistic events.

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Chapter 8A Day Cursed by the Stars

• Mountbatten impulsively decided the date of
  partition (Aug 15, 1947) at a press conference
• But the astrologers, Jyotishis, the most
  powerful occult body in India opposed the day due
  to its odd position according to their
  calculation and assumption.

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Chapter 9The Most Complex Divorce in History

• The Partition process included attempt to
  divide
• all government departments and their contents
• the emotional bondage among its inhabitants .

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Chapter 10We will always remain brothers

• The other facets of the Indian independence
  story like the Kashmir problem and the issue of
  princely states have also been dealt in a very
  detailed manner

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We will always remain brothers

• The crucial maps setting the boundary
  separating India and Pakistan were drawn by
  Cyril Radcliffe.

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Criticism

• Positive Aspects
• The writers had outstanding skill of presenting
  history in a form of an interesting tale.
• Touching review of complexity of human emotions
  of those extraordinary days are expressed with
  mastery.
• This book has an excellent and gripping
  narrative, is exhaustively researched.
• This book gives a 360 degree view of Indian
  freedom and gives a vivid account of 1947 as if
  one were living in that time.
• I liked the poetic name of each chapter.

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• Negative Aspects
• Based on thirty hours of interviews granted by
  Louis Mountbatten to its authors. It is
  essentially a one-man version of how India won
  its independence.
• An exaggerated glorification of Mahatma Gandhi
  and Mountbatten himself while neglects the other
  key players of those times such as Vallabhbhai
  Patel, Maulana Azad and many more.
• Too much space has been given to cover the weird
  life histories of the Maharajas.

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• Due to Mountbatten's personal views, Nehru is
  portrayed in extreme positivity and Jinnah is
  projected in extreme negativity.
• Personal character of Suhrawardy is depicted in a
  pessimistic way which is really objectionable and
  seems to be irrelevant.
• There is detail about Hindu and Muslim religion
  which has some wrong confusing information.
• The authors also do not seem well-versed in
  Indian history before the British confusing
  Muslims and Mughals.

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Other books on the same issue
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Conclusion

• The book is as entertaining as well as
  factual as this. Authors told the story in a
  casual style and managed to capture one of the
  most important years (1947) of world history. It
  describes historical events and portrays the
  personality of the important persons that played
  a role in it, but it also concentrates on the
  common people that lived in that time, on their
  dreams, on their beliefs. A lot of interesting
  details help to visualize what happened during
  the partition of India and Pakistan.

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Thank You
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ANY Questions?

• ?

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Thank you