History · Historical Method and Historiography
UGC NET December 2021 History (Shift-I)
Passage
Shall we ostrich-like bury our head and ignore this original contemporary material in the Marathi language and base our conclusions on the writings of distant British and Dutch merchants whose trade was thrown into confusion by Shivaji's revolt for the liberation of his homeland, or on the Muslim chronicles which breathe antipathy to the Hindu rebels in every sentence? Vincent Smith and his followers have given a warped view of Maratha administration as it obtained in the homeland. The time has come to challenge the Vincent Smith School postulates and cultivate a correct perspective.
Of the following, who observed with a bias that 'the Marathas failed to rise above the level of plunderers'?
ALee Warner
BKenneth Jones
CEric Stokes
DVincent Smith and Percival Spear ✓ Correct
Correct answer: (D) Vincent Smith and Percival Spear — It was observed by Vincent Smith and Percival Spear, so that is the answer.
Explanation
★It was observed by Vincent Smith and Percival Spear, so that is the answer.
★Vincent Smith and Percival Spear observed with a bias that the Marathas failed to rise above the level of plunderers.
★This is the imperialist view that the passage seeks to challenge.
★The author argues that such views ignore the indigenous Marathi evidence.
★He calls for a more balanced study of Maratha administration.
★So the biased observation was made by Vincent Smith and Percival Spear.
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