000 01688nam a2200181 4500
020 _a9780231701648
082 _a954.052092
_bSAR/D
100 _aSarmila Bose
245 _aDead reckoning : memories of the 1971 Bangladesh War
260 _aNew York
_bColumbia university press
_c2011
300 _a239 p.
520 _aThe 1971 Bangladesh war mired Pakistan in a brutal struggle within its own borders and against neighboring India. Backed by the Soviet Union and the United States, the players in the conflict fought over the territories of East Pakistan, which then seceded to become Bangladesh. Through a detailed investigation of representative events on the ground, this remarkable history contextualizes the war while vividly theorizing on the nature of the conflict. As with most wars, the narrative of 1971 has largely been written by the victors. Partisan mythologies imprison the remaining actors. This book sets out to rectify this bias, reconstructing events through extensive interviews conducted over a period of four years in Bangladesh and Pakistan. It features published and unpublished recollections, sampling from official documents, tapes, photographs, video documentaries, and reports issued by the foreign media. Many interviewees speak about their experiences for the first time, introducing new, critical perspective strands into an otherwise poorly represented history. Their "contesting" memories diverge from dominant narratives in crucial ways, showing how the war's reverberations continue to play out within the region.
650 _aBangladesh
650 _aWar and society
650 _awar victims
650 _aCollective memory
942 _cBK
999 _c61925
_d61925