Pandita Ramabai’s American Encounter

Ramabai recorded her impressions of the United States in her time there, leading to her American Encounter, which recounts American history and culture to a first-time observer in vivid detail. Notably, Ramabai has an unequivocally positive view of the country and often celebrates American independence, drawing attention to the nation’s status as a former British colony. She seems to suggest that the country could be a model for India. Furthermore, Ramabai highlights what she perceives to be a stronger sense of gender egalitarianism in the United States. She makes note of women’s progress, arguing that the nation had an awakening with regard to sexism and made reforms. Ramabai suggests that even a deeply misogynistic society can make a drastic change, using the United States as evidence and as an example for reform in her home country. Of course, her argument relies on a near-utopian vision of American gender relations; Ramabai may have purposefully exaggerated her “American encounter” in order to make a statement about her anti-imperial and feminist beliefs. American Encounter was originally written in Marathi. Meera Kosambi’s 2003 English translation of the text is on display here.

Lehigh University Catalog Record: https://asa.lib.lehigh.edu/Record/10744304