Jim Corbett

The present article argues that the representation of the animals in the colonial texts try to reassert and reconfigure the colonial rule on the colonised subjects. Likely, the handling of the non-human animals by the colonials in sporting or non-sporting ways erects an invisible and persistent hegemonic control over the native land. As far as the processing of the big cat animals, particularly a man-eater is concerned; it emerges with convoluting the sound factors of race, gender and supremacy. The shooting of the man-eater animal by a white is purely a forefront which designs an imperial masculinity. Through a critical analysis of Jim Corbett's text Man-Eating Leopard of Rudraprayag, the study aims exclusively at: first, to explore the role of an animal (Leopard): a vital object in contouring masculinity. Secondly, to foreground the animal stance, questioning the human authorised version of a man-eater and the enduring human rule over the non-human animals. The discussion implants the leopard, a subject of explication, as an essential character; liable to his 'natural' proviso.

The present paper attempts to link the animals' colonization with modernity as a form of European 'mind-set' through a short story collection of Jim Corbett, Man Eaters of Kumaon. The focus is laid on the disfigurement of the non-human entities in the colonial anthropocentric advancement; manifested through the hunting practices in colonial India. This study analyzes: first, the hunting practices as a power mechanism of colonials to dominate native subjects: human and non-human, and traces the conflict it creates between human life and wildlife. It also studies the sporting and systematic controlling over the wild animals with the help of technological enrichment. Secondly, it investigates the ambiguous presence of Jim Corbett, primarily a hunter, vacillating between his duties for the British colonial administration and for the native people, as a sahib.

Vestiges of a prehistoric megalithic culture have been reported from Devidhura, near Almora in the Kumaon Himalaya, in 1856, and subsequently. We visited Devidhura in December 2019, to study the reported megalithic remains. We have found that several of the features attributed to a megalithic culture are erroneously identified. Rock art features such as petroglyphs and other carvings, previously attributed to this period, were found to be products of stone-working by the builders of a nearby temple to the goddess Ma Varahi Devi, and associated structures, which date to the 8th or 9th century CE. In this paper we critically examine earlier literature on the megalithic remains at Devidhura in the light of our observations and make a case that there is no evidence to suspect the existence, in the prehistoric past, of a megalithic culture at Devidhura. We call for a similar examination of the other centers of megalithic culture reported from Kumaon and Garhwal.

(Upload of full paper on open access platforms is prevented by copyright considerations. Please contact for a PDF of the full paper, if interested.)

The present article revives the jungle knowledge of a renowned Anglo-Indian hunter cum conservationist; Jim Corbett. The contemporary significance of Corbett's first-hand experiences with the animals lies in providing an insight into the ways of the wildlife; unraveling the multilayered relationships of animals with their environment; including humans. The focus on animal behavior takes this paper to exemplify how the interspecies and intraspecies interactions validate the non-human agency. There is an attempt to bring Corbett's select narratives from the collections-Man-Eaters of Kumaon, The Temple Tiger and More Man-Eaters of Kumaon, and Jungle Lore in dialogue with the ethological studies, that complement and precede the debate of the animal agency. Concerned with the question of the animal, this study evolves a critique of Heidegger's dichotomy between the human and animal that sprouts on the idea of the relative non-agent(ic) functionality of the non-human animals. This study opts for an interdisciplinary approach of ethology and philosophy to execute a textual analysis of Corbett's narratives to analyze the animals as agents.

The present article draws on the ideological "othering" of the colonized subjects in Jim Corbett's story collection My India. The text assimilates the non-fictional stories of the Indian people at a time when Corbett operates as an influential colonial hunter, and as a fuel inspector in the different parts of the colonized India. By and large, the stories advocate the proximity between a colonial master (Corbett) and the colonized people (Indians). However, this paper argues these narratives fall into the space of colonial discourse where the erection and dismantling of the racial overtones are happening simultaneously. As a mode of representation, the repeated articulations: "the poor of India," "Indians are fatalists," and "superstitious" function a differencing category "other." The development of the discussion leads to the ironic reconstruction of caste through its subversion at the imperial hands. Precisely, this study probes into what Homi K. Bhabha says "mode of representation of otherness" i and argues that Corbett's discourse loses to the ideological otherness against his experiential closeness to the Indians.

A visit to Jim Corbett National Park is exciting and full of thrills. There are loads of activities that you can indulge in. It offers a great view of animals, flora and fauna. You are never going to forget the exciting wildlife, flora and fauna at the park. Indulge in Jeep safari and Elephant safari to discover the deep core of the park and if you are an adventure lover then you can do river rafting or bridge slithering. There is no end of excitement at Jim Corbett National Park.