{"product_id":"blowback-9780804749237","title":"Blowback","description":"\u003cb\u003eBook Synopsis\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn the mid-1950s, Sri Lanka's majority Sinhalese politicians began outbidding one another on who could provide the greatest advantages for their community, using the Sinhala language as their instrument. The appeal to Sinhalese linguistic nationalism precipitated a situation in which the movement to replace English as the country's official language with Sinhala and Tamil (the language of Sri Lanka's principal minority) was abandoned and Sinhala alone became the official language in 1956. The Tamils' subsequent protests led to anti-Tamil riots and institutional decay, which meant that supposedly representative agencies of government catered to Sinhalese preferences and blatantly disregarded minority interests. This in turn led to the Tamils' mobilizing, first politically then militarily, and by the mid-1970s Tamil youth were bent on creating a separate state.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eTrade Review\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"DeVotta has submitted an elaborate, interesting, theory-led study of the Sri Lankan conflict. Focusing on the language politics, he allude to a highly sensitive topic in the history of Tamil-Sinhalese ethnic relations. In addition, the extensive quotations enable the reader to comprehend the political view of the Sinhala and Tamil elites at that time.\" -- \u003ci\u003eInternationales Asienforum\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"DeVotta's detailed historical approach makes the book a fine case study for social scientists in general and for anyone with a serious interest in ethnic conflict in South Asia.\" -- \u003ci\u003eJournal of Asian Studies\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"The resounding strength of DeVotta's book is that it provides a truly nuanced understanding of the productive ideological linking of language to collective notions of peoplehood within the postcolonial state. His book richly illustrates the ways that language ideologies are created, linked to competing versions of national identity, and intimately embedded in institutionalized positions of power.\" -- \u003ci\u003eJournal of Anthropological Research\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Neil DeVotta's devastating indictment of Sinhala linguistic nationalism offers a well-researched historical narrative and theoretical discussion of the origins of the conflict.\" -- \u003ci\u003eANTHROPOLOGICAL LINGUISTICS\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eTable of Contents\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eContents  Preface\txiii  Acknowledgments\txvii  Abbreviations\txix  1.\tAn Overview\t1  2.\tEthnic Identities and Politics Before   Independence\t21  3.\tFrom Linguistic Parity to Sinhala-Only\t42  4.\tThe Official Language Act of 1956\t73  5. \tInstitutional Decay: The Consequences of   the Official Language Act, 1956-77\t92  6.\tFrom Linguistic Nationalism to Civil War\t143  7.\tThe Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam and   Ethnic Conflict\t167  8.\tConclusion\t191  Appendixes  A.\tThe Official Language Act, No. 33 of 1956\t207  B. \tResolutions Passed at the Fifth (Special) National Convention of the Federal Party (1957)\t208  C. \tThe \"Bandaranaike-Chelvanayakam Pact\"   (1957)\t209  D. The Tamil Language (Special Provisions) Act,   No. 28 of 1958\t211  E. \tThe Agreement Between Dudley Senanayake   and S. J. V. Chelvanayakam (1965)\t212  F. \tThe Tamil Language (Special Provisions)   Regulations (1966)\t213  G.\tThe Vaddukkoddai Resolution (1976)\t213  H.\tThe LTTE Proposal for an Interim Self-  Governing Authority for the Northeast (2003)\t217  Notes\t000  References\t000  Index\t000        Library of Congress Subject Headings for this publication: Sri Lanka Politics and governmet 1978-Sri Lanka Ethnic relations Political aspects, Ethnic conflict Sri Lanka, Tamil (Indic people) Sri Lanka Politics and government, Nationalism Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka Languages Political aspects","brand":"Stanford University Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49405557375319,"sku":"9780804749237","price":98.6,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0817\/1739\/5799\/files\/9780804749237.jpg?v=1730492824","url":"https:\/\/bookcurl.com\/products\/blowback-9780804749237","provider":"Book Curl","version":"1.0","type":"link"}