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This book itemize the familial, cultural, religious, and historical themes in a unique life story. The book is distinctive in that it continues the life story as a sociological genre, and as a methodological construct [it] attempts the comprehensive life story which engages the totality of a person’s life by capturing the essence and the development of a peerless human being. Though there are questions whether it is possible to arrange the totality of a life, an important part of the legacy at the moment comes in various forms, including biographies, video diaries, autobiographies, home web pages, and journals, but I realize all life stories are constructed and partial, yet, the attempt here is to tell a story of a member of the ruling elite rarely told. This book is part of a series about cosmopolitan life and no better way to serve that purpose than to use the life story as part of that tradition.
The Vanishing Indian Upper Class: The Life History of Raza Mohammed Khan: This masterful work brings together a leading American sociologist and an Indian elite. The result is a powerful narrative and thoughtful reflections on modern India with gripping insights on gender, family, the ruling class, religion, the caste system, poverty, greed and power. Its life history approach makes The Vanishing Indian Upper Class an exemplary read, weaving together the everyday tapestry of a Muslim aristocrat, his household, which then merge into the very structural fabric of India herself, a modern democracy built upon the sheaf of a vibrant civilization. Terry Williams is one of the leading ethnographers of our time and his ability to narrate the depth of the human condition gives us a work that is searing, elucidating, and sobering. Raza Mohammed Khan, a prominent member of the upper-class in India, affords us the right of passage to make this possible. In the end, readers come away with a journey well worth the trip. — Zain Abdullah, author of Black Mecca: The African Muslims of Harlem and associate professor of Religion and Society and Islamic Studies, Temple University.
Part One; Chapter 1 Introduction; Chapter 2 The Family Tapestry; Chapter 3 Amadabad’s Zenith: The Life and Times of Nawab Ali Mohammad; Chapter 4 Nawab Dawood Ahmad; Chapter 5 Raza’s Early Childhood; Chapter 6 Raza’s Later Childhood and Adolescence; Chapter 7 Beginning of an Exile: Boarding School; Chapter 8 The Wedding of Zainab and Hurr; Chapter 9 Abid Arrives to Join Raza; Chapter 10 The School Rebel; Chapter 11 Crammers; Chapter 12 Secret Love; Chapter 13 Journey Home; Chapter 14 Return to London and Shireen; Chapter 15 Farewell to Shireen; Chapter 16 Down but Not Out; Chapter 17 The Garret; Part Two Ithaka; Chapter 18 An Indian Odyssey; Chapter 19 Nawab Dawood Ahmad in Pakistan; Chapter 20 Bombay Itinerary; Chapter 21 The Return; Chapter 22 Raza’s Second Aldermaston March; Chapter 23 Tess and Raza; Part Three; Chapter 24 The Decline; Chapter 25 Ibn Dawood’s Claim; Chapter 26 Ibn Dawood’s Victory; Chapter 27 Raza and Maysam; Chapter 28 The Ugly Portraits of Ibn Dawood and Begum; Chapter 29 The Sad and Tragic Deaths of Hurr Bhai and Zainab Baji; Chapter 30 Raza Visits His Ailing Sister; Chapter 31 Tragic Ends; Epilogue; Acknowledgments; Bibliography; Index.