Colonial and Cross-Cultural Influences of Toru Dutt and poem 'Lakshman'

Toru Dutt (1856–1877) was one of the earliest Indian poets to bridge the cultural and literary worlds of the East and the West. Living during the colonial period, she absorbed European education and was deeply influenced by Romantic and Victorian writers such as Wordsworth, Milton, Browning, and Rossetti, while remaining rooted in Indian traditions and mythology. Her poetry reflects this duality — the elegance of Western literary forms combined with the moral and emotional depth of Indian thought. Writing in both English and French, she used her multilingual skill to reinterpret Indian legends and nature through the lens of European poetic sensibility, making her voice a powerful symbol of cultural hybridity and resistance within colonial discourse.

Her poem “Lakshman” from Ancient Ballads and Legends of Hindustan beautifully illustrates this synthesis. Drawing from the Ramayana, it recounts the emotional dialogue between Sita and Lakshman, exploring themes of love, duty, and misunderstanding. While the subject is purely Indian, Dutt’s use of dramatic monologue and lyrical rhythm reflects Victorian and Romantic influence. Through this fusion, she not only revived Indian mythology for English readers but also asserted the universality of Indian culture. “Lakshman” thus stands as a testament to Dutt’s creative genius and her ability to harmonize two distinct literary traditions — Eastern spirituality and Western form — making her a pioneer of cross-cultural literature in colonial India.

1. Colonial and Cross-Cultural
Influences Of Toru Dutt and
poem "Lakshman"
Presented By - Khushi Raviya
Smt. S.B.Gardi Department of English
Maharaja Krishnakumarsinhji Bhavnagar University

2. Personal Information
●Name : Khushi Raviya
●Enrollment No : 5108240029
●Roll No : 10
●Batch : M.A. Sem- 3 (2024-2026)
●Paper 201: Indian English Literature – Pre-Independence
●Submitted To : Smt. S.B.Gardi Department of English M.K.B.U.
●Date : 03/10/2025

3. Table of Contents
●Research Question & Hypothesis

●Introduction

●Colonial and Cross- Cultural Influences of Toru Dutt

●About the poem “Lakshman”

4. Research Question:
Hypothesis:
How did colonial criticism and cross-cultural literary influences
(Romantic, Victorian, French traditions) shape Toru Dutt’s poetic voice
and her reception in nineteenth-century Europe and India?

Despite colonial-era dismissals of her work as overly sentimental or
irrelevant, Toru Dutt’s synthesis of Indian themes with Western literary
forms (Wordsworth, Milton, Browning, Rossetti, and French
Romanticism) created a unique hybrid voice. This cross-cultural identity
not only challenged colonial literary hierarchies but also positioned her as
a precursor to modern transnational Indian English literature.

5. Introduction
Toru Dutt (1856–1877) was an Indian poet whose work reflects
the blending of colonial and cross-cultural influences. Educated
in India and Europe, she combined Indian classical literature
with the styles of European Romantic and Victorian writers like
Wordsworth, Milton, Browning, and Rossetti. Her poem
“Lakshman” exemplifies this fusion, drawing on Indian
mythology while using themes of duty, honor, and devotion,
showcasing her ability to navigate and merge diverse literary
and cultural traditions.

6. Historical Context
●Colonial India:

“Colonial India” refers to the period when India was under the political, economic, and cultural
domination of the British Empire (roughly mid-18th century to 1947). This era was marked by the
introduction of English education, legal and administrative reforms, and exposure to Western
literature and values. writers such as Toru Dutt, who reinterpreted Indian myths through English
verse, and Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, whose Rajmohan’s Wife (1864) is considered the first
English novel by an Indian, emerged as pioneering voices of Indian literature in English.

●Literary Scene:

In the late 19th century, Indian English literature emerged as a medium of cultural dialogue shaped
by colonial influence and native traditions. Educated Indians began using English both for
adaptation and subtle resistance. Toru Dutt stood out by blending Indian mythology and folklore
with Romantic and Victorian styles, retelling Indian legends in English to introduce them to global
readers and creating a unique literary space that was both Indian and cosmopolitan.

7. Toru Dutt
Toru Dutt (1856–1877), a pioneer of Indian
English poetry, was born in a progressive
Bengali family in Calcutta. Educated in
English and French, she became fluent in
multiple languages, blending Indian traditions
with Western literary styles. Her works,
especially Ancient Ballads and Legends of
Hindustan, reimagine Indian myths through
European poetic forms, making her a key
figure in early Indian English literature.

8. “This daughter of Bengal…Hindu by race and tradition,
an English woman by education, a French woman at
heart, poet in English, prose writer in French; who at
the age of eighteen made India familiar with the poets of
France in the rhyme of England, who blended in herself
three souls and three traditions . . . presents in the history
of literature a phenomenon without parallel.”

– James Darmesteter
(French critic)



(Phillips Natalie)

9. ●Described by James Darmesteter as a blend of multiple identities:

○Hindu by race and tradition, English by education, French at heart, Poet in
English, prose writer in French

●Significance:

○Embodies cross-cultural hybridity blending Indian, English, and French literary
traditions.

○Demonstrates authorial agency in acquiring and retaining her complex
subjectivity.

●Contextual Importance:

○Positioned at the intersection of nationalism, imperialism, gender, and race in
19th-century British India.

Toru Dutt – A Hybrid Cultural Identity
(Phillips Natalie)

10. ❖Mixed Reactions in Europe:

●British journals (Pall Mall Gazette, The Literary Examiner) criticized
her works for sentimentality and “overwrought” style.

●Example: The Pall Mall Gazette dismissed her Ancient Ballads as
uninteresting to Europeans.

❖Colonial Lens of Criticism:

●Revealed Eurocentric bias, undervaluing Indian cultural narratives.

●Reception shows how colonial power influenced the evaluation of
indigenous writers.

Colonial Reception of Toru Dutt
(Jagannathan)

11. ●Shakespeare → Our Casuarina Tree (reflects Shakespearean imagery
and dramatic tone in its personification of the tree).

●Sir Walter Scott → Ancient Ballads of Hindustan (the narrative ballad
form is inspired by Scott’s historical romances).

●Thomas Hardy → “Sita” (retelling Indian myth with emotional
realism, akin to Hardy’s focus on human struggles).

●George Eliot → A Sheaf Gleaned in French Fields (introspective,
moral reflection on nature and human life, similar to Eliot’s
contemplative style).

European Literary Exposure

12. ●Milton (Paradise Lost) → Our Casuarina Tree (the poem
shows Miltonic diction and grandeur in its reverence
for nature).

●Wordsworth → “Baugmaree” (lyric meditation on the
natural world, capturing sublime harmony and personal
memory, akin to Wordsworth’s reflective style).

Romantic Influence: Wordsworth & Milton

13. ●Elizabeth Barrett Browning → “Savitri” (introspective
and moralized treatment of mythological narrative,
echoing Browning’s spiritual and emotional depth).

●Christina Rossetti → “A Sheaf Gleaned in French
Fields” (concise, lyrical, emotionally contemplative
poems blending personal feeling with universal themes,
reminiscent of Rossetti).

Victorian Lyric Influence: Browning & Rossetti

14. About the Poem “Lakshman”
❖Part of Ancient Ballads and Legends
of Hindustan (1882) by Toru Dutt

❖Characters:

●Lakshman – represents duty
(dharma)

●Sita – represents emotion and
personal desire

❖Central conflict: Duty vs. emotional
plea



❖Plot Summary:

●Sita becomes anxious over Rama’s safety in the
forest

●She urges Lakshman to act according to her
fears

●Lakshman emphasizes his duty to protect Sita
and uphold dharma

●Conflict presented through dialogue and internal
reflection

❖Resolution: Duty upheld with compassion
(Ram Atma & Gupta Subhas)

15. ❖Character Analysis: Lakshman:

●Embodies dharma, rationality, and loyalty.

●Tension between moral duty and personal desire.

●Lakshman’s inner struggle highlights universal ethical dilemmas.

●Example: “He must go, though Sita’s tears beseech him stay.”

❖Character Analysis: Sita:

●Embodies emotional intelligence, empathy, and relational bonds.

●Appeals to Lakshman through plea, lamentation, and persuasion.

●Highlights conflict between love and duty.

●Provides feminine perspective on moral dilemmas.
(Ram Atma & Gupta Subhas)

16. Toru Dutt remains one of the earliest and most significant
figures in Indian English literature. Her writings reflect the
deep cross-cultural exchanges of her time drawing from
Indian mythology while embracing the influence of European
Romantic and Victorian poets. In “Lakshman”, she
reinterprets an Indian epic episode. Her legacy lies in proving
that literature can transcend borders, cultures, and
languages, making her voice timeless in both Indian and
world literary history.

Conclusion

17. References


●Dutt, Toru. Ancient Ballads and Legends of Hindustan. LONDON KEGAN PAUL, TRENCH &
CO., https://www.gutenberg.org/files/23245/23245-h/23245-h.htm. Accessed 02 October 2025.

●Dwivedi, A. N. “Toru Dutt and Her Poetry.” World Literature Written in English, 18 July 2008,
pp. 278-290. Taylor and Francis, https://doi.org/10.1080/17449857508588347. Accessed 02
October 2025.

●Gibson, Mary Ellis. Anglophone Poetry in Colonial India, 1780-1913. Ohio University Press,
2011.

●Jagannathan, Meera. “The Enigma of Toru Dutt.” Dalhousie French Studies, vol. 94, 2011, pp.
13–25. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/41705580. Accessed 2 Oct. 2025.

18. ●Maiti Aisik. “Toru Dutt’s Writing and Nineteenth-Century Cross-Cultural Dialogue.” Journal of
Victorian Culture, no. 29.4, 25 March 2021, https://jvc.oup.com/2021/03/25/toru-dutts-writing/.
Accessed o2 October 2025.

●Phillips Natalie. “Strategic Singularity in the Poetry of Toru Dutt.” Nineteenth-Century Gender
Studies, vol. Issue 3.3, https://www.ncgsjournal.com/issue33/phillips.html. Accessed 02 October
2025.

●Ram Atma & Gupta Subhas. ““Lakshmana” and Sita Episode Version of Toru Dutt And Some
Developments Till date.” Triveni Journal, 17 March 2022,
https://www.wisdomlib.org/history/compilation/triveni-journal/d/doc71807.html. Accessed 02
October 2025.

19. Thank You