by Michael Roberts has just appeared in print under the masthead of Marga Publications and bearing the ISBN code 978-955-582-129-2, selling at Rs. 800 over the counter at Marga 941/1 Jayanthi Mawatha, Kotte Road, Ethul Kotte, Sri Lanka (tel. 94-11- 2888 8790). It will be available at the bookshops from Thursday 14th July. Credit Card orders are accepted by Vijitha Yapa Bookshops via www.vijithayapa.com OR www.srilankanbooks.com.
Mohottivatte Gunananda mural at Kotahena Temple, courtesy of Richard Young
Potency is a booklet of 128 pages inclusive of 78 pages of photographs, several of which contain descriptive notes that embellish the analysis in the main text. This venture is a spin-off from the endeavours that produced People Inbetween (Ratmalana, Sarvodaya, 1989) and Images of British Ceylon (Singapore, Times Editions, 2000), the former being
mostly the handiwork of Michael Roberts and the latter a work c0mposed by Ismeth Raheem. While the photographic emphasis follows the modalities of Images of British Ceylon, financial constraints did not permit the coffee-table finish secured in that product. Unlike images however, the temporal scope embraced by Potency spans the nineteenth, twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. There is, therefore, a contemporary ‘bite’ furnished by such images as a virulent Tamil protest in Toronto and a LTTE-sponsored demonstration at a cricket match, besides images of the LTTE platform at the sudumalai Amman Temple grounds on 4th August 1987 and other political gatherings courtesy of Victor Ivan’s amazing collection and my own findings at Lake House.
There are a few photographs that are quite rare, among them that (55) depicting Boer POWS at worship in the open at Diyatalawa, No. 77 showing a segment of the crowd watching the Australians playing their whistle-stop match in Colombo in 1938 and No. 48 snapping the local crowd at a function for a government dignitary in the 1930s.
This display of photographs would not have been possible without the cooperation of Palinda de Silva who allowed me to raid his web-site stock at http://imagesofceylon.com and the generous assistance of Ismeth Raheem. I also thank Rohan de Soysa, Victor Ivan, Kumari Jayawardena, Hugh Karunanayake, Dushi Kanagasabapathypillai, Dennis McGilvray, Mano Ponniah and Irvin Weerackody for assistance in securing specific photographs. ……….Michael Roberts, 13 July 2011.
CONTENTS
Preamble: Accumulating Knowledge, Photographs and Power 1-5
Political Context 6-16
Things Archaic 17-18
Potency & Powers from Beyond 19-22
People in Groups 23-94
Buddhist Revitalisation and Sinhalese Nativism 95-100
Towards the Present: From Politics to Paradoxes in the Cricket Arena 101-110
Endnotes 111-120
Bibliography 121-126
LIST OF PHOTOGRAPHS
1. “Native types” as a collage
2a. A “MadrasMerchant”
2b. A cocky Moorman
3. Hippolyte Sylvaf ’s paintings of colourful dress styles
3a. A headman
3b.ColomboChetty
3c. A Sinhala lady
4. A raffish British hunting party
5. Hunting trophies
6. Governor Gordon with Kandyan chiefs
7. Kotahena disturbance, 25 March 1883
8. August members of the Orient Club, circa 1907
9.ColomboMunicipal Councillors, circa 1907
10. Temperance agitation: mass gathering
11. Bracegirdle affair: Bracegirdle with LSSP leaders at Horana, 1937
12. Hartal in 1953: NM Perera announces decision to have an
island-wide hartal in protest against the budget proposals,Galle
Face Green
13. Bandaranaike & masses for Sinhala Only, 1956
14. FR Jayasuriya fasts unto death for Sinhala Only, May 1956
16.Colombofort and moat in the 1860s – eastern face
17.Jaffnafort and moat
18.GalleFort, 1890s
19. Galle Fort rooftop scene, 1890s
20. The western seaside of Galle Fort
21. Galle Fort entrance today
22. Jetavanarāmaya in 19th century ruin
23. “Festival day crowds”
24. Äsela Day Perahära
25. A Hindu festival,EasternProvince
26. Kappalodiya Pillaiyār Festival, Valvettithurai
27. Ammån water-cutting festival Trincomalee, 2003
28. Rolling on the ground during chariot festival of the Sri
MayurapathyPaththirakaali Temple, 26 July 2009
29. JVP rally at ColomboTown Hall, 1977
30. LTTE rally at SudumalaiAmmånTemplehears Velupillai
Pirapāharan speak, 4 August 1987
31. LTTE ‘directorate’ at Sudumalai platform, 4 August 1987
32. Colvin R. de Silva stirs the crowd
33. “A group ofCeylonplanters, 1868”
34a. British planter and estate workers
34b. Coffee plucker
35. Workers drying coffee
36. “Native coopers”
37.Harbourworkers
38. Graphite sorting yards and cinnamon stores
39. Tea plantation labourers
40. Tea estate workers
41. Houseboat, Ratnapura
42. Lewella ferry
43. A Government Agent and his kachchery officials
44. A classroom and its teacher
45. Teachers at theCeylonGovernmentTechnicalCollege
46. A body of Christian priests
71. Local crowd watches Aussie cricketers play inColombo,
30 March 1938
72. Sri Lankan cricket team at prayer before World Cup final,
17 March 1996
73. Sri Lankan supporters atLahoretarget Darrell Hair
74. Sports nationalism: Sri Lankan supporters at World Cup,
West Indies, 2007
75. Tamil protest group, Manuka Oval,Canberra, 12 February 2008
76. Tamil demonstrators target Ajantha Mendis, October 2008
77. Tamil demonstration and symbolic battle around cricket,
October 2008
78. Virulent Tamil demonstration inToronto, mid 2009
can’t find the pictures
One has to buy the book to FIND [and see and absorb] the pictures! The book is not all that expensive
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