Theme V
The Civilizing Mission
The broader missionary claim to be agents of civilization — moral character, degenerate civilization, reason vs. superstition, social reforms.
Sub-Themes · 5
Moral Character of Indians
Lying, deceit, sensuality, cowardice — systematic characterological critique applied to Indians as a people.
1 missionary
India as Degenerate Civilization
India as a fallen, degraded, backward civilization compared to Christian Europe — once great, now decayed.
1 missionary
Superstition and Reason
The deployment of "reason" and "science" as fundamentally incompatible with Hindu worldview.
1 missionary
Christianity as the Apex
The positioning of Christianity as the pinnacle of civilizational achievement — the standard against which all others are measured.
2 missionary
Social Reforms
Missionary involvement in social reform — sati, child marriage, widow remarriage — as extensions of the civilizing project.
1 missionary