From Influences to Friendships and Intellectual Concerns, Amartya Sen s Memoir Is Rich in Detail
In the Home in the World , the clarity of Senâs thought and the lucidity of his prose are delightful and entertaining.
Amartya Sen. Photo: FPA S.r.l/Flickr CC BY NC 2.0
It is entirely apposite that the title of Amartya Senâs memoir
Home in the World echoes the title of one of Rabindranath Tagoreâs more famous novels,
The Home and the World (
Ghare Baire). Not only was the name Amartya given by Rabindranath, but Senâs life was closely associated with Santiniketan from his earliest days. Sen was born in Santiniketan, in his motherâs parental home, but much of his childhood was spent in Dhaka and in Mandalay (where his father was a professor of chemistry). His earliest memories go back to his journey to what was then called Burma and his days there. He visited Santiniketan when he was a child but began to go to school there when he was about eight years old.