Home in the World

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Where is 'home'? For Amartya Sen, home has been many places: Dhaka in modern Bangladesh, where he grew up; Santiniketan, where he was raised by his grandparents; Calcutta, where he studied economics and engaged in student movements; and Trinity College, Cambridge, which he joined at nineteen. Sen vividly recreates the atmosphere of each location. Central to his development was the intellectually stimulating school in Santiniketan founded by Rabindranath Tagore, who gave him his name Amartya, and the lively discussions in the Coffee House on College Street in Calcutta. At Cambridge, he interacted with prominent intellectuals of the time. This narrative intertwines ideas—especially those of Marx, Keynes, and Arrow—with personal experiences and places. In a memorable chapter, Sen reflects on 'the rivers of Bengal' that he traveled with his parents between Dhaka and their ancestral villages. The rich culture of Bengal is explored alongside the political tensions of Hindu-Muslim relations and the resistance to them. Sen also recounts the devastating Bengal famine of 1943 and the imprisonment of some family members for opposing British rule, highlighting the complex relationship between Britain and India. Forty-five years after arriving at Trinity, he became its Master.