Colonial Modernity and the Gender Divide: Missionary Influence on Women’s Autonomy in India

Abstract

This study explores the complex role of Christian missionary activity in shaping women's autonomy during the colonial period in India, analyzing how the interplay between colonial modernity and religious intervention both challenged and reinforced existing gender hierarchies. Missionaries, operating within the broader framework of British imperialism, introduced Western ideals of education, morality, and domesticity, particularly targeting women through initiatives such as girls’ schools, zenana missions, and medical outreach. While these efforts provided some Indian women access to literacy, healthcare, and limited social mobility, they were also steeped in a civilizing mission that often devalued indigenous knowledge systems and cultural practices. This paper examines how missionary efforts intersected with colonial governance, legal reforms, and nationalist movements, and how Indian women responded—sometimes adopting, resisting, or reshaping the tools of empowerment offered to them. Ultimately, the article argues that missionary influence on women’s autonomy was neither wholly emancipatory nor entirely oppressive but existed within a spectrum of cultural negotiation, creating hybrid identities that continue to shape postcolonial gender discourse in India.