After reading the articles by Durba Ghosh and Jennifer S. Mulligan, it has become clear that nationalism is often connected to archives while being central to the creation of a nation. Archives are used to reflect on knowledge that has been gathered throughout history. They also contain articles and artifacts written and collected by many different people with possibly conflicting viewpoints. Archives have become a way for scholars, authors, researchers to identify what is important to a nation on topics such as politics, culture, and society. These two authors make it clear that archives are an extremely important factor in promoting nationalism and the creation of a strong nation.

In Durba Ghosh’s article “National Narratives and the politics of Miscegenation: Britain and India”, the author goes on a search to the archives of Calcutta and New Delhi for information on Hindu women who had sexual relations with European men during the years 1760-1840. Unlike in the archives in Britain, there was a lack of information on the subject and it became clear that India and its nationalistic ideals had stepped in to erase this important part of the nation’s past. A connection between nationalism and the archives was made clear because India and its archives emphasize that Hindu women have been seen as pure and clean throughout history. The archives change the way that India is seen and understood by civilians and authors such as Ghosh. After reading Ghosh’s article, it became clear that archives can threaten the respectability and pure reputation of a nation. This explains why many have fought to guarantee that that respectability and reputation of a nation will never be tarnished even if it means that a part of its history must be omitted.

“What is an Archive”, written by Jennifer S. Mulligan, explains that archives contain foundational narratives, which can vary and cause central tensions within a state. The author focuses on discussing the relationship between a state and a society and how an archive can connect the two, while promoting national memory and identity if done correctly. Mulligan uses the Archives nationales of France as an example of how the archives can hold a large amount of power and authority. This article makes it clear that throughout history, the relationship between a state and its archive has been held closely.

Although Dickinson College is the first college that was founded in the United States after the signing of the Treaty of Paris in 1783, I do not feel that the archives here at Dickinson could also be connected to the building of a nation. I feel that all archives connected to the building of a nation should have a connection to a large number of people while having an extensive amount of articles and artifacts. If Dickinson had more of an international history and a larger connection to other signers of the Declaration of Independence, I could see the college archives being connected to the building of a nation. It is necessary to understand that the archives at Dickinson College are extremely important to the students on campus and to students on the campuses of other colleges and universities across the nation.