Gopal Govind Gokhale had a great influence on early twentieth century Indian politics.  He learned what it meant to sacrifice one's own ambition and dreams to help another from his family.  He devoted his entire life to help achieve his vision of an India that would have a western style government under the British government.  Gokhale did not expect to succeed in his goals, however he managed to make great strides in education and mobilizing the Indian people to fight for their desires.  Gokhale could have easily used his intellect to gain great wealth,  but instead of building bridges he helped build a great nation.

 

     Although Gokhale's ancestors had considerable prestige and power, his immediate family was poor.  His father Krishnarao was very ambitious and tried to bring back his family name, but poverty forced him to take a low paying job.  His chief goal in life was to give his sons an English education, so that they could have what he did not.  Krishnarao’s death forced Gokhale’s brother Govind to become the head of the family.  Like his father, he sacrificed his future for his brother Gopal.  Gopal finished school and like the rest of his family he selflessly dedicated his life to India.

 

     Gokhale believed that British rule could be more beneficial to  Indians if it was changed.  He felt he could work within the constitution to improve the lives of the Indian people.  Gokhale did not like militant methods because the change that they brought would be short lived. Once he said that he would not disassemble the current British government if he could, because India needed a stable government.  If the Indians took over a country that they were not ready to rule, the result would be tragic.  Had this happened, India would probably have been reduced to many states that would fight amongst themselves.  Gokhale felt that the Indians of his period would have to be content with failure.  They would learn to rule by learning from their mistakes.  This is why he believed the next generation would bring change to India; They would know how to effectively rule a country like India.

 

     Gokhale learned how to be a politician from his guru Ranade.  Ranade believed that the key to India's revival was not in bring back the institutions of the past, but in adapting British institutions to fit the Indian people.  He saw India as a whole.  His vision of India was not divided by politics, society, and religion.  He believed that India needed to have an economy not dependent on the British.  Gokhale admired Ranade and came to adopt many of his ideas.  Ranade helped Gokhale to become a politician, and Gokhale would later use his experience to teach Ghandi how to be a leader.

 

     Gokhale’s transformation into a leader began with his first job as a teacher.  When he started teaching, he had trouble talking in public.  As a teacher, he memorized many famous speeches and began to develop excellent speaking capabilities.  Soon, he was in demand as a speaker and became involved in politics while working. He found the concerns of Indian taking much of his up time.

 

     Gokhale first exposure to national politics was in the Indian National Congress.  He met the founder of this institution Allan Hume and was invited to attend the Congress.  He used his position in this institution to bring the concerns of all Indians to the British and to get the Indian people involved in politics.  He did not believe he was opposing the government, but rather was giving the British the Indian point of view.  By showing them Indian concerns, he believed the British could better rule India. 

 

     A rift grew in the Indian National Congress, which divided it into two sections: A moderate group led by Gokhale and an extremist group led by Bal Tilak.  Tilak and Gokhale could not get along because they had different political views.  Tilak advocated the use of force to get change for his people, while Gokhale worked under the constitution.  Also, Gokhale felt that India could benefit from the rule of the British, conversely, Tilak felt that the Indians should be freed from the crown using force if necessary.  Tilak left the Congress and took its papers with him so he could retain a voice in India.  Gokhale stayed behind and continued to work for the Indian people in the INC.  Without an opponent like Gokhale, Tilak's may have dominated the Congress.  India may have been destabilized as a result of his militant activities.

 

    Gokhale’s dedication to the Indian people was shown in his work

to get the Minto-Morley reforms to pass.  Although, Lord Morley and Gokhale were opponents they both respected each other.  Lord Morley consulted with Gokhale before proceeding with the Minto-Morley reforms.  Since Gokhale saw Indians as being Indians first and then being either Hindu or Muslims, he did not object to the provisions made for the Muslims in this reform.  Gokhale was always willing to negotiate and get part of what he had wanted in a bill.  The benefits of these incremental gains would not be seen immediately, but they would add up and give the Indians what they wanted.  The Minto-Morley reforms gave the Indians an elected majority in the provincial councils with the power of passing resolutions on important matters of administration and finance. 

 

     Although the Minto-Morely bill was a great success, Gokhale had many failures.  These were not failures to him because he believed them experiences which would lead to the successes of the next generation.  One example of one of Gokhale’s "failures" was that of the Elementary Education bill he tried to get passed in 1910.  He wanted compulsory education for Indian children.  When he proposed this bill, the British did not give it much attention.  Gokhale was not discouraged, and he tried to educate the Indian people on the merits of a national education system.  He failed to get enough support to get the bill passed, but he was able to create interest in education paving the way for later politicians to get educational reforms.

 

     Gokhale was one of India's most dedicated politicians.  He believed that failure is as good as a success in politics.  With a success you achieve what you want, but with a failure one could educate the people so that the next generation could have a success.  He did not care if he saw the fruits of his labor during his lifetime, he was just concerned with improving his country for future generations.  Such a philosophy led him to be a great compromiser.  Gokhale believed that gains made with militant means would not last as long those obtained working within the constitution.  He was comfortable making small gains with these means because they would add up over the generations and restore  India to glory it had once attained in its past.