A Early life and education Toru Dutt was born in Calcutta on 4 March 1856 to a well-respected Bengali family. Her father, Govind Chandra Dutt was known to be of liberal thoughts and worked as a Magistrate in Calcutta.2] Her mother, Kshetramoni Dutt (née Mitter), belonged to the Rambagan Dutt family.!5] Toru was the youngest of three siblings; her sister Aru was two years older to her and she also had a brother Abjie.!5! She and her siblings spent most of their childhood in Calcutta, dividing their time between a house in the city and a garden house in the suburb of Baugmaree.!®! Dutt was educated at home by her father and by an Indian Christian tutor, Babu Shib Chunder Banerjee. She learnt French, English, and eventually Sanskrit, in addition to her first language, Bengali.! During this time, she developed a love for English literature, growing to understand and appreciate works such as John Milton's epic, Paradise Lost .[5 She also learned stories of ancient India from her mother. [5]Spent MOST OT tnelr cniidnood In Calcutta, dividing their time between a house in the city and a garden house in the suburb of Baugmaree.©! Dutt was educated at home by her father and by an Indian Christian tutor, Babu Shib Chunder Banerjee. She learnt French, English, and eventually Sanskrit, in addition to her first language, Bengaii.'®! During this time, she developed a love for English literature, growing to understand and appreciate works such as John Milton's epic, Paradise Lost .!°) She also learned stories of ancient India from her mother. !=! A few years after her brother Abjie died at the age of eleven (23 July 1874), the family sailed for Europe as Toru's father hoped to give his daughters the best education.Published works o e A Sheaf Gleaned in French Fields, Saptahik Sambad Press, Bhowanipore, 1876 ¢ Bianca, or the Spanish Maiden, serialized in Bengal Magazine from January to April 1878 (posthumous; unfinished) ¢ Le Journal de Mademoiselle d’Arvers, Didier, Paris, 1879 (posthumous) ¢ Ancient Ballads and Legends of Hindustan, 1882 (posthumous) A Sheaf Gleaned in French Fields was published in 1876 without a preface or introduction. Its 165 poems are translated from French into English by Dutt, except for one poem composed by her, "A Mon Pére", and eight poems translated by her sister.] At first the collection attracted little attention, though it eventually came to the notice of Edmund Gosse in 1877, who reviewed it favourably in the Examiner that year. Sheaf saw a second Indian edition in 1878 and a third edition by Kegan Paul of London in 1880, but Dutt lived to see neither of these. The second edition added 44 new poems, a portrait of Toru Dutt and her sister, and a preface by their father.!5]in her case was simply miraculous."!9! Some well-remembered poems from the volume include "A Sea of Foliage", "The Lotus", "Sita", and "Our Casuarina Tree." The last in particular is often taught in high schools in India as a part of the English curriculum. |!a Family o The Dutt family was one of the first Calcutta families to be strongly influenced by the presence of Christian missionaries.! Toru Dutt's grandfather Rasamay Dutt too, held an important position in the colonial government.!! Her cousin Romesh Chandra Dutt was also a writer and Indian civil servant. Dutt's father converted to Christianity in 1862, when she was six years old.!5! Her mother initially resisted conversion, but eventually became a practising Christian as well.!5! Both of Dutt's parents published some writing: her father wrote poetry and her mother published a translation into Bengali of a religious monograph. |S!