Divya Ghelani and Amartya Sen's recollections of rioters blood. - CULTIVASIAN

In some of the late pasages in his new book 'Identity and Violence', he recalls how at the age of eleven, he witnessed a wounded labourer stagger into his parents' garden begging for help. The man, targeted by Hindu rioters because he was Muslim, died later in hospital. Sen highlights how perpetrators of the atrocities "were made to think of themselves only as Hindus or Muslims and absolutely nothing else: not Indians, not Asians, not sub continentals, not members of a shared human race." The illusion of a one-dimensional identity, he explains, was created by religious and political leaders on both sides to incite violence.

This point is perhaps self-evident but the foundation of Sen's thesis is that the violence of identity remains the primary cause of conflict in our modern-day lives. He argues that there is a worrying tendency for members of our multitudinous global community to be defined only in terms of our race and religion, when in actual fact each individual can – when asked - define themselves in many different ways. ("I can be, at the same time an Asian, an Indian citizen…a man, a feminist, a heterosexual…"). Sen's point is that from within the small identity cages into which we are often easily herded (or herd ourselves) it is much easier to develop adversarial positions.

He moves onto conduct a timely evaluation of 'multiculturalism' – applauding the merits of multicultural policies in Britain but highlighting the manner in which they play a part in belittling the importance of complex individual identities. Should people be classified in terms of religion and community, he asks, or "should they be understood as persons with many affiliations and associations?" He points to the present political climate wherein the many selves of an individual who happens to be Muslim are consistently overshadowed by focus his/her religious identity. (His - and to a lesser extent, her - identity is projected into the public arena by community leaders who become spokespersons for such muffled voices even if they do not necessarily reflect their views.)

At the core of the study is Sen's rejection of the belief that identity is about discovery rather than choice; the enhancement of telecommunications and the ease of travel means multiple choices of identity are available for our global population to choose from. John Gray rubbished his book in a recent Observer book review, implying that though the academic's work was a nice try, it provided no real solution to present political climate other than whimsical lefty liberal 'conceptual therapy'. Indeed, Sen's philosophical exploration into the problems of contemporary identities may not operate as a 'clarion-call' for perpetraters of violent crimes in our global community to stop. But for those of us who consider ourselves to be so much more than the identity pens we're often hoarded into, who struggle to make our many-varied voices heard above the straight-jacket notions of identity so readily foisted upon us, for us this book adds weight to our arguement, voices concerns we may have been feeling but not yet been able to articulate. 'Identity and Violence' frees up new ways of thinking for ourselves and other human beings - not a ready-made solution to violence today, but a very important contribution.