Interrogating Caste

Interrogating Caste PDF Author: Dipankar Gupta
Publisher: Penguin Books India
ISBN: 9780140297065
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 316

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Book Description
The caste system has conventionally been perceived by scholars as a hierarchy based on the binary opposition of purity and pollution. Challenging this position, leading sociologist Dipankar Gupta argues that any notion of a fixed hierarchy is arbitrary and valid only from the perspective of the individual castes. The idea of difference, and not hierarchy, determines the tendency of each caste to keep alive its discrete nature and this is also seen to be true of the various castes which occupy the same rank in the hierarchy. It is, in fact, the mechanics of power, both economic and political, that set the ground rules for caste behaviour, which also explains how traditionally opposed caste groups find it possible to align in the contemporary political scenario. With the help of empirical evidence from states like Bihar, Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh, the author illustrates how any presumed correlations between caste loyalties and voting patterns are in reality quite invalid. Provocative and finely argued, Interrogating Caste is a remarkable work that provides fresh insight into caste as a social, political and economic reality.

Interrogating Caste

Interrogating Caste PDF Author: Dipankar Gupta
Publisher: Penguin Books India
ISBN: 9780140297065
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 316

Get Book Here

Book Description
The caste system has conventionally been perceived by scholars as a hierarchy based on the binary opposition of purity and pollution. Challenging this position, leading sociologist Dipankar Gupta argues that any notion of a fixed hierarchy is arbitrary and valid only from the perspective of the individual castes. The idea of difference, and not hierarchy, determines the tendency of each caste to keep alive its discrete nature and this is also seen to be true of the various castes which occupy the same rank in the hierarchy. It is, in fact, the mechanics of power, both economic and political, that set the ground rules for caste behaviour, which also explains how traditionally opposed caste groups find it possible to align in the contemporary political scenario. With the help of empirical evidence from states like Bihar, Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh, the author illustrates how any presumed correlations between caste loyalties and voting patterns are in reality quite invalid. Provocative and finely argued, Interrogating Caste is a remarkable work that provides fresh insight into caste as a social, political and economic reality.

Caste and Gender in Contemporary India

Caste and Gender in Contemporary India PDF Author: Supurna Banerjee
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
ISBN: 0429783965
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 242

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Book Description
This book explores the intersectional aspects of caste and gender in India that contribute to the multiple marginalities and oppressions of lower castes, with particular reference to Dalits, Muslims and women. It moves beyond the conventional accounts of experiences of women in unequal social and political relationships to examine how caste as a system and ideology shapes hegemonic masculinity and feminization of work, and thus contributes to the violence against women. The volume looks at their everyday lived realities within and across diverse social and political contexts — families, education systems, labour, communities, political parties, power, social organisations, the politics of representation and the writing of the subaltern women. With a range of empirical work, it brings forth the complexities of identity politics and further analyses its limits in regional and historical frameworks. This book will be of interest to students, scholars and specialists in caste and gender studies, exclusion and discrimination studies, sociology and social anthropology, history and political science. It will also be useful to Dalit writers and people working in the development sector in India.

Gale Researcher Guide for: The Evolution of the Caste System in Early India

Gale Researcher Guide for: The Evolution of the Caste System in Early India PDF Author: Maria M. Ritzema
Publisher: Gale, Cengage Learning
ISBN: 1535865539
Category : Study Aids
Languages : en
Pages : 9

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Book Description
Gale Researcher Guide for: The Evolution of the Caste System in Early India is selected from Gale's academic platform Gale Researcher. These study guides provide peer-reviewed articles that allow students early success in finding scholarly materials and to gain the confidence and vocabulary needed to pursue deeper research.

Gender and Social Equity in Primary Education

Gender and Social Equity in Primary Education PDF Author: Vimala Ramachandran
Publisher: SAGE
ISBN: 9780761932475
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 386

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Book Description
In recent years, India has made impressive strides in increasing literacy rates and in enabling access to education. The country now seems well set to provide universal and good quality basic education. Yet, behind this otherwise rosy picture lie serious concerns relating primarily to gender and equity. /-//-/This volume provides an insightful understanding of the ground realities of primary education programmes, particularly those run by the District Primary Education Programme (DPEP). Combining secondary research with field studies conducted in six states, the contributors explore gender and social equity issues in primary education. They conclude that there is a subtle but nevertheless discernible ‘hierarchy of access’ to education, which has resulted in new forms of segregation in primary schools.

Exploring Gender and Sikh Traditions

Exploring Gender and Sikh Traditions PDF Author: Doris R. Jakobsh
Publisher: MDPI
ISBN: 3036511903
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 242

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Book Description
This volume gathers scholars who focus on gender through a variety of disciplines and approaches to Sikh Studies. The intersections of religion and gender are here explored, based on an understanding that both are socially constructed. Far from being static, as so often presented in world religions textbooks, religious traditions are constantly in flux, responding to historical, cultural and social contexts. So too is ‘the’ Sikh tradition in terms of practices, ideologies, rituals, and notions of identity. We here conclude that ‘a’ Sikh tradition does not exist; instead, there are numerous forms thereof. In this volume, Sikhism is presented as a collection of ‘Sikh traditions’. Gender studies—in line with women’s liberation, masculine and feminist studies have long examined and have long deconstructed the patriarchy, but also move to identify other subordinate-dominant relations between individuals. Indeed, there are numerous forms of discrimination and power structures that simultaneously create a multiplicity of oppression. Intersectionality has become the basis of an increasingly systematized production of contemporary discourses on feminism and gender analysis, as is evidenced by the varied contributions in this volume.

Dalits and Dalit Lives in 21st Century India: Towards a New Politics

Dalits and Dalit Lives in 21st Century India: Towards a New Politics PDF Author: Tamanna Priya
Publisher: Vernon Press
ISBN:
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 184

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Book Description
This comprehensive body of work illuminates the new ways to remember caste and comprehend the enduring anguish it has imposed upon individuals across generations, thereby paving the way for a more informed understanding of its profound impact on Dalit lives throughout the annals of time. This work not only adds depth to the existing discourse but also serves as a catalyst for broader understanding and appreciation of the complexities inherent in Dalit experiences and their representation or (mis)representation. In doing so, the volume challenges the traditional social order's ability to address caste-based discrimination effectively and also makes an attempt to find alternative ways to understand the conundrum of caste. It delves into the necessity of alternative discourse, particularly the significance of Dalit discourse, and hence the imperative need for diverse and inclusive discourses. The volume represents the individual voices of the editors and contributors, who are eminent academics, and provides a more holistic approach to the examination of the socio-economic, cultural and political landscape of the Dalit community in contemporary India. Their contribution enriches the current body of literature on Dalit Studies, with a specific focus on the evolving dynamics within politics, academia, popular culture, digital culture, political economy, ideological perspectives, and representation or (mis)representation, among others. The chapters also demonstrate the profound impact of various modern influences on the lives of the younger generation of Dalits. In doing so, it sheds light on how access to information technology, the pervasive use of social media- digital media, the influential role of music and cinema in cultural resistance, and the discourse of protest politics collectively shape the experiences and perspectives of the young Dalit community. This literary work presents an invaluable opportunity for scholars, researchers, and students, and a methodological aid for classroom adoption for discerning readers to immerse themselves in an exploration of a significant community in India and its multifaceted presence within contemporary literature and culture.

The Situated Politics of Belonging

The Situated Politics of Belonging PDF Author: Nira Yuval-Davis
Publisher: SAGE
ISBN: 9781412921015
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 256

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Book Description
Offers a collection of essays examining the racialized and gendered effects of contemporary politics of belonging. This work is useful to scholars working in the areas of multiculturalism, globalisation and culture, race and ethnic studies, gender studies and studies of post-partition societies.

The Indian Political System:

The Indian Political System: PDF Author: Mahendra Prasad Singh
Publisher: Pearson Education India
ISBN: 813177645X
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 336

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Book Description
The Indian Political System provides undergraduate students of political science an insight into the political system in India, and covers all the related essential themes. The book begins by explaining the various ideological perspectives underlying the Indian state, various facets of social and institutional power structures, the Indian constitution, secularism and communalism, strategies of development, various movement, federalism and human rights. Also, it compares the Indian political system with that of Canada, United Kingdom and China.

Methods, Moments, and Ethnographic Spaces in Asia

Methods, Moments, and Ethnographic Spaces in Asia PDF Author: Nayantara S. Appleton
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 1786612496
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 315

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Book Description
Asia is changing. Socio-political shifts in the world economy, technological advances of monumental scales, movements of people and ideas, alongside ongoing post-colonization projects across the region have created an emerging Asia – one confident and assertive of its place in the contemporary geopolitical sphere. As political and economic powers reassert Asian sovereignty in opposition to perceived Northern dominance, and dramatic and rapid development in the region shift the relationship between the centre and the periphery, new renderings and imaginations of hierarchies of identity and power come to the fore. This changing environment leads to emerging challenges for anthropologists working in the region: both those who have been working there for years, and new scholars entering the field. This volume considers these changes, and the implications of this on our practice. By focusing on Asia as a site of enquiry, the contributors to this book discuss tensions and opportunities arising in their ethnographic fieldwork in light of a changing Asia. Drawing on personal reflections on Asia’s global positioning in this contemporary moment, the contributors consider how fieldwork is being negotiated within the changing dynamics of anthropology in the region. This book then, is a discussion on the shifting landscape of field sites and the resultant emerging research methodologies, and is aimed at those who are already deeply immersed in fieldwork as well as those who are seeking ways to undertake it.

Towards Gender Equity in Development

Towards Gender Equity in Development PDF Author: Siwan Anderson
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0192565052
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 438

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Book Description
As a result of widespread mistreatment and overt discrimination, women in the developing world often lack autonomy. Towards Gender Equity in Development brings together leading scholars working on gender issues to explore key sources of female empowerment and discuss the current challenges and opportunities for the future. Exploring three key domains, this book adopts a clear multi-disciplinary approach to present different perspectives from gender-focused economics and social research. It covers marriage and women's relative bargaining position within the household; the options available to women outside of marriage and in the context of their community; and overarching discriminatory laws and cultural norms. It engages with questions of how marriage, divorce, and remarriage practices have evolved and with what effects for women; how female empowerment can benefit from improving options and economic and collective action opportunities; and how the government can act as a lawmaker to contribute to modifying norms and practices that disadvantage women.