André Béteille
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- September 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780198080961
- eISBN:
- 9780199082049
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198080961.001.0001
- Subject:
- Sociology, Politics, Social Movements and Social Change
Democracy was inspired by the lofty ideals of the French Revolution: liberty, equality, and fraternity. These ideals led many countries to challenge the absolutist monarchies of the past. In Europe, ...
More
Democracy was inspired by the lofty ideals of the French Revolution: liberty, equality, and fraternity. These ideals led many countries to challenge the absolutist monarchies of the past. In Europe, democratic ideals and values grew in response to the oppressive rule of absolutist monarchs. In India, the idea of democracy came with colonial rule but conferred subjecthood without citizenship on the Indian people. Colonial rule kindled the aspiration of Indians to become a nation of free and equal citizens and led to the formation of a political party, the Indian National Congress. This book explores the political institutions of democracy in India, focusing on those that began to emerge from the middle of the nineteenth century onwards. It looks at Parliament and the state legislatures, the Supreme Court and high courts, and political parties, highlighting the maladies that beset these basic institutions of democracy today. After discussing the institutions of democracy, the book looks at the role of government and opposition in a democracy, civil society and the state, constitutional morality, how institutions work and why they fail, the representation of India as a society of castes and communities as well as a nation of citizens, pluralism and liberalism in India, the distinction between law and custom, and the relationship between sociology and ideology.Less
Democracy was inspired by the lofty ideals of the French Revolution: liberty, equality, and fraternity. These ideals led many countries to challenge the absolutist monarchies of the past. In Europe, democratic ideals and values grew in response to the oppressive rule of absolutist monarchs. In India, the idea of democracy came with colonial rule but conferred subjecthood without citizenship on the Indian people. Colonial rule kindled the aspiration of Indians to become a nation of free and equal citizens and led to the formation of a political party, the Indian National Congress. This book explores the political institutions of democracy in India, focusing on those that began to emerge from the middle of the nineteenth century onwards. It looks at Parliament and the state legislatures, the Supreme Court and high courts, and political parties, highlighting the maladies that beset these basic institutions of democracy today. After discussing the institutions of democracy, the book looks at the role of government and opposition in a democracy, civil society and the state, constitutional morality, how institutions work and why they fail, the representation of India as a society of castes and communities as well as a nation of citizens, pluralism and liberalism in India, the distinction between law and custom, and the relationship between sociology and ideology.
Ashwani Deshpande
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- September 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780198072034
- eISBN:
- 9780199081028
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198072034.001.0001
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, Development, Growth, and Environmental
This book examines the contemporary nature of caste disparities in India by using a framework that integrates discussions on caste from other social science disciplines with those from within ...
More
This book examines the contemporary nature of caste disparities in India by using a framework that integrates discussions on caste from other social science disciplines with those from within economics. It brings together quantitative evidence on different dimensions of caste disparities based on two large national-level data sets, in order to analyse the degree of change in the caste system over the last two decades. Offering evidence based on economic analysis, it questions commonly-held views and challenges traditional wisdom. The chapter uses the latest methods that allow researchers to gauge discrimination and shows how some of these methods have been used in the Indian context and what the quest has yielded. The chapter constructs a multifaceted ‘Caste Development Index’ that allows a broader assessment and comparison of the standard of living of caste groups across states and time. Finally, the book also discusses policy responses to disparities and discrimination by reviewing the existing quota system.Less
This book examines the contemporary nature of caste disparities in India by using a framework that integrates discussions on caste from other social science disciplines with those from within economics. It brings together quantitative evidence on different dimensions of caste disparities based on two large national-level data sets, in order to analyse the degree of change in the caste system over the last two decades. Offering evidence based on economic analysis, it questions commonly-held views and challenges traditional wisdom. The chapter uses the latest methods that allow researchers to gauge discrimination and shows how some of these methods have been used in the Indian context and what the quest has yielded. The chapter constructs a multifaceted ‘Caste Development Index’ that allows a broader assessment and comparison of the standard of living of caste groups across states and time. Finally, the book also discusses policy responses to disparities and discrimination by reviewing the existing quota system.
M.N. Srinivas
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- September 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780198077459
- eISBN:
- 9780199081165
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198077459.001.0001
- Subject:
- Sociology, Urban and Rural Studies
This book is about Rampura, a multi-caste village in princely Mysore (now part of Karnataka) as it was in 1948, the year when M. N. Srinivas did fieldwork there. As so often in human affairs, and in ...
More
This book is about Rampura, a multi-caste village in princely Mysore (now part of Karnataka) as it was in 1948, the year when M. N. Srinivas did fieldwork there. As so often in human affairs, and in scholarly and scientific history, an accident opens the path to a solution; in this case, a fire that destroyed the author's notes led him to write this book. Professor Srinivas's monograph, based on the human mind's extraordinary capacity to bring forth significant details of the past, is a major ethnographic portrait woven from a sea of original data and purposeful seeking after a description of a village in its own terms. The book’s success suggests people should not let accidents and failures destroy one's art. The importance of the its study could not be overstated as caste represented a unique form of social stratification, and millions of human beings had ordered their lives according to it for over two millennia. The book describes Rampura's village life, agriculture, the sexes, relation between castes, classes and factions, and the quality of social relations.Less
This book is about Rampura, a multi-caste village in princely Mysore (now part of Karnataka) as it was in 1948, the year when M. N. Srinivas did fieldwork there. As so often in human affairs, and in scholarly and scientific history, an accident opens the path to a solution; in this case, a fire that destroyed the author's notes led him to write this book. Professor Srinivas's monograph, based on the human mind's extraordinary capacity to bring forth significant details of the past, is a major ethnographic portrait woven from a sea of original data and purposeful seeking after a description of a village in its own terms. The book’s success suggests people should not let accidents and failures destroy one's art. The importance of the its study could not be overstated as caste represented a unique form of social stratification, and millions of human beings had ordered their lives according to it for over two millennia. The book describes Rampura's village life, agriculture, the sexes, relation between castes, classes and factions, and the quality of social relations.
Jagdish Bhagwati and Arvind Panagariya (eds)
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- May 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780199915187
- eISBN:
- 9780199933495
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199915187.001.0001
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, South and East Asia
While there is now consensus that liberalizing reforms have been behind the acceleration of growth in India to the current 8 to 9 percent level, critics continue to argue that opening the economy to ...
More
While there is now consensus that liberalizing reforms have been behind the acceleration of growth in India to the current 8 to 9 percent level, critics continue to argue that opening the economy to trade has hurt the poor, that rapid growth is leaving the socially disadvantaged groups behind, and that the reforms have led to increased inequality. They also argue that people themselves do not feel that their fortunes are improving. Five original essays in this volume, topped by a substantial introductory essay summarizing their findings, meet these challenges to the reforms head-on. They use large-scale sample surveys and other data to systematically address each of these arguments. They show that trade openness has indeed helped reduce poverty not just in general but also among the socially disadvantaged groups. The contributors to the volume find no evidence whatsoever to support the claim of a negative impact of trade openness on poverty in any social group. The essays also show that inequality exhibits no definite trend since the liberalizing reforms and that it is unrelated to trade openness. People’s responses have also now turned decidedly in favor of reforms. Thus, when asked how they feel about the change in their fortunes in the recent past, an overwhelmingly large proportion of individuals from every conceivable group report improvements. Moreover, systematic analysis of the 2009 parliamentary elections show that people now reward the chief ministers in states in which they deliver superior growth outcomes and punish those that do not.Less
While there is now consensus that liberalizing reforms have been behind the acceleration of growth in India to the current 8 to 9 percent level, critics continue to argue that opening the economy to trade has hurt the poor, that rapid growth is leaving the socially disadvantaged groups behind, and that the reforms have led to increased inequality. They also argue that people themselves do not feel that their fortunes are improving. Five original essays in this volume, topped by a substantial introductory essay summarizing their findings, meet these challenges to the reforms head-on. They use large-scale sample surveys and other data to systematically address each of these arguments. They show that trade openness has indeed helped reduce poverty not just in general but also among the socially disadvantaged groups. The contributors to the volume find no evidence whatsoever to support the claim of a negative impact of trade openness on poverty in any social group. The essays also show that inequality exhibits no definite trend since the liberalizing reforms and that it is unrelated to trade openness. People’s responses have also now turned decidedly in favor of reforms. Thus, when asked how they feel about the change in their fortunes in the recent past, an overwhelmingly large proportion of individuals from every conceivable group report improvements. Moreover, systematic analysis of the 2009 parliamentary elections show that people now reward the chief ministers in states in which they deliver superior growth outcomes and punish those that do not.
Lisa I. Knight
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- September 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780199773541
- eISBN:
- 9780199897353
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199773541.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
In the popular imagination, Bauls in West Bengal (India) and Bangladesh are depicted as a sect of musical mendicants with flowing hair clad in ocher-colored clothes and carrying a one-stringed ...
More
In the popular imagination, Bauls in West Bengal (India) and Bangladesh are depicted as a sect of musical mendicants with flowing hair clad in ocher-colored clothes and carrying a one-stringed instrument. Their popularity stems from their mystical songs and their carefree, whimsical behavior. Somewhat less celebrated are Baul beliefs and practices: they are fiercely opposed to the caste system and sectarianism and, at least in the context of their sexo-yogic rituals and philosophy, extol women over men. Despite the importance of women among Bauls, scholarly and popular discourses on Bauls marginalize Baul women by depicting the ideal Baul as male and as unencumbered by social constraints and worldly concerns. For Baul women, these ideals pose distinct challenges to their position and reputation as women in rural Bengal, where gendered norms limit women’s actions. However, as musical performers hoping for patronage, behaving as a Baul can ensure their livelihood. This book shows how Baul women interpret and respond to these various constructions of gender and Baul identity and suggests that Baul women are encumbered actors. It argues that Baul women negotiate their identity, position, and life choices in light of contradictory expectations of appropriate behavior for Bengali women and for Bauls. It demonstrates that Baul women draw on the very tools of their encumbering to create for themselves a meaningful life and a more just society. As they sing, wander, take renunciation, and raise a family, they expand ideas about both women and Bauls in Bengal.Less
In the popular imagination, Bauls in West Bengal (India) and Bangladesh are depicted as a sect of musical mendicants with flowing hair clad in ocher-colored clothes and carrying a one-stringed instrument. Their popularity stems from their mystical songs and their carefree, whimsical behavior. Somewhat less celebrated are Baul beliefs and practices: they are fiercely opposed to the caste system and sectarianism and, at least in the context of their sexo-yogic rituals and philosophy, extol women over men. Despite the importance of women among Bauls, scholarly and popular discourses on Bauls marginalize Baul women by depicting the ideal Baul as male and as unencumbered by social constraints and worldly concerns. For Baul women, these ideals pose distinct challenges to their position and reputation as women in rural Bengal, where gendered norms limit women’s actions. However, as musical performers hoping for patronage, behaving as a Baul can ensure their livelihood. This book shows how Baul women interpret and respond to these various constructions of gender and Baul identity and suggests that Baul women are encumbered actors. It argues that Baul women negotiate their identity, position, and life choices in light of contradictory expectations of appropriate behavior for Bengali women and for Bauls. It demonstrates that Baul women draw on the very tools of their encumbering to create for themselves a meaningful life and a more just society. As they sing, wander, take renunciation, and raise a family, they expand ideas about both women and Bauls in Bengal.
Jeffrey G. Snodgrass
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- September 2006
- ISBN:
- 9780195304343
- eISBN:
- 9780199785063
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195304349.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Hinduism
Based on three years of anthropological fieldwork in the Indian state of Rajasthan, this book explores the manner that semi-nomadic performers known as Bhats understand and also subvert caste ...
More
Based on three years of anthropological fieldwork in the Indian state of Rajasthan, this book explores the manner that semi-nomadic performers known as Bhats understand and also subvert caste hierarchies. A number of scholars have recently contended that caste is invented and thus a fiction of a kind. Focus in these studies, however, is typically placed on the way that caste is imagined according to the agendas and desires of elite Westerners such as colonial officials. By contrast, this book argues that Bhats themselves understand the imaginative dimensions of caste relations. It focuses on the way that Bhats (literally, “Bards”) now entertain a variety of contemporary sponsors — village patrons, foreign and domestic tourists, urban elites, government officials, development experts, and Hindu nationalists — with ballads, epics, and puppet plays detailing the exploits of Rajasthan’s long-dead kings and heroes. As the book delves deeper into the complexities and contradictions of Bhat art, identity, and political resistance, the complexities and contradictions of modern India are likewise revealed.Less
Based on three years of anthropological fieldwork in the Indian state of Rajasthan, this book explores the manner that semi-nomadic performers known as Bhats understand and also subvert caste hierarchies. A number of scholars have recently contended that caste is invented and thus a fiction of a kind. Focus in these studies, however, is typically placed on the way that caste is imagined according to the agendas and desires of elite Westerners such as colonial officials. By contrast, this book argues that Bhats themselves understand the imaginative dimensions of caste relations. It focuses on the way that Bhats (literally, “Bards”) now entertain a variety of contemporary sponsors — village patrons, foreign and domestic tourists, urban elites, government officials, development experts, and Hindu nationalists — with ballads, epics, and puppet plays detailing the exploits of Rajasthan’s long-dead kings and heroes. As the book delves deeper into the complexities and contradictions of Bhat art, identity, and political resistance, the complexities and contradictions of modern India are likewise revealed.
Jeffrey G. Snodgrass
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- September 2006
- ISBN:
- 9780195304343
- eISBN:
- 9780199785063
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195304349.003.0002
- Subject:
- Religion, Hinduism
This chapter further describes the context of the author’s participant-observation fieldwork situation in the towns of Udaipur and Jaipur in the Indian state of Rajasthan. It also presents the ...
More
This chapter further describes the context of the author’s participant-observation fieldwork situation in the towns of Udaipur and Jaipur in the Indian state of Rajasthan. It also presents the scholarly understandings of South Asian society that ground the book’s arguments. It is demonstrated how changes in caste relations in the modern colonial and postcolonial periods, and especially the decline in importance of elite bardic communities, provided the author’s Bhat informants with opportunities to remake their caste identity in the particular manner explored in the pages of this book. This chapter takes pains to demonstrate continuities of experience between the formerly untouchable Bhats and other low status Dalit (“oppressed”) communities. The remainder of the book, however, points to the distinctive manner than Bhats, as low status bards participating in a declining village exchange economy referred to as jajmani, take advantage of changing historical contexts to rework themselves and the institution of caste in ways unique to this community of performers.Less
This chapter further describes the context of the author’s participant-observation fieldwork situation in the towns of Udaipur and Jaipur in the Indian state of Rajasthan. It also presents the scholarly understandings of South Asian society that ground the book’s arguments. It is demonstrated how changes in caste relations in the modern colonial and postcolonial periods, and especially the decline in importance of elite bardic communities, provided the author’s Bhat informants with opportunities to remake their caste identity in the particular manner explored in the pages of this book. This chapter takes pains to demonstrate continuities of experience between the formerly untouchable Bhats and other low status Dalit (“oppressed”) communities. The remainder of the book, however, points to the distinctive manner than Bhats, as low status bards participating in a declining village exchange economy referred to as jajmani, take advantage of changing historical contexts to rework themselves and the institution of caste in ways unique to this community of performers.
Michael Hechter
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780199247516
- eISBN:
- 9780191599460
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/019924751X.003.0006
- Subject:
- Political Science, Political Theory
One important source of national identity lies in hierarchical and segmental cultural divisions of labour. These provide a social base for nationalism among territorially concentrated groups. Some ...
More
One important source of national identity lies in hierarchical and segmental cultural divisions of labour. These provide a social base for nationalism among territorially concentrated groups. Some sources of cultural divisions of labour are enumerated. Whereas it was once thought that such divisions would attenuate in the face of industrialization and efficient labour markets, this often does not happen.Less
One important source of national identity lies in hierarchical and segmental cultural divisions of labour. These provide a social base for nationalism among territorially concentrated groups. Some sources of cultural divisions of labour are enumerated. Whereas it was once thought that such divisions would attenuate in the face of industrialization and efficient labour markets, this often does not happen.
David Stuligross and Varshney Ashutosh
- Published in print:
- 2002
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780199246465
- eISBN:
- 9780191600135
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199246467.003.0016
- Subject:
- Political Science, Democratization
Examines how India's constitutional provisions and public policies have dealt with the nation's four main sources of ethnic diversity—religion, language, caste, and tribe. It addresses three ...
More
Examines how India's constitutional provisions and public policies have dealt with the nation's four main sources of ethnic diversity—religion, language, caste, and tribe. It addresses three questions. First, how did India's constitution makers and founding fathers propose to deal with the problems of each category, as they went about building the nation? Second, what has been the impact of the constitutional provisions, institutional frameworks, and public policies that they devised? Third, could constitutional and public policy engineering have achieved the objectives set, or have some other factors intervened to produce the actual outcomes? It concludes that while India's constitutional design has been a great success in respect of linguistic diversity, the record has been mixed in respect of the other categories.Less
Examines how India's constitutional provisions and public policies have dealt with the nation's four main sources of ethnic diversity—religion, language, caste, and tribe. It addresses three questions. First, how did India's constitution makers and founding fathers propose to deal with the problems of each category, as they went about building the nation? Second, what has been the impact of the constitutional provisions, institutional frameworks, and public policies that they devised? Third, could constitutional and public policy engineering have achieved the objectives set, or have some other factors intervened to produce the actual outcomes? It concludes that while India's constitutional design has been a great success in respect of linguistic diversity, the record has been mixed in respect of the other categories.
Narayan Lakshman
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- September 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780198069980
- eISBN:
- 9780199081288
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198069980.001.0001
- Subject:
- Political Science, Indian Politics
Why has there not been more progress with reducing poverty in India? Patrons of the Poor offers a rich and contemporary account of politics and policymaking in India, as it seeks to provide an answer ...
More
Why has there not been more progress with reducing poverty in India? Patrons of the Poor offers a rich and contemporary account of politics and policymaking in India, as it seeks to provide an answer to this vital question. Despite unprecedented economic growth, the last twenty years have witnessed a growing divergence across Indian states in terms of their poverty alleviation records. In that context, and given that state governments are responsible for a wide range of redistributive policies, this book analyses trends in state politics and policymaking. Based on the analysis, it explains why some Indian states have managed to reduce poverty more effectively than others. Using detailed case studies from Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, the author examines the policymaking processes and political histories of these states. He argues that patterns of caste dominance combined with the degree of competition in populist policies can significantly explain whether states adopt pro-poor policies or not. Lakshman’s analysis combines a deep reading of state-specific political and sociological data with a range of interviews with top political leaders, senior bureaucrats, and academics to corroborate his core argument. This volume will interest students, scholars, and researchers of political science, political economy, sociology, development studies, and economics, especially those working on state and regional politics, and poverty. It will also be of interest to journalists and the general reader.Less
Why has there not been more progress with reducing poverty in India? Patrons of the Poor offers a rich and contemporary account of politics and policymaking in India, as it seeks to provide an answer to this vital question. Despite unprecedented economic growth, the last twenty years have witnessed a growing divergence across Indian states in terms of their poverty alleviation records. In that context, and given that state governments are responsible for a wide range of redistributive policies, this book analyses trends in state politics and policymaking. Based on the analysis, it explains why some Indian states have managed to reduce poverty more effectively than others. Using detailed case studies from Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, the author examines the policymaking processes and political histories of these states. He argues that patterns of caste dominance combined with the degree of competition in populist policies can significantly explain whether states adopt pro-poor policies or not. Lakshman’s analysis combines a deep reading of state-specific political and sociological data with a range of interviews with top political leaders, senior bureaucrats, and academics to corroborate his core argument. This volume will interest students, scholars, and researchers of political science, political economy, sociology, development studies, and economics, especially those working on state and regional politics, and poverty. It will also be of interest to journalists and the general reader.
Michael Banton
- Published in print:
- 1996
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780198280613
- eISBN:
- 9780191598760
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0198280610.003.0012
- Subject:
- Political Science, International Relations and Politics
The implementation of the Convention in states in the Pacific, East Asia, South Asia, South‐East Asia, and the Middle East is summarily reviewed. CERD has disagreed with some governments about ...
More
The implementation of the Convention in states in the Pacific, East Asia, South Asia, South‐East Asia, and the Middle East is summarily reviewed. CERD has disagreed with some governments about whether the Convention prohibits discrimination based on caste, and, for example, about the claim that Bangladesh constitutes a ‘post‐racial society’.Less
The implementation of the Convention in states in the Pacific, East Asia, South Asia, South‐East Asia, and the Middle East is summarily reviewed. CERD has disagreed with some governments about whether the Convention prohibits discrimination based on caste, and, for example, about the claim that Bangladesh constitutes a ‘post‐racial society’.
Kimberley Johnson
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- May 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780195387421
- eISBN:
- 9780199776771
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195387421.001.0001
- Subject:
- Political Science, American Politics
Historians of the Civil Rights era typically treat the key events of the 1950s Brown v. Board of Education — sit-ins, bus boycotts, and marches — as contributing toward a revolutionary social ...
More
Historians of the Civil Rights era typically treat the key events of the 1950s Brown v. Board of Education — sit-ins, bus boycotts, and marches — as contributing toward a revolutionary social upheaval that upended a rigid caste system. While the 1950s was a watershed era in Southern and civil rights history, the tendency has been to paint the preceding Jim Crow era as a brutal system that featured none of the progressive reform impulses so apparent at the federal level and in the North. As the author shows in this reappraisal of the Jim Crow era, this argument is too simplistic, and is true to neither the 1950s nor the long era of Jim Crow that finally solidified in 1910. Focusing on the political development of the South between 1910 and 1954, this book considers the genuine efforts by white and black progressives to reform the system without destroying it. These reformers assumed that the system was there to stay, and therefore felt that they had to work within it in order to modernize the South. Consequently, white progressives tried to install a better — meaning more equitable — separate-but-equal system, and elite black reformers focused on ameliorative (rather than confrontational) solutions that would improve the lives of African Americans. The book concentrates on local and state reform efforts throughout the South in areas like schooling, housing, and labor. Many of the reforms made a difference, but they had the ironic impact of generating more demand for social change among blacks. The author is able to show how demands slowly rose over time, and how the system laid the seeds of its own destruction. The reformers' commitment to a system that was less unequal — albeit not truly equal — and more like the North, led to significant policy changes over time. As this book demonstrates, our lack of knowledge about the cumulative policy transformations resulting from the Jim Crow reform impulse, impoverishes our understanding of the Civil Rights revolution. Reforming Jim Crow aims to rectify that.Less
Historians of the Civil Rights era typically treat the key events of the 1950s Brown v. Board of Education — sit-ins, bus boycotts, and marches — as contributing toward a revolutionary social upheaval that upended a rigid caste system. While the 1950s was a watershed era in Southern and civil rights history, the tendency has been to paint the preceding Jim Crow era as a brutal system that featured none of the progressive reform impulses so apparent at the federal level and in the North. As the author shows in this reappraisal of the Jim Crow era, this argument is too simplistic, and is true to neither the 1950s nor the long era of Jim Crow that finally solidified in 1910. Focusing on the political development of the South between 1910 and 1954, this book considers the genuine efforts by white and black progressives to reform the system without destroying it. These reformers assumed that the system was there to stay, and therefore felt that they had to work within it in order to modernize the South. Consequently, white progressives tried to install a better — meaning more equitable — separate-but-equal system, and elite black reformers focused on ameliorative (rather than confrontational) solutions that would improve the lives of African Americans. The book concentrates on local and state reform efforts throughout the South in areas like schooling, housing, and labor. Many of the reforms made a difference, but they had the ironic impact of generating more demand for social change among blacks. The author is able to show how demands slowly rose over time, and how the system laid the seeds of its own destruction. The reformers' commitment to a system that was less unequal — albeit not truly equal — and more like the North, led to significant policy changes over time. As this book demonstrates, our lack of knowledge about the cumulative policy transformations resulting from the Jim Crow reform impulse, impoverishes our understanding of the Civil Rights revolution. Reforming Jim Crow aims to rectify that.
André Béteille
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- September 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780198077435
- eISBN:
- 9780199081080
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198077435.001.0001
- Subject:
- Sociology, Social Stratification, Inequality, and Mobility
André Béteille’s Caste, Class and Power has grown out of his fieldwork in Sripuram in Thanjavur District, Tamil Nadu. The book’s main strengths are the clarity of its descriptive analysis of the ...
More
André Béteille’s Caste, Class and Power has grown out of his fieldwork in Sripuram in Thanjavur District, Tamil Nadu. The book’s main strengths are the clarity of its descriptive analysis of the three caste groups and agrarian classes, as well as the interactions between them; and the force of its theoretical argument about the relationship between the caste structure, the class system and the distribution of political power. Its thesis about correspondence among the caste, class and political systems is considerably less convincing for the middling majority than for either the Brahmins or Adi-Dravidas. It is also an important historical source about the social structure of Indian villages in the early decades following Independence. Additionally, it is a model of ethnographic and theoretical analysis.Less
André Béteille’s Caste, Class and Power has grown out of his fieldwork in Sripuram in Thanjavur District, Tamil Nadu. The book’s main strengths are the clarity of its descriptive analysis of the three caste groups and agrarian classes, as well as the interactions between them; and the force of its theoretical argument about the relationship between the caste structure, the class system and the distribution of political power. Its thesis about correspondence among the caste, class and political systems is considerably less convincing for the middling majority than for either the Brahmins or Adi-Dravidas. It is also an important historical source about the social structure of Indian villages in the early decades following Independence. Additionally, it is a model of ethnographic and theoretical analysis.
LUCIA MICHELUTTI
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- January 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780197264515
- eISBN:
- 9780191734403
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- British Academy
- DOI:
- 10.5871/bacad/9780197264515.003.0009
- Subject:
- Sociology, Politics, Social Movements and Social Change
This chapter discusses the rise of caste politics and the dynamics of Indian popular politics in the 1990s, specifically in the state of Uttar Pradesh. It shows how the interrelation between ...
More
This chapter discusses the rise of caste politics and the dynamics of Indian popular politics in the 1990s, specifically in the state of Uttar Pradesh. It shows how the interrelation between vernacular socio-cultural idioms and structures have been vital to make ‘democracy’ a part of the Indian political imagination. These have also been used to give information about the political upsurge of the common people and the shaping of political cleavages based on caste or community.Less
This chapter discusses the rise of caste politics and the dynamics of Indian popular politics in the 1990s, specifically in the state of Uttar Pradesh. It shows how the interrelation between vernacular socio-cultural idioms and structures have been vital to make ‘democracy’ a part of the Indian political imagination. These have also been used to give information about the political upsurge of the common people and the shaping of political cleavages based on caste or community.
B. R. Nanda
- Published in print:
- 1994
- Published Online:
- October 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780195633634
- eISBN:
- 9780199081332
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195633634.001.0001
- Subject:
- History, Indian History
Mahatma Gandhi had been enmeshed in controversies ever since he plunged into the racial politics of Natal until he was assassinated fifty-four years later. He had to contend with the suspicious eyes ...
More
Mahatma Gandhi had been enmeshed in controversies ever since he plunged into the racial politics of Natal until he was assassinated fifty-four years later. He had to contend with the suspicious eyes of the British, and also with discontent within the Congress Party. He infuriated orthodox Hindus for denouncing caste exclusiveness and untouchability and for advocating secular politics. He narrowly escaped a bomb attack in Poona in 1934, but fell victim to the bullets of a Poona Brahmin who accused him of betraying the Hindu cause fourteen years later. Curiously enough, for years protagonists of Pakistan had branded Gandhi as the leading enemy of Islam. This book chronicles the important events in the life of Gandhi. It looks at his views about India’s caste system, racialism in South Africa, the Amritsar massacre of 1919, British imperialism, and religion and politics and man versus machine. It also tackles his role in ending the rule of the British empire, his relationship with the Raj, his role in the Partition of India, his reaction to the Partition massacres in August-September 1947, and his adherence to non-violence.Less
Mahatma Gandhi had been enmeshed in controversies ever since he plunged into the racial politics of Natal until he was assassinated fifty-four years later. He had to contend with the suspicious eyes of the British, and also with discontent within the Congress Party. He infuriated orthodox Hindus for denouncing caste exclusiveness and untouchability and for advocating secular politics. He narrowly escaped a bomb attack in Poona in 1934, but fell victim to the bullets of a Poona Brahmin who accused him of betraying the Hindu cause fourteen years later. Curiously enough, for years protagonists of Pakistan had branded Gandhi as the leading enemy of Islam. This book chronicles the important events in the life of Gandhi. It looks at his views about India’s caste system, racialism in South Africa, the Amritsar massacre of 1919, British imperialism, and religion and politics and man versus machine. It also tackles his role in ending the rule of the British empire, his relationship with the Raj, his role in the Partition of India, his reaction to the Partition massacres in August-September 1947, and his adherence to non-violence.
Anindita Mukhopadhyay
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- October 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780195680836
- eISBN:
- 9780199080700
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195680836.001.0001
- Subject:
- History, Indian History
This book investigates the deeper area of class antagonism between the privileged and underprivileged classes as they faced the colonial state and its different ideas of legality and sovereignty in ...
More
This book investigates the deeper area of class antagonism between the privileged and underprivileged classes as they faced the colonial state and its different ideas of legality and sovereignty in colonial Bengal. It examines the ambiguity in the bhadralok — the educated middle class — response to courts and jails. The author argues that the discourse of superior ‘bhadralok’ ethics and morals was juxtaposed against the ‘chhotolok’ — who were devoid of such ethical values. This enabled the bhadralok to claim for themselves the position of the ‘aware’ legal subject as a class — a ‘good’ subject obedient to the dictates of the new rule of law, unlike the recalcitrant and ethically ill-equipped chhotolok. The author underlines the development of a new cultural language of morality that delineated the parameters of bhadralok public behaviour. As the ‘rule of law’ of the British government slid unobtrusively into the public domain, the criminal courts and the jails turned into public theatres of infamy — spaces that the ethically bound bhadralok dreaded occupying. The volume, thus, documents how the colonial legal and penal institutions streamlined the identities of some sections of the lower castes into ‘criminal caste’. It also examines the nature of colonial bureaucracy and highlights the social silence on gender and women's criminality.Less
This book investigates the deeper area of class antagonism between the privileged and underprivileged classes as they faced the colonial state and its different ideas of legality and sovereignty in colonial Bengal. It examines the ambiguity in the bhadralok — the educated middle class — response to courts and jails. The author argues that the discourse of superior ‘bhadralok’ ethics and morals was juxtaposed against the ‘chhotolok’ — who were devoid of such ethical values. This enabled the bhadralok to claim for themselves the position of the ‘aware’ legal subject as a class — a ‘good’ subject obedient to the dictates of the new rule of law, unlike the recalcitrant and ethically ill-equipped chhotolok. The author underlines the development of a new cultural language of morality that delineated the parameters of bhadralok public behaviour. As the ‘rule of law’ of the British government slid unobtrusively into the public domain, the criminal courts and the jails turned into public theatres of infamy — spaces that the ethically bound bhadralok dreaded occupying. The volume, thus, documents how the colonial legal and penal institutions streamlined the identities of some sections of the lower castes into ‘criminal caste’. It also examines the nature of colonial bureaucracy and highlights the social silence on gender and women's criminality.
Axel Michaels
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- May 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780195343021
- eISBN:
- 9780199866984
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195343021.003.0003
- Subject:
- Religion, Hinduism
This chapter describes and analyzes the Worship for the Salvation of the Country (Deóddhārapūjā). It is a festival and procession during which a group of representatives from the four classes ...
More
This chapter describes and analyzes the Worship for the Salvation of the Country (Deóddhārapūjā). It is a festival and procession during which a group of representatives from the four classes (varṇa), built out of eight castes, are worshipped by the Newar population of Deopatan. Apparently, the varṇa scheme has been imposed on the local caste system involving all major social groups in order to harmonize tantric and smārta forms of worship. The festival is a fascinating field of study for its elaborated ṭīkā exchange and the binding of huge turbans for the varṇa representatives.Less
This chapter describes and analyzes the Worship for the Salvation of the Country (Deóddhārapūjā). It is a festival and procession during which a group of representatives from the four classes (varṇa), built out of eight castes, are worshipped by the Newar population of Deopatan. Apparently, the varṇa scheme has been imposed on the local caste system involving all major social groups in order to harmonize tantric and smārta forms of worship. The festival is a fascinating field of study for its elaborated ṭīkā exchange and the binding of huge turbans for the varṇa representatives.
Robert Eric Frykenberg
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- September 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780198263777
- eISBN:
- 9780191714191
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198263777.003.0009
- Subject:
- Religion, Church History
This chapter explores European Christians' attempts to control and exercise dominion over Indian Christians from the 19th century and onwards. It argues that at each and every stage of development in ...
More
This chapter explores European Christians' attempts to control and exercise dominion over Indian Christians from the 19th century and onwards. It argues that at each and every stage of development in missionary expansions during the 19th century, whether imperial or national, from the time of Christian Friedrich Schwartz down to such missionaries as Allen Hume, Verrier Elwin, Charles F. Andrews, Edward Thompson, and Amy Carmichael, there were prominent anti-imperial, pro-nationalist missionaries, many of whom also remained isolated as marginalized mavericks. All missionaries had to confront conflicts between universalistic ideals of their faith and more immediate political realities, whether these were imperial or national in character.Less
This chapter explores European Christians' attempts to control and exercise dominion over Indian Christians from the 19th century and onwards. It argues that at each and every stage of development in missionary expansions during the 19th century, whether imperial or national, from the time of Christian Friedrich Schwartz down to such missionaries as Allen Hume, Verrier Elwin, Charles F. Andrews, Edward Thompson, and Amy Carmichael, there were prominent anti-imperial, pro-nationalist missionaries, many of whom also remained isolated as marginalized mavericks. All missionaries had to confront conflicts between universalistic ideals of their faith and more immediate political realities, whether these were imperial or national in character.
Veena Das
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- September 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780198077404
- eISBN:
- 9780199081172
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198077404.003.0001
- Subject:
- Sociology, Social Theory
This introductory chapter discusses Hindu caste and ritual. It examines the religious texts in Sanskrit, which serve as relevant sources of information on Indian society. It takes a look at ...
More
This introductory chapter discusses Hindu caste and ritual. It examines the religious texts in Sanskrit, which serve as relevant sources of information on Indian society. It takes a look at anthropological research and the formation of a positivist approach, as well as the consequences of defining social reality based on concreteness. It introduces Louis Dumont's writings, where he rejects the dichotomy between behaviour and thought, and insists that an explanatory model cannot be limited to copying observed reality. It then pinpoints the two Sanskrit texts that will be analyzed in detail, namely the Dharmaranya Purana and the Grihya Sutra of Gobhila. The chapter also studies the caste Puranas, who are defined as a class of Sanskrit language that is concerned with the five main themes of creation.Less
This introductory chapter discusses Hindu caste and ritual. It examines the religious texts in Sanskrit, which serve as relevant sources of information on Indian society. It takes a look at anthropological research and the formation of a positivist approach, as well as the consequences of defining social reality based on concreteness. It introduces Louis Dumont's writings, where he rejects the dichotomy between behaviour and thought, and insists that an explanatory model cannot be limited to copying observed reality. It then pinpoints the two Sanskrit texts that will be analyzed in detail, namely the Dharmaranya Purana and the Grihya Sutra of Gobhila. The chapter also studies the caste Puranas, who are defined as a class of Sanskrit language that is concerned with the five main themes of creation.
Antony Black
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- May 2009
- ISBN:
- 9780199281695
- eISBN:
- 9780191713101
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199281695.003.0007
- Subject:
- Political Science, Political Theory
Political thought in India was based partly on religious texts, which explained dharma (morality) and the caste system, partly on arthashastras, which gave pragmatic advice on how to pursue wealth ...
More
Political thought in India was based partly on religious texts, which explained dharma (morality) and the caste system, partly on arthashastras, which gave pragmatic advice on how to pursue wealth and power (of these only Kautilya's survives). The king's role was to support dharma and caste by coercive power. The tension between morality and necessity is the most original aspect of Indian political thought. Kautilya discussed numerous alternatives in both foreign and domestic policy; he stressed the importance of economic management as the basis of military power. The Buddha was revolutionary in founding a religious community in which caste did not matter, but regarded the political sphere as irrelevant to his concerns.Less
Political thought in India was based partly on religious texts, which explained dharma (morality) and the caste system, partly on arthashastras, which gave pragmatic advice on how to pursue wealth and power (of these only Kautilya's survives). The king's role was to support dharma and caste by coercive power. The tension between morality and necessity is the most original aspect of Indian political thought. Kautilya discussed numerous alternatives in both foreign and domestic policy; he stressed the importance of economic management as the basis of military power. The Buddha was revolutionary in founding a religious community in which caste did not matter, but regarded the political sphere as irrelevant to his concerns.
