Lopamudra Mahapatra, Week 3

Chapter 1

Uma Chakravarti in her reading “Understanding Caste” talks about the deep rooted internal differences within the country that still persists over the years and has somewhere created  a sense of domination of the upper caste over the lower caste. The Varnas and Jati system of the country has successfully divided the population of the country into two parts. The former being rich and powerful who further end up gaining political power over land, resources, and education. The later part of the country are the poor and powerless chunk of the population who are being exploited and denied the basic human rights of the country. They are being labelled as “impure” and “untouchable”. The main argument of the given reading is that the hierarchical distribution of the power does not allow the lower caste members of the society to literate themselves or gain power in an order to elevate themselves in the society, as a result of which they continue to be a part of the vicious circle.

Chapter 2

Uma Chakravarti in her reading “ The axis of gender stratification in India” talks about how over the years even though women have successfully fought for their economic independence, the real struggle for women to come out of male dominance still persists. The main argument of the reading is that even though women have reached appreciable heights in their respective fields in an order to break the social norms, however they are still being objectified ruthlessly. Further the author supports this argument by giving instances from the conceptual practices of the Indian marriage. The practice of  “Kanyadan” is being described as process where women is being treated a gift to her husband’s family which  is necessary for the progression of the generation.