I intend to focus my research project on the development of the caste and class systems in India with significant interest on the effects of modernization on social mobility. I am particularly curious about the so-called “Scheduled Caste,” (Dalit) “Scheduled Tribe,” (Adivasi), and the “Other Backwards Class.” The OBC is a fluctuating governmental list of classes and castes deemed disenfranchised and socially and educationally disadvantaged. As a part of this project I hope to explore the more nuanced forms of structural and symbolic violence and their interplay in Indian cultures both in how they are expressed and how they are combated by the people and the systems of power. This will include research on the Indian “reservation” system (their term for affirmative action) in which a quota system is enacted to reserve seats in government, representation, education, and occupation.
The study of systems of power and subsequent forms of systemic oppression (or empowerment) will hopefully continue to form the basis for my eventual senior thesis. I believe that an awareness of such things is indelibly important for life in a society, regardless of vocation.
The caste system is attributed more to religiosity than to regionalism. I believe there will be ample case studies and banks of information in Delhi, Chennai, & Varanasi. It would be interesting to see the way that caste is viewed in those different regions with different histories of religion and cultural ethos. More specifically: Varanasi is known to be a city rich with temples and other religious respites, is there an increased Brahmin class presence? How is “sanskritization” experienced in these different cities? (Sanskritization is a form of Indian social mobility in which the people of a lower caste begin to emulate the habitus of people of higher classes in order to gain prestige and ideally transcend caste rigidity)
In terms of whom I’d like to interview: I would start by talking to the university professors and the students that I’ll hopefully have easy access to. I will proceed to find people of varying walks of life (taxi & rickshaw drivers, suited businessmen, shop clerks, people holding governmental positions, and generally the people I meet on the street who find me and my questions agreeable). My intent is to find people working in a diverse range of jobs and studies and to see what caste/class they attribute to and if they find that there is mobility between—or within—them. I also hope to travel to different parts of each city, seeing how the castes are (or aren’t) physically segregated and who occupies the parts of the cities considered “touristy.”
The libraries and scholars that are accessible in India will have a stronger understanding of the origins of the caste system, the origins of caste mythology (Purusha Sukta), the integration of classes into castes under the British Raj, and other relevant information about how the system has shifted (if at all) since Partition. At the schools I will look into how the Reservation system helps OBC’s education and what sorts of financial aid are available.
Some questions I will pursue are:
What was the caste/class system like before the British regime?
What effect has capitalism had on the caste system and social mobility?
What kinds of things are taught in schools that may persuade or dissuade attendance?
How have the appearances of the castes shifted over time (habitus, sanskritization)?
To what degree is endogamy enforced (legalities, religious & socio-cultural enforcement)?
Woodburne, A. S. Can India’s Caste System Survive in Modern Life? The Journal of Religion, Vol. 2, No. 5 (Sep., 1922), pp. 525-537 Published by: The University of Chicago Press
While this article is dated I hope that it will give me insights into the once-predicted future of the caste system. Perhaps I can compare my insights of the present system with Woodburne’s predictions.
Niehoff, Arthur. Caste and Industrial Organization in North India. Administrative Science Quarterly, Vol. 3, No. 4 (Mar., 1959), pp. 494-508
Published by: Sage Publications, Inc. on behalf of the Johnson Graduate School of Management, Cornell University
Shah, A.M., Caste in the 21st Century: From System to Elements. Economic and Political Weekly, Vol. 42, No. 44 (Nov. 3-9, 2007), pp. 109-116
Mukheriee, Bamkrishna. Caste In Itself, Caste and Class, or Caste in Class. Economic and Political Weekly, Vol. 34, No 27, (Jul 3-9, 1999), pp. 1759-1761
Srinivas, M. N. Caste In Modern India. The Journal of Asian Studies, Vol. 16, No. 4 (Aug., 1957), pp. 529-548 Published by: Association for Asian Studies
Natrajan, Balmurli. Caste, Class, and Community in India: An Ethnographic Approach. Ethnology, Vol. 44, No. 3 (Summer, 2005), pp. 227-241. Published by: University of Pittsburgh- Of the Commonwealth System of Higher Education
Zwart, Frank de. The Logic of Affirmative Action: Caste, Class, and Quotas in India. Acta Sociologica, Vol. 43, No. 3 (2000), pp. 235-249 Published by: Sage Publications, Ltd.
Shah, A.M. Sanskritization Revisited. Sociological Bulletin, Vol. 54, No. 2 (May-August 2005), pp. 238-249 Published by: Indian Sociological Society
Trivedi, Harshad. Discussion: Varna and Jati—Some New Thoughts. Sociological Bulletin, Vol. 46, No. 1 (MARCH 1997), pp. 139-141 Published by: Indian Sociological Society