CASTE, MARRIAGE AND INEQUALITY Studies from North and South India

Book Details

• Author: Pauline Kolenda

• Binding: Hardcover

• Publisher: Rawat Publications

• ISBN: 9788170337997

• Language: English

• Release Date: 01-12-2015

• Pages: 480

About the Book

CASTE, MARRIAGE AND INEQUALITY: Studies from North and South India is a collection of fourteen ethnographic papers by Pauline Kolenda, written between 1976 and 2001. The papers present an insightful analysis of caste, marriage, and inequality, based on Kolenda's extensive fieldwork across various regions of India.

The book is divided into several parts:

• Part I: Focuses on Khalapur, a village in western Uttar Pradesh, where Kolenda conducted her first fieldwork in 1954. Papers here cover topics such as the experiences of untouchable Sweepers, including the practice of mandatory levirate, the humor of Sweeper men, changes in caste discourse, and a significant decline in child mortality over decades.

• Part II: Explores Kanyakumari district in Tamil Nadu, where Kolenda carried out fieldwork from 1967 to 1997. The papers discuss the changing social structure of Smartha Brahmans, their loss of elite status, the impact of secular education, and their migration patterns. One paper also examines land circulation among various caste communities in the region.

• Part III: Presents a study on joint families in rural Rajasthan based on fieldwork in the 1960s and '70s, supported by Census data from 1961.

• Part IV: Compares the image of "woman" in weddings in Khalapur and Kanyakumari, and also contrasts sibling relationships across north, central, and south India.

• Part V: Reflects on caste in India in the mid-1980s.

• Part VI: Contains papers on inequality, with one comparing inequality in India and the USA, and another examining the scapegoating of untouchables in scholarly discourse.

This collection provides a rich, multi-faceted view of Indian society, particularly in terms of caste dynamics, gender roles, and the sociocultural transformations within different Indian communities.

Contents

1. Living the Levirate

2. ‘Untouchable’ Chuhras Through their Humor

3. Micro-Ideology and Micro-Utopia in Khalapur

4. Fewer Deaths, Fewer Births

5. Memories of a Brahman Agraharam in Travancore

6. The Tamil Brahman Family as Affected by Out-Migration and Modern Occupations

7. Grandsons of the Shastrigals

8. Foxes, Lions and Bears

9. The Joint Family Household in Rural Rajasthan

10. Woman as Tribute, Woman as Flower

11. Sibling Relations and Marriage Practices

12. Caste in India Since Independence

13. How Should We Think About Inequality? Or No Tears for Losers

14. Demonizing Dalits

About the Author

Pauline Kolenda is Emerita Professor of Anthropology at the University of Houston and a Visiting Scholar in Anthropology at the University of California, Berkeley. With extensive fieldwork experience in North, Central, and South India, she has made significant contributions to the study of caste, marriage, and inequality in Indian society.