Women, Caste and Reform
(Solutions)
Let's Recall
1. What social ideas did the following people support?Rammohun Roy
Dayanand Saraswati
Veerasalingam Pantulu
Jyotirao Phule
Pandita Ramabai
Periyar
Mumtaz Ali
Ishwarchandra Vidyasagar
Answer:
Rammohun Roy: Supported the banning of the practice of 'Sati'
Dayanand Saraswati: Supported Widow remarriage
Veerasalingam Pantulu: Supported Widow remarriage
Jyotirao Phule: Supported equality among castes
Pandita Ramabai: Supported women's Education
Periyar: Supported equality for untouchables.
Mumtaz Ali: Supported Wome's Education
Ishwarchandra Vidyasagar: Supported Widow remarriage
2. State whether true or false:
(a) When the British captured Bengal they framed many new laws to regulate the rules regarding marriage, adoption, inheritance or property, etc.
Answer: True
(b) Social reformers had to discard the ancient texts in order to argue for reform in social practises.
Answer: False
(c) Reformers got full support from all sections of the people of the country.
Answer: False
(d) The Child Marriage Restraint Act was passed in 1829.
Answer: False
Let's Discuss
3. How did the knowledge of ancient texts help the reformers promote new laws?Answer: Whenever they wished to challenge a practice that seemed harmful, they tried to find a verse or sentence in the ancient sacred texts that supported their point of view.They then suggested that the practice as it existed at present was against early tradition.
4. What were the different reasons people had for not sending girls to school?Answer: The following were the different reasons people had for not sending girls to school.
- They feared that schools would take girls away from home, thereby preventing them from doing their domestic duties.
- They felt that travelling through public places in order to reach school would have a corrupting influence on girls.
- They felt that girls should stay away from public spaces.
Answer: In the nineteenth century, Christian missionaries started setting up schools for tribal groups and lowercaste children. People who looked down on the lower caste did not like the progress of this section of people.
Yes, social reformers would have supported the missionaries for their work against social evils.
6. In the British period, what new opportunities opened up for people who came from castes that were regarded as "low"?
6. In the British period, what new opportunities opened up for people who came from castes that were regarded as "low"?
Answer: The poor from the villages and small towns, many of them from low castes, began moving to the cities where there was a new demand for labour. Some also went to work in plantations in Assam, Mauritius, Trinidad and Indonesia. The poor and the people from low castes saw this as an opportunity to get away from the oppressive hold that upper-caste landowners exercised over their lives and the daily humiliation they suffered.
7. How did Jyotirao and the reformers justify their criticism of caste inequality in society?
Answer: Phule argued that the Aryans were foreigners, who came from outside the subcontinent, and defeated and subjugated the native Indians. As the Aryans established their supremacy, they began looking at the Indians as inferior and low caste people. According to Phule, the "upper" castes had no right to their land and power: in reality, the land belonged to indigenous people, the so-called low castes.
8. Why did Phule dedicate his book Gulamgiri to the American movement to free slaves?
Answer: The book Gulamgiri was written in 1873. By dedicating this to the American movement to free slaves, he linked the conditions of the black slaves in America with those of the lower castes in India.
9. What did Ambedkar want to achieve through the temple entry movement?
Answer: Dr. B. R. Ambedkar started a temple entry movement in 1927. He led three such movements for temple entry between 1927 and 1935. His aim was to make everyone see the power of caste prejudices within the society.
10. Why were Jyotirao Phule and Ramaswamy Naicker critical of the national movement? Did their criticism help the national struggle in any way?
Answer: Both Jyoti Rao Phule and Naicker were critical of national movement in their own times.
Answer: Phule argued that the Aryans were foreigners, who came from outside the subcontinent, and defeated and subjugated the native Indians. As the Aryans established their supremacy, they began looking at the Indians as inferior and low caste people. According to Phule, the "upper" castes had no right to their land and power: in reality, the land belonged to indigenous people, the so-called low castes.
8. Why did Phule dedicate his book Gulamgiri to the American movement to free slaves?
Answer: The book Gulamgiri was written in 1873. By dedicating this to the American movement to free slaves, he linked the conditions of the black slaves in America with those of the lower castes in India.
9. What did Ambedkar want to achieve through the temple entry movement?
Answer: Dr. B. R. Ambedkar started a temple entry movement in 1927. He led three such movements for temple entry between 1927 and 1935. His aim was to make everyone see the power of caste prejudices within the society.
10. Why were Jyotirao Phule and Ramaswamy Naicker critical of the national movement? Did their criticism help the national struggle in any way?
Answer: Both Jyoti Rao Phule and Naicker were critical of national movement in their own times.
Jyoti Rao Phule was critical of nationalism preached by upper castes. He believed that though the upper-caste leaders were then asking people all over the country to unite for fighting the British, once the Britishers had left, they would continue with their oppressive caste policies, thereby causing divisions amongst the very people they were trying to unite.
E V Ramaswamy Naicker became member of Congress. But left it in disgust when he found out that at a feast, organised by nationalists, seating arrangement was based on caste distinctions.
Yes their assertions, forceful speeches and writings did lead to rethink and self-criticism among the upper caste nationalist leaders.
E V Ramaswamy Naicker became member of Congress. But left it in disgust when he found out that at a feast, organised by nationalists, seating arrangement was based on caste distinctions.
Yes their assertions, forceful speeches and writings did lead to rethink and self-criticism among the upper caste nationalist leaders.
11. Mention the social reforms undertaken in the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir to ameliorate the existing condition of women and oppressed classes.
Answer: Many steps were taken to remove many social evils such as child marriage, trafficking of women, Sati and untouchability etc. An injunction issued on April 14th, 1859, Maharaja Ranbir Singh ensured that the social evils like Sati and female infanticide were put to an end. In order to enable issueless widows to live an honorable life, he also sanctioned an endowment of rupees 1 lakh in January, 1861. This trend of social reform in the state was carried forward by Maharaja Hari Singh. He, in order to eradicate these evil practices and ameliorate the position of women, took a series of steps such as:
- Infant Marriage Prevention Regulation was passed under which the age for girls was fixed at minimum of 14 years and for boys a minimum of 18 years.
- Window Re-marriage Act, was passed in 1933.
- Prohibition of Polygamy (The custom of having more than one wife at the same time).
- Regulation for Suppression of Immoral Trafficking of Women.
- Dhandevi Memorial Fund was established to extended financial help to the girls at the time of their marriage.
If you have any doubt, suggestion or question, feel free to contact us.