Are caste and class merely different forms of qualitatively different types of social stratification? Elucidate your point of view. (300 Words )

Social stratification is structures inequalites placed in by ranking different groups says Anthony giddens. Such a phenomena is observed with ordering of caste groups in closed society like India and also ordering of class groups as seen in western countries.

Such systems of stratification are not merely some types of stratification . They reflect the nature of reality and opens up a possibility of interaction with various other social phenomena.

Stratification through Caste system is not unique to India as described by Dumont. Caste like division is found in other south east Asian societies. Such system tells about the occupational structure , scope for mobility and nature of political environment in the society. As MN Srinivas indicated , dominant castes play a major role in local politics.

On the other hand class system of stratification speaks volumes about economic conditions of a society. There is a presumption that class system is mobile for all and sundry. But Andre Beteille counters this fact by saying that class system in India is sowly acquiring the features of caste system. And to prevent mobility , the upper class are devising various ways to keep their dominance intact.

Further ,there is a constant interplay between caste and class groups. In India , with economic growth and reservation policies, Dalits are slowly rising in the class ladder . However , their position in caste hierarchy is still not improved which reminds the fact that Ambedkar had urged dismantling of caste system to achieve an egalitarian order in Indian society

Extra>>>> How marriages organised b/w classes and between classes in a caste. How modern urban society heading from caste to class society

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Caste and class both coexist in contemporary India and interact with each other in a dialectical relationship.

There has also been a correlation between caste hierarchy and class statification. MN Srinivas notes that most of the upper class occupations strongly correlate with upper castes as they were the ones to first exploit the means of class mobility in western education introduced by the British.

The functional aspect of caste has seen a decline, as Fuller argues, due to withdrawal of caste from the public sphere and its movement in the private sphere. Ritual purity has given way to cultural difference as a marker of separation. Instead of Jati, many use samaj to refer to caste differences instead of caste hierarchy.

So, caste strictly as a type of social stratification has undergone a decline. But caste is used as an identity for consolidation and mobility in the class hierarchy by political mobilisations in the form of caste. In the Green Revolution belts and coming of upward class mobility, lower castes like Yadavs and Jats in western UP, Reddys and Khammas in Andhra Pradesh, caste consolidation is used for political mobility and maintaining of closure in the class structure.

Class struggles have taken form of caste struggles. B.T ranadive argues that anti caste struggles have taken the form of reservation of jobs and distribution of surplus for class mobility. There has been an increase in caste conflicts in post independence India than pre independent India, were agrarian conflicts were more prevalent.

Caste as a form of stratification has undergone a change, but it is used as a form of identity and for consolidation for upward mobility in the class and power structure. Thus, there is continuity and change in caste, and a dialectical relationship exists between caste and class in modern day India.

“Vote Banks” and the democratic process.

By freeing herself from the clutches of colonial rule , India opted for democratic form of government albeit a representative one.Such a system mandates its citizens , through adult franchisee , to choose their representatives at regular intervals of time.

Such a democratic process opens the platform for participation of various groups in pursuit of political power. Such an act creates the possibility of formation of vote banks as described by MN Srinivas in his paper entitled " The Social System of a Mysore Village".

Vote bank politics urges the political party to congregate a group of supporters , invest in their welfare and reap dividends during elections. This has been the case in India for the last two decades. And srinivas tell that such a phenomena has intensified Identity politics. He argues that policy makers indulge in populist policies to appease their core group of vote bank thereby loosing focus on Inclusive growth.

He further adds that caste groups and religious associations are the major target groups for creation of vote banks. Thus it encourages voters to vote on the basis of narrow considerations, often against their better judgement, which is considered inimical to democracy.

Today , secularism being the basic feature of Indian democracy has redered defunt both by so called secularists and communalists who appease their core group during electoral activity.

--- > You can make it better by using:

Old/Cultural source of mobilisation like caste, religion vs new/emerging like development (may give Modi Example). Rajani Kothari said that interplay has led to secularisation of caste and democratisation of politics

Secularization and social solidarity

Secularization , says Srinivas , is that which was religious earlier ceases to be such today. The western connotation reflects the reduced influence of religion on secular spheres of life like education , law , family etc ,. and thereby confinement of belief system to private sphere.

In Indian conception , secularization is aided by state with its ideal on secularism by standing equidistant to all religions. However , secularization process in India has not intensified as it is western countries.

Social solidarity is intensified with secularizaton with what is called as civil religion by Durkheim. He says that national symbols arouse the collective consciousness among people of a country and contributes in social solidarity. Further , such a process has brought together people who believe in liberal values as can be seen in various protest movements across the country.

Further , Andre Beteille argues that secularization is driven also by the requirements of development and modernisation . The need to build secular institutions brings people from different walks of life together thereby strengthening the social solidarity. However , he also warns about the so called secularists who creates wedge between different communities for their political gains.

Discuss suicide as a social fact. While explaining the typology of suicide according to Durkheim, bring out the destabilizing role of anomic in modern societies. (300 Words)

The question demanded more elaboration on Anomic suicide. So you could cut down on other three forms and focussed on Anomic one.

Also ,one thing I observed in other answers as well . We need to explicitly establish how Durkheim considered Suicide as social fact. Many places there are traces but I suppose we need to elaborate.

I hope this might help . Please share your viewpoint

Social Fact is ( Suicide )

1. Thing and studied empirically ( Durkheim studied suicide by collection of statistical data .. So it is a thing)
2. External to individual ( Suicide happend even when individual is not neurotic and also it happens to all . So cause is outside individual , in society )
3. Coercive on Individual ( He said Boom -> Individualism -> Monotony - > Depression -> forces individual to suicide )
4. explained by other social facts ( Suicide explained by Integration and Regulation )

So considering all these we can say Suicide is a social fact

Indian Culture and Family Values

Family is the longest surviving institution of India irrespective of the ages, transformations, religious and political views. Loyalty, integrity and unity are the three pillars upon which Indian families & Indian Culture stand. From family, Indians learn the first letters of collectivism and sacrificing individualism for collective interest. Extended family and kinship are two key aspect of Indian family system.

In some parts of India, you will find patriarchal families while in southern India you can find mother-centric families and kinship. Historically, family in India means joint family consisting of grandparents, parents and their offspring. They all leave in the same household, share the common income, eat the food that is cooked for all members and share the same religious values and faith. Though, joint family system is losing its importance with the growth of materialistic values, still you can find this system in most of the parts of rural India.

In general, the male child is given more importance compared to his female counterpart. This is due to the reason that traditionally men are the bread earners and women are the house makers in an Indian family. In a traditional Indian joint family, though the decisions are taken collectively after proper discussion among the elders, the words of the head of the family are final. In an Indian family, child rearing is permissive in most of the cases. The children are not allowed to be independent, take their own decision and self-sufficient before they become completely adult. However, utmost care is taken to improve the personality of the child in a positive manner by all elders of the family. In a typical Indian family boundary line, adolescence is the most difficult time for a person. He/she wants liberty and emancipation while the whole system denies it. Arrange marriage is more or less a rule in most parts of India even in 21st century.According to me Indian Culture is the best in the world , For us, India comes first Always and Every time.

Education for social equality.

Education has an emancipating power. Education is wedded to reason and reason is becoming the pivot of social change. From the ancient time till the modern time higher castes in the ritual hierarchy commanded an undisputed control over education. The very control over education was not only the manifestation of power asymmetry in the social institutions but also its progenitor. Brahmins were compared with brain, the container of knowledge. Shudras had no access to education which kept them in a bottom of the ritual hierarchy.

British rule in India came as an emancipator for lower castes. The secular orientation of British and administrative requirement gave a boost to education and in particular higher education. There also came intellectuals likes William Jones who revived the interest in education in ancient Hindu texts. The texts were reinterpreted in modern context. Social reformers explained the distortion that was prevailed in the society about the ritual hierarchy and the varna system in light of the newly gained knowledge. Initial beneficiary of this era of modern education were mainly higher and middle caste people but nevertheless the social reformers of the time percolated it to the lower castes as well.

now write about >> constitution (education ..article)>> reservation>> impacts>> improvements>>etc.

Religious and Ethnic conflict in India.

Reasons: 

1. Narrow and wrong interpretation of History (Aryan - Dasa - Muslim Invador)
2. The democracy in India rests on vote bank rather then issues and hence some parochial interests never let the peace prevail (political elite)
3. Resources are where the tribes are. (Tribal - Dikhu conflict)
4. British interests (sided with one religion)
5. 'Soft State' (Gunnal Myrdal)
6. Poverty > limited resources > causes conflict > given religious ethnic flavor later
7. Role of Media > Social Media

Research Design.

Black and Champion have pointed out the following three functions of research design.

1. A research design provides a blueprint for operationalizing the research activity. 
2. It defines the limit and scope of the research. 
3. It provides an opportunity to the researcher to foresee possible areas of problems in the process. carrying out the research.

Write short notes on ALL of the following (each answer should not exceed 200 words)

(a) Alienation in modern society. 

Karl Marx introduced the concept of alienation. In a capitalist society, the worker experiences alienation because of loss of control over production process and the product. Because of this he loses interest in the work.

So according to Marx, in modern society, the alienation is expected because the mode of production is capitalistic but all the sociologist are of not the same view. Some sociologists like Herbert Blauner concluded that skilling and automation of workers lead to less alienation. Others like Mills report the alienation in white collar jobs as well. Also alienation is found to be different in different industries.

There are many things which have changed since Marx had written about alienation. Todays workers don't work under too bad conditions. They have reasonable social security. The welfare state has helped in this respect. Similarly, majority of workers are knowledge workers whose jobs are innovative and interesting so they are less likely to feel alienation.

So the alienation as a concept is still applicable to some sectors and industries in modern society also but the workers are unlikely to redeem themselves off by revolution as suggested by Marx.

(b) 'Value Problem' in sociological research. 

Values are the guiding force for an action. Values are the perception of a person about right & wrong for an object or situation. Positivist thinker like August Comte, Spencer argue that values of social researcher should be unbiased, neutral & should be based on facts alone while doing research. But this is difficult to be value neutral in sociology as for ex. a researcher studying family is probably get influenced by his values as he himself is a member of the family. In different sociological research like phenomenology i.e. from researcher point of view & ethnomethodological perspective i.e. from the view of the society being researched, researcher should take care of not to get engulfed in the ethnocentric view.

Further interpretationist like Weber said it is not possible to study the complete objective reality of subjective thing. As researcher uses his values to decide about research topic, make generalisation but as research is funded by the elite section of society so that may also influence by the conservative values of elite class. For ex a govt. conducting research may deliberately try to show that condition of women improved in society.

Value problem can be overcome by the researcher by getting an outside view i.e by seeing research through the eyes of others. By providing information of social background of researcher, by enlisting the points the researcher has followed so that other can follow that and see whether the result are same or not. Thus the problem of values in sociology can be minimised.

(c) Social Action and Pattern variables. 

Social action as per Talcott parson are those action which full fill the following condition

1. It is towards attainment of goals
2. It is occur in situation
3. It is according to the values & norms of society
4. It needs some energy or motivation to invest.

For example a lady going to temple by car for worshipping it is a social action as it toward attainment of goal of worshipping, it consist of situation of driving on road, it is as per norms of society, the lady is also investing her energy in driving to reach temple.

Patter variables provide the different ways of acting in situation as given by Talcott parson, he provided following pattern variable

Collectivistic v/s specific orientation

Diffuseness v/s specificity

Affectivity v/s affective neutrality

Universalism v/s particularism

Ascription v/s achivement

For example a mother child relationship is more guide by affectivity, diffuseness whereas doctor patient relationship is guided by affective neutrality, specificity.

(d) Socialization and the Self.

Society is the product of self and self is the product of society said G.H Mead.With an entirely different approach from that of his predecessors , Mead argued studying the presentation of self is the subject matter of sociology.

Society helps in creating one's self is through the process of socialization for which family is the foundation. For instance a child in a family learns to take the role of others during his growth . In play stage he takes single roles in sequence , whereas in game stage he goes on to take multiple roles simultaneously.

Mead further argues that , by presenting the self and through interaction with his co-actors, an individual in evaluating oneself constantly. Consequently , he modifies his action according to the situation.This happens with all the individuals making way for action and interaction. Such multiple interactions form society and hence society is also product of selves.

Thus, in his words, socialization through family helps a person to be reflexive of ones action which is not present in case of animals. It further nurtures the I ( Innovative ) and Me (Conformist ) parts of ones self which is both a subject - in the form of future anticipations - as well as object - in the form of continuous evaluation in pursuit of achieving subjective goals.

Distinguish among power, prestige and authority. What are the different ways in which an authority may gain legitimacy? Why does a changing society face crises of legitimacy?

Power according to Max Weber is the ability of a person or a group of men to realize their will in a communal action even against the opposition of others involved in it. Prestige refers to the social standing of a person- the honour that is accorded to him by the society. Prestige may be a result of holding power. But it may also be due to individual qualities, lifestyle. It is not necessary for a person holding power to be held in prestige. For example the neo-rich hold power by virtue of money but they are held in low prestige. Weber defines authority as that form of power which is accepted as legitimate, right and just and is obeyed by the subjects. e.g. Bureaucracy is an authority which is legitimate in the governance of society.

Following are the three different ways in which an authority may gain legitimacy – 

1. Traditional Authority – the legitimacy of the authority that comes through the inherited authority. e.g. Kings in Britain, patriarchy is Indian society etc are the example which are there existing in society traditionally.
2. Charismatic Authority – the legitimacy of this authority comes by the leadership, heroism and charisma of the personality. The legitimacy sustained till the charismatic person exists or till the followers legitimize him as charismatic. E.g.- Mahatma Budhha, Bhagwan Mahavir, Mahatma Gandhi were the charismatic personalities.
3. Legal-Rational Authority – the legitimacy is based on the rules and regulations. E.g. the Authority of democratic government of India is given legitimacy by the people of India.

Changing society faces the crisis of legitimacy due to following reasons-

Despotic rule of traditional emperor leads to alienation of people and breach of trust, consequently revolution may occur and they throw away their dictatorship or emperorship Eg. Arab Spring. The moral and value erosion of charismatic individuals. E.g. Asharam Bapu, Swami Nityanand. Economic - crisis, political and social causes. E.g. Scotland’s alienation from British empire.

Further crises of legitimacy may be what durkheim call as anomie, marx call as alienation or merton call as deviance. So try to include that. :)

Examine Pareto’s analysis of the circulation of elites. It is valid for the modern industrial societies?

The elite theory is a theory of the state which seeks to describe and explain the power relationships in contemporary society. Vilfredo Pareto developed the notion of the circulation of elites in this regard. It emerged in part as reaction to Marxism and rejected communist utopia as an illusion. The theory assumes that 

• All societies are divided into two groups i.e. Ruling minority and ruled majority and this is inevitable
• Ruling minority i.e. elites have some psychological and personal qualities as source of power
• This minority is cohesive and united in front of unorganized and fragmented masses
• Major decision are taken by elites
• Majority remains apathetic and unconcerned in major issues of the day

Further, he emphasized the psychological and intellectual superiority of elites, believing that they were the highest accomplishers in any field. He discussed the existence of two types of elites:

1. Governing elites
2. Non-governing elites

Pareto compares them with loins and foxes. The former one is forceful and he can take incisive and decisions, whereas the later is cunning elite. Pareto’s concept of circulation of elites can examined with illustrations that Military dictatorship is an example of Lion elite and the European government established by manipulation and wheeling-dealing is an example of Fox elites. The establishment of elite authority one after other by lions and foxes is called as circulation of elites.The elites would be replaced by new ones due to several reasons like decadence, loss of vigour, lacking in qualities of the counterpart and resistance to change. He said that nothing ever really changes and history is and always will be a graveyard of aristocracies.

Pareto’s theory is based on his study of ancient empires like Roman , hence it is considered simple and not very relevant to modern industrial societies. He does not take into political developments like democratic State which does not depend on the personal quality of a single leader. Differences in the political system is considered minor by him.

Write short notes on

Varna and Jati

• The varna division is alluded to in the late Rigvedic Purusha Sukta

• Varna is a broad framework that divides Hindu society into 4 hierarchical strata namely Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas and Shudras.

• It saw its emergence in post vedic period when the division of labour

• Varna was given a cultural connotation to protect ones occupational dominance due to rise in population. And thus it was transformed from an open class system to rigid hierarchical system.

• On the other hand Jati is a localised phenomena. Each varna category is further subdivided into Jati and sub-Jatis

• MN Srinivas aptly said that Jati is the reality of India. He futher adds that varna system has produced a distorted imange of Indian society. For instance , he says , varna and caste coincides at the top and the bottom of hierarchy but is quite fluid in between. Further , he adds that there are many communities whose position in chaturvarna system is not clear . Eg: Kayasthas of North India and Lingayats of south India.

Growing economic disparities despite development planning.

• Planned economy to remove the various inequalities that pervaded our society. 

• Allocation of optimum resources to the various regions to ensure balanced growth

• The five year plans initially focused on community development program

• Economic disparity reached a peak after the liberalization and privatization policies following the 1991 economic crisis

• Crony capitalism, corruption, power politics, neo-liberal policies all have led to the sustaining economic disparity in our society.

Slow progress of Scheduled caste despite Protective Discrimination.

• The scheduled caste - most marginalized section 

• Very few SCs in the top managerial positions while they are over represented in the group III and IV jobs. More than 90% of manual scavengers are from SC. 

• Different forms of atrocities

• Although, the constitution has provided various safeguards to the SC- such as reservation in Parliament, state legislatures, jobs and education, banning untouchability, setting up of National commission for SCs, various scholarship and welfare schemes etc

• Resons: 

• Illiteracy and lack of awareness of these schemes

• Failure of land reform measures- which led to eviction of mostly dalit agricultura labourers. Being landless and uneducated as compared to upper and intermediate caste, Dalits have been unable to make use of constitutional safeguards like protective discrimination

• Lacking land prevents them from getting bank loans to start new ventures

• Being poor and discriminated, they are malnourished and hence in poor condition to compete with other well of sections in job and education

• Domination by dominant castes in rural areas. Systematic exploitation and atrocities are perpetrated against them.

• According to Andre Beteill untouchability is now replaced by atrocities by dominant caste – for example the Yadav landlords of Bihar against landless Dalit agricultural labourer

• Howeer, a small secion of dalits have made good use of protective discriminatn but have evolved into “dalit elites” who often ignore the plight of their other lowly brethren. Centuries of systematic exploitation of Dalits will take a long time to unwind and there are signs of change.

Whether the status of women in India is due to their inherent qualities or to social arrangements.

• Women in India have not always been a subjugated section, they enjoyed considerable autonomy during early vedic period. 

• In modern industrial society as well, women are enjoying more status owing to her economic independence by taking employment outside home. 

• These are evidences for the fact that women’s biological nature have nothing to do with her low status in the society.

• The patriarchal joint family of traditional India confined women to household matters. She had no say in the outside world, the higher the caste stricter was this rule. 

• B R Ambedkar attributes the low statues of women, her confinement to household, the ban on widow remarriage etc. to the rules of endogamy.

• The upper caste men needed control over their women to ensure the “purity” of their progeny.

• As the patriarchal joint family was desired and valued by lower castes, they started imitating the upper castes and prevented their women’s employment outside home, widow remarriage, started the evil practice of dowry etc.

• Thus the status of women in India was a consequence of social factors rather than biological traits.

• Social arrangements of role allocation , gender stereotyping has indeed played a major role in deciding the status of women in India . As the days went by , with better education and encouragement they have broken many myths of age old cultures. Now , it is for Indian society to dignify their status . A new initiative of HE for SHE by UN to increase gender equality would well be a way forward in this direction

• Identity of women as a social construct coming out of culture, extending pink pollar jobs, restricted access to occupation, social life etc can be added

Explain why it is not urbanization alone, but urbanization combined with industrialization, which is responsible for far-reaching changes in society. (250 Words)

• According to Yogendra Singh, many new roles often rational and modern were added to traditional institutions. 
• Urbanization was not new phenomenon but industrialization intensified it.
• Earlier urban centers were established for religious and administrative reasons but industrialization changed the character of urbanization. It was due to new dynamic economic activity called capitalism. Cities became center of not only trade and commerce but of production.
• Industrialization led to all around change in character and organization of urban society: 
• Pros
• Less religious, secular orientation
• More employment
• Organized and efficient production
• Bureaucratic setup which was impersonal and objective
• New institutions such as banking, stock markets, industry, ports etc
• infrastructures
• Cons
• New classes, working class, middle class and bourgeoisie
• Poverty, growth of slums, unhygienic working environment
• Working class unrest
• Consumerism
• Nuclear families, less Religious , Ghost villages and purchasing power, how movies and malls overtaking the jobs of parents still so many things 

Acculturation and integration of tribal communities.

The onset of British rule brought once isolated communities into mainstream. It not only disrupted their primitive economy but also fiddled in their socio-cultural system.Owing to such scenario Verrier Elwin argued for isolation of Tribes , through national park method , to preserve their culture and traditional practices. However , G.S Ghurye oppsed his approach and argued that Tribes are backward Hindus and they must be facilitated to develop within the hindu fold.

But post independence , policy makers led by Jawaharlal Nehru wanted Tribal communities to be part of development process. Nehru wanted to integrate them with fellow citizens by keeping their culture and practices intact. And thus he proposed Tribal Panchsheel.

Consequently , constitution conferred various measures like National commission , reservation, scheduled areas to achieve the goal of integration . And as a result tribes like Meena's not only integrated but also started to practice Hindu Ideals - by getting accultured - and adapted to hindu lifestyle.

Also , tribes of central India like Gonds have been living with other communities in villages and sharing work in factories. Certain groups like Todas of nilgiris , Jenu kurubas in karnataka still have forest as their adobe though with regular contact with outsiders.

However , on the flipside the pursuit of integration has led to negative consequences with respect to Jarawas of Andaman , Khasis of Meghalaya and tribes in Niyamagiri hills either due to human intervention for tourism or for mining and other such activities.To realize the essence of Panchsheel , it must be implemented in letter and spirit.

Effect of Globalization on Indian society

Critics of globalization contend that, even if increased trade promotes material prosperity, it comes with a high spiritual and cultural cost, running roughshod over the world’s distinctive cultures and threatening to turn the globe into one big, tawdry strip mall.

Socialization of people for improving business and financial activities across the globe can be referred as globalization. It is not a new phenomenon as people kept searching new places and avenues to increase their business activities as evident by explorations of Vasco-digamma, Columbus and East India Company. Bitter experiences from East India Companies & British rule makes Indian little bit cautious for adventures of globalization. This has been the root cause for delay in liberalization in India. In literary terms, globalization has been defined in several ways as evident from definitions reproduced below. In the initial sense of the term, globalization refers to the spread of new forms of non-territorial social activity (Ruggie, 1993; Scholte, 2000). To make term more clear, Globalization has been defined as the process of rapid integration of countries and happening through greater foreign trade and foreign investment. In essence, it refers to increased possibilities for action between and among people in situations irrespective of geographical considerations as per the definition of social theorists. Developed countries have been trying to pursue developing countries to liberalize the trade and allow more flexibility in business policies to provide equal opportunities to multinational firms in their domestic market. International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank helped them in this endeavour. Liberalization began to hold its foot on barren lands of developing countries like India by means of reduction in excise duties on electronic goods in a fixed time frame. Indian government did the same and liberalized the trade and investment due to the pressure from World Trade Organization. Import duties were cut down phase-wise to allow MNC's operate in India on equality basis. As a result globalization has brought to India new technologies, new products and also the economic opportunities. Despite bureaucracy, lack of infrastructure, and an ambiguous policy framework that adversely impact MNCs operating in India, MNCs are looking at India in a big way, and are making huge investments to set up R&D centers in the country. India has made a lead over other growing economies for IT, business processing, and R&D investments. There has been both positive and negative impact of globalization on social and cultural values in India. There is no denying of the fact that globalization has brought cheers to people's life by opening new vistas of employment. It has also made inroads in the cultural heritage of this country.

Due to economic liberalization and globalization, the world has become a “global village”. There is increasing interaction between people of different countries. As a result food habits, dress habits, lifestyle and views are being internationalized. The influence of globalization on such aspects are analysed under the following heads

RELIGION

India is the birth place of Dharmic religions such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism. Dharmic religions, also known as Indian religions, are a major form of world religions next to the Abrahamic ones. India is one of the most religiously diverse nations in the world, with some of the most deeply religious societies and cultures.  Religion still plays a central and definitive role in the life of most of its people. Despite the strong role of religion in Indian life, atheism and agnostics also have visible influence along with a self-ascribed tolerance to other faiths.

Impact

Along with Christian religion came the rest of British or Western culture, thought and customs and the gradual end of traditional ways of life. Thus our traditional religions and cultures were gradually subverted or eliminated. The new Indian converts to Christianity were encouraged not only to give up their religion but their culture, which often had religious or spiritual implications as well. A good Indian Christian convert would dress like an Englishman and emulate English manners in all things. Thus in India the Hindus who converted to Christianity were encouraged to think, behave and live like Englishmen.

SOCIETY

The traditional Indian culture is defined by relatively strict social hierarchy. From an early age, children are reminded of their roles and places in society. Several differences such as religion divide culture. However, far more powerful division is the traditional Hindu bifurcation into non-polluting and polluting occupations. Strict social taboos have governed these groups for thousands of years. Among developing countries, India has low levels of occupational and geographic mobility. People choose same occupations as their parents and rarely move geographically in the society.

Family:

India for ages has had a prevailing tradition of the joint family system. Arranged marriages have the tradition in Indian society for centuries. Overwhelming majority of Indians have their marriages planned by their parents and other respected familymembers, with the consent of the bride and groom. Although women and men are equal before the law and the trend toward gender equality has been noticeable, women and men still occupy distinct functions in Indian society. Woman's role in the society is often to perform household works and pro bono community work.

Greeting:

Namaste, Namaskar or Namaskaram is a common spoken greeting or salutation in the Indian subcontinent. When spoken to another person, it is commonly accompanied by a slight bow made with hands pressed together, palms touching and fingers pointed upwards, in front of the chest.

Festivals:

India, being a multi-cultural and multi-religious society, celebrates holidays and festivals of various religions. The 3 National holidays in India, are the Independence Day, the Republic Day and the Gandhi Jayanti, Popular religious festivals include the Hindu festivals of Diwali, Durga puja, Holi, Rakshabandhan, Dussehra, Ramzaan etc.

Impact

1. Nuclear families are emerging.

2. Divorce rates are rising day by day.

3. Men and women are gaining equal right to education, to earn, and to speak.

4. ‘Hi’, ‘Hello’ is used to greet people in spite of Namaskar and Namaste.

5. American festivals like Valentines day, Friendship day etc. are spreading across India.

CUISINE

The multiple families of Indian cuisine are characterized by their sophisticated and subtle use of many spices and herbs. Though a significant portion of Indian food is vegetarian, many traditional Indian dishes also include chicken, goat, lamb, fish, and other meats. Cuisine across India has also been influenced by various cultural groups that entered India throughout history, such as the Persians, Mughals, and European colonists. Though the tandoor originated in Central Asia, Indian tandoori dishes, such as chicken tikka made with Indian ingredients, enjoy widespread popularity.

Impact

Indian cuisine is one of the most popular cuisines across the globe. Historically,Indian spices and herbs were one of the most sought after trade commodities. Pizzas, burgers, Chinese foods and other Western foods have become quite popular.

CLOTHING

Traditional Indian clothing for women are the saris and also Ghaghra Cholis For men, traditional clothes are the Dhoti, Kurta. In southern India men wear long, white sheets of cloth called dhoti with shirts. Women wear a sari draped over a simple or fancy blouse. This is worn by young ladies and woman. Little girls wear a pavada. Traditionally, the red bindi (or sindhur) was worn only by the married Hindu women, but now it has become a part of women's fashion.

Impact

Indo-western clothing, the fusion of Western and Sub continental fashion is in trend. Wearing jeans, t-shirts, mini skirts have become common among Indian girls.

PERFORMING ARTS

Music

The music of India includes multiples varieties of religious, folk, popular, pop, and classical music. India's classical music includes two distinct styles: Carnatic and Hindustani music. It remains instrumental to the religious inspiration, cultural expression and pure entertainment.

Dance

Indian dance too has diverse folk and classical forms. Bharatanatyam, kathak, kathakali mohiniattam, kuchipudi, odissi are popular dance forms in India. Kalarippayattu or Kalari for short is considered one of the world's oldest martial art. There have been many great practitioners of Indian martial Arts including Bodhidharma who supposedly brought Indian martial arts to China.

Impact

1. Indian Classical music has gained worldwide recognition.

2. Western music is becoming very popular in our country.

3. Fusing Indian music along with western music is encouraged among musicians.

4. More Indian dance shows are held globally.

5. The number of foreigners who are eager to learn Bharatanatyam is rising.

6. Western dance forms such as Jazz, Hip hop, Salsa, Balley have become among Indian youngsters.

Education and Employment

School buildings are available in few villages but number of teachers is inadequate in primary schools. Benches, boards and other facilities are of sub-standard quality. There is, however, one positive development that girls are attending the schools in the villages. Also the number of students attending graduate and post graduate courses is increasing but awareness among students from rural areas lacks towards technical education and that is the single reason that most of the students from rural areas are unable to secure employment.

Technology, Culture and Social Values

Technology has failed to percolate to villages in absence of electricity and other communication infrastructure. Few people know about the internet. However, well-to-do families have availed DTH and dish TV facilities. Mobile connections are increasing in rural areas but at slower pace. There are no small scale industries in villages to provide employment to educated youth. India’s real culture is still preserved in rural life. New advancement of technology has not much influence in rural areas. People still prefer to wear dresses of old fashion and celebrate festivals in old styles. Folk dances and folk songs are still popular among villagers. Culture is still untouched and unaffected by western influence. Globalization has no impact on rural life as standards of living are suboptimal but migration of people is taking place and poor people are moving to urban areas in search of employment.

Agriculture           

Globalization does not have any positive impact on agriculture. On the contrary, it has few detrimental effects as government is always willing to import food grains, sugar etc whenever there is a price increase of these commodities. Government never thinks to pay more to farmers so that they produce more food grains but resorts to imports. On the other hand, subsidies are declining so cost of production is increasing. Even farms producing fertilizers have to suffer due to imports. There are also threats like introduction of GM crops, herbicide resistant crops etc.

Other changes in social and cultural life

· Access to television grew from 10% of the urban population (1991) to 75% of the urban population (1999).

· Cable television and foreign movies became widely available for the first time and have acted as a catalyst in bulldozing the cultural boundaries.

· All these technologies have changed perceptions and dreams of ordinary people.

· Unmarried boys and girls are sharing same apartment and staying away from their parents.

· Indian youths leaving education in mid-way and joining MNC's

· There has been a increase in the violence, particularly against women.

· Scientific and technological innovations have made life quite comfortable, fast and enjoyable.

· More availability of cheap and filthy material (CD's or DVD's of Hollywood movies, porn movies, sex toys, foreign channels like MTV) in the name of liberalization.

· In India, land-line or basic phone was a prestige symbol few years back but now you find people riding bicycle with a mobile in hand, talking or listening music or even clicking cameras of their phones targeting pretty girls or ladies.

· Society has become more open compared to its earlier conservative look due to exposure to other cultures through DTH or cable network.

· This has contributed to dating, celebration of friendship days/valentine day, and resulted to rising number of call girls and makes them more prone to sexually transmitted diseases.

· People are less worried for government jobs as MNC's and private or public sector are offering more lucrative jobs.

· People are more wary of the world events and have a direct opportunity to participate in world politics and economy. As a result of this, a new middle class has emerged. This class is a fusion of Indian and western value system. It is unique and characteristic of globalization.

· Extension of internet facilities even to rural areas.

· In place of old cinema halls, multiplex theatre is coming up.

· Old restaurants are now replaced by Mc. Donalds. Fast food and Chinese dishes have replaced juice corners and Parathas.

· More inflow of money has aggravated deep rooted problem of corruption?

· More scandals and scams compared to pre-globalization era.

· Girls being blackmailed by their ex-boy friends using MMS

· Ban on TV channels for showing sex and violence violating all norms

· Girls being raped in moving vehicles

· There is deterioration in social values as evident from less respect for ladies and older people.

IMPACT OF GLOBALISATION ON INDIAN BUSINESS CULTURE

The Indian economy had been booming for the past few years. The country held great promise for the future. Liberalized foreign policies had unleashed the entrepreneurial spirit of its people and many multi-national firms, attracted by the dusty plains of Deccan, had already set up big offices throughout the nation.

The foreign culture can have both positive and negative influence on people and business firms. New ways of thinking and working may develop leading to higher efficiency. A few examples of impact of foreign culture on business practices are given below:

· Indian companies adopting international accounting standards.

· Just-in-time and other more efficient techniques of inventory control.

· Flexitime and new practices of human resource management.

· Social responsibility and business ethics ideas.

· Improvement in corporate governance practices.

· Customer relationship management practices.

· Inflow of foreign funds.

· Healthy competition with foreign products.

The business sector in India is highly promising in the present scenario. The impact of globalization has changed the business procedure in India in terms of psychology, methodology, technology, mindset work culture etc. Newer challenges, newer opportunities are day-by-day in front of Indian industries, which are profitable and prospective.

The fundamental scope of doing business in India is lying with its people. The huge population of India has created a large unsaturated market of consumers. This is one of the reasons why global companies are very much interested in doing business in India. In the post globalization era this scope has increased immensely for global multinational companies as Government of India has also played a very crucial and supportive role in this respect through liberalized policies and legislative structure.

Let us glance through a few situations that have arisen in India post liberalization

1. Shifting of Agriculture worker to industry sector

2. Urbanization –People are shifting from rural to urban areas.

3. Opening up of trade market –export import boom.

4. Big open saturated market for products

5. A growing market for high quality and low price product

6. Gradual increase of organized retail chain.

7. Growing number of Merger and Acquisitions.

8. Lucid license policies for overseas Multinational Corporation.

9. High growth rate is showing economic prosperity in India.

10. Indian Market leaders going global.

But there are certain negative impacts occurred aftermath the globalization impact in India, which are as follows –

1) Unequal distribution of wealth disparity in income.

2) Rapid privatization government driven public sector units are on sale.

3) Uneven growth in respect of different sectors.

4) Extreme mechanization is reducing demand for manual labours.

5) Both employee and consumer exploitation are on rise by private sector.

Conclusion

Overwhelming impact of globalization can be observed on the Indian culture? Every educated Indian seems to believe that nothing in Hindu India, past or present, is to be approved unless recognized and recommended by an appropriate authority in the West. There is an all-pervading presence of a positive, if not worshipful, attitude towards everything in western society and culture, past as well as present in the name of progress, reason and science. Nothing from the West is to be rejected unless it has first been weighed and found wanting by a Western evaluation. “Swami Vivekananda foresaw the dangers of Globalization as early as in 1893 when he spoke at the Parliament of World Religions in Chicago. To quote his soul-stirring words: 'Shall India die? Then, from the world all spirituality will be extinct, all sweet-souled sympathy for religion will be extinct, all ideality will be extinct; and in its place will reign the duality of lust and luxury as the male and female deities, with money as its priest, fraud, force, and competition its ceremonies, and human soul its sacrifice. Such a thing can never be'.”  Precisely such a terrible thing is taking place in India today on account of the inexorable and immutable process of Globalization. In the end we can say that, every step of movement towards economic, political and cultural modernization, taken by the state in India, is responded to by the people with an enhanced sense of self-consciousness and awareness of identity. Cultural modernization, sponsored by the forces of globalization, is resented if it encroaches upon or does not promote the core cultural values of society, its language, social practices and styles of life. The vigour of the renewed sense of self-awareness generated among the members of the local cultures and communities is such as to succeed in making adaptive reconciliation with the forces of globalization. The linkages both visible and invisible, defining the cultural interdependence among communities and regions in India which have existed historically, reinforce instead of threatening the national identity. These bonds seem to become stronger as India encounters the forces of modernization and globalization.

11. Write notes on any tow of the following (200 Words)

1. Reliability and validity.
2. Verstehen method.
3. Sources of hypothesis.
4. Survey research.

Reliability and validity.

Reliability and Validity are two dominant concerns to test the veracity of any piece of sociological research and make it more scientific. Sociological research is reliable if other researchers who employ the same methods of observation come to similar conclusion or insights. Generally quantitative research methodology is more reliable but scores less on validity in comparison to qualitative research methods.

Data or research is considered to be reliable if it is free of bias, is consistent, repeatable and standardized. Validity refers to the fact that a particular test actually measures what it purports to measure. Depth of study and representations are the two parameters which determine the extent of validity.

Both the concepts validity and reliability are independent. A reliable data may or may not be valid.

Sociology being a social science has limitations to the extent of validity and reliability that is practically possible but questions of validity and reliability can never be ignored. 

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Verstehen method.

Verstehen in German means understanding. Weber used this concept in his study of protestant ethics of capitalism. It is one of the most controversial concept of sociological research methodology.

It is an interpretative understanding of social action, through empathetic liasioning, in order to, trace the cause and effect of social action through a sequence of motives.


Controversy

1. It was blamed that he used a method which was well known to German Historians of that time and the concept has been derived from the field of Hermeneutics (method to understand and interpret the published writings), Weber extended this idea to the field of Social Life
2. Many blamed that it is simply based on intuition of the researcher, which Weber categorically rejected and contended that its a rigorous and elaborate method

Problem

Till date sociologists differ on the view, whether it was a method to understand the individual actors or large scale units of analysis

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Sources of hypothesis.

The main sources of hypothesis formation are as follows:

1. Personal Experience: Researcher uses his own personal experience and mind to develop a hypothesis to study
2. Imagination and thinking: Creative thinking and imagination of researcher helps in formulating a hypothesis
3. Observation: The collection of previous and present facts, studying them can help in arriving at hypothesis
4. Scientific Theory: A researcher can question any scientific theory and create hypothesis
5. Previous study: A researcher can study previous work on similar area and develop his own hypothesis to prove
6. Culture: Culture like family system, tradition, norms and values etc. helps in formulating it.

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Survey research.

It is a research methodology in which the researcher collects standardized data about a large number of people. The data is usually collected through questionnaire and it is in statistical form, the questionnaire may or may not be administered by the interviewer
Stephen Ackroyd and John A. Hughes classified it into three categories

1. A Factual Survey : eg. Government census data
2. Attitudinal Survey: eg. Opinion Polls
3. Explanatory Survey: It is beyond just a survey and tests hypothesis to create theories

The data is collected either through mail surveys, personal interviews, telephonic interviews or internet surveys. It also involves creating a sample postulating a hypothesis, designing the research tool and finding the correlation to arrive at the theory.

10. Explain the basic features of the ex post facto research design and assess its role in sociological research.

The Ex Post facto means "After the Fact", it basically means something has already happened. The Ex post facto research is designed to study those events

Here the researcher studies the dependent variable to arrive at the independent variables. In effect the researcher asks themselves, what factors, circumstances, occurrences or conditions have led to the dependent variable.

For example, suppose suddenly the number of road accidents in particular locality has increased and the researcher wants to know the reason. So, for him the dependent variable is number of accidents and the independent variables are speed of vehicles, poor road conditions, street lights, careless driving and effect of Alcohol on drivers and the victims

He will interview the surviving victims, the drivers who caused accidents, witnesses and the local people to understand the cause and effect relationship and finally arrive at the conclusion in form of a generalized theory.

The ex post facto research design have impact on the sociological research and theories, even though it is is different from the experimental design but have certain advantages like

1) A vast amount of data collected can be analysed in a short period of time with minimum expenses

2) Unlike experimental design, it happens in the real world

3) Generalization is very good with survey research, especially when sample are representative of the population

However, it has certain fallacies like researcher have no control over independent variables to control the moderating effect and hence complex behaviors are difficult to be studied.

9. “Participant observation in many situations is nothing more than a case study.” Comment.

The Participant observation is a method of conducting research, where the researcher stays within the observable group in overt or covert way to study them and arrive at some theory based on their hypothesis.

However, there are lots of fallacy in the method which makes it nothing more than a case study like

1) To Quantitative researchers, the samples used in Participant Observation is to small and untypical for generalization to be made. It applies more to the specific group studied.

2) Such studies can'be replicated, hence the results can't be verified. Therefore it is difficult to compare with the results of other studies.

3) The data and results are heavily dependent on the observant interpretative and observational skills.

4) the data collected and results are highly selective, the participant tend to collect data points which suits only his hypothesis. Hence, many conclusions can be drawn from the same subject group and data points

5) The presence of researchers affects the behavior of the group and hence skews the data

However, qualitative researchers have argued that its not merely a case study but the theory produced can be useful through the concept of "Grounded Theory", which basically means producing theory based on the data from one observed sample and with time validate it as grounded theory based on observations made from other samples. But, proving Grounded Theory is not an easy task and it involves lots of complexity and subjectivity.

8. What do you mean by empiricism? Examine the significance of empirical confirmation in building sociological theory.

Empiricism is one the way to study "Theory of Knowledge", in other words it is one the two parts of Epistemology, these are Apriori (Rationalism) and A Posteriori (Based on Experience, Empiricism).

Where as Rationalism is based on reasons and deductions the Empiricism believes that all ideas comes from senses and perception.

According to Empiricism, all ideas are either are simple (like single color) or complex (many simple ideas are combined together). The concept of Induction in Empiricism says," nothing is certain, Solipism takes it to the next level and says," you are the only truth, rest all are the projection of your mind."

The Empirical Confirmation has given Sociology a scientific dimension and through use of hypothesis, data collection, statistical tools, theories can be deducted on a pattern similar to Natural Science.

However, the Empirical Confirmation has certain flaw and hence Sociology theories are completely scientific.

1) There is no sharp distinction between observation and theory; observation of empirical facts commonly depend upon the assumption of some elements of scientific theory

2) Empirical "Facts" are subject to multiple interpretations, same set of data at times can be used to prove contradictory hypothesis.

7. Write the short notes on the following:

1. Pareto on social equilibrium.
2. Power and legitimacy
3. Role-set and role conflict.
4. Totemism and social solidarity

Pareto on social equilibrium

Pareto’s definition of social equilibrium begins with the observation that the social system is 'constantly changing in form'. When some modifications are introduced to this from. Pareto argues that at once, a reaction will take place, tending to restore the changing form to its original state as modified by nonnal change. Pareto then clarifies that the concept of equilibrium should only be used by analogy in its sociological applications. By analogy, then disequilibriating movements arising within the social system encounter opposing forces which seek to restore 'equilibrial balance'. A social system is therefore like a river. Both flow constantly. Both resist, and threaten to sweep away, intrusive efforts to modify both their form and their 'manner of flow'. Hence the main purpose of Pareto’s concept of social equilibrium was to convey the idea of synchronising force running between the social, political and economic sub-cycles of the grand historical cycle. One example of a disequilibriating movement would therefore be where govemment attempts to centralise sovereignty at a time when social attitudes are liberalising and the economic cycle is moving towards prosperity.

Power and legitimacy

Role-set and role conflict.

As distinct from status, role represents the dynamic aspect of status and as such it comes with as set rights and obligations. At any given time an individual member occupies a plurality of statuses or ‘status- set’ e.g. a man may be simultaneously a husband, father etc. Thus, ‘role-set’ may be defined as the sum of all rights and obligations that an individual have by virtue of the status-set he/ she occupies.

The simultaneous performance of role-sets by an individual in the context of ‘role expectation’ and the normative patterns of a society generates stress and strain. This phenomenon is called role conflict e.g. a District Collector faced with the dilemma of adhering to nepotism or sticking to meritocratic principle in the recruitment process. Parsons formulated a set of 'pattern variables' to resolve such role conflicts. Merton observes that since not all statuses are important and scrutinized all the time, the performance of the ‘role-set’ is possible.

Totemism and social solidarity

Emile Durkheim in his study on religion brings out the interrelationship between totemism and social solidarity.Totemism refers to an activity of Totem ( any symbol like crocodile , tiger) worship. In his work on elementary forms of religious life , durkheim says that arundta tribes followed totem worship.

The tribe society was divided into vatious clans and each clan believed that they were descendants of the totem. Thus it was a symbol of sacred . While worshipping each member of the clan had the sysmbol etched on his body. And durkerim says that worship of totem is nothing but worship of society . Thus during festivities all clans come together for totem worship and celebrate . This brings in social solidarity in the society.

This argument was further extended by max weber when he said that during worship , the totem is sacrifised and consumed by individuals. However , it is not a profane activity because they believed that the spirit of totem would join the spirit of all individuals.

Such an analysis is relevant to modern society albeit in a different form . Today totem has taken various forms like Flag , party symbol etc. This totem arouses a feeling of oneness among people and bring them together thereby augmenting social solidarity in the society.