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has-courseware |
169401 |
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url |
holdingsInfo?bibId=169401 |
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P1007 |
produced by Claire Falkner; contributor Tom Selwyn. |
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isAbout |
india |
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isAbout |
sociology |
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isAbout |
anthropology |
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isAbout |
caste |
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Contributor |
753613600d07553668b8d3cb36731d06 |
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Contributor |
941145c9b938a16f8b8bd984c000e42c |
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Table Of Contents |
Shots of arid countryside around the Indian village of Singhara. Graeme Salaman describes
the village and Tom Selwyn's work there. Shots of women in the village with children,
the potter at work and a Brahmin praying. In a voiceover Tom Selwyn discusses the
connection between the religious hierarchy and occupations. He then describes the
five main caste categories and the sub-castes which are associated with traditional
occupations. Shots of men, women and animals washing and drinking by the river. Tom
Selwyn discusses the ideas of purity and pollution which are central to the religious
and symbolic basis of the caste system. Shots of fireworks marking the climax of a
marriage ceremony. The arrival of the bridegroom and ritual ceremonies outside of
the bride's house. Tom Selwyn discusses the role of the Brahmin priests (Pandits)
in the conduct of the ceremony. He argues that they act as mutual mediators between
the two families and help to create an auspicious union between the two families by
leading them safely through a period of transition and change of status. Shots of
Pandits drawing a magic shape on the ground. Tom Selwyn describes the significance
of this altar-like space and talks about the idea of auspiciousness. Shots of the
bride's father consulting the Pandit to discover if the marriage will be a good one
and to obtain the best date for the ceremony. At the wedding ceremony the bride is
seen seated by the auspicious pattern As the Pandit sings and chants clothes and presents
are presented to the bride and her family. The Pandit sprinkles turmeric onto the
bride. Tom Selwyn talks about the symbolic significance of the Pandit's actions, he
argues that many of his actions help to establish that the sexual union between the
couple will be ordered and sanctified by spiritual authority. The bride throws rice
onto the pattern in a fertility ceremony again controlled by the Pandits. A member
of the barber class brings water for the wedding. The programme now considers the
roles and functions of the castes within the system. Shots of a barber shaving a child's
head. Selwyn argues that the removal of bodily substances, which are thought to be
impure, passes impurity onto those who are linked with their removal. Selwyn talks
to a local Brahmin about the origins of the caste system. Castes were created by God
to provide services. Shots of a washerwoman collecting soiled sheets from a house,
where a child has been born, and washing them at the river. Women clean the house
with earth and cow dung to remove the pollution associated with childbirth. Shots
of the shoemaker at work and his family outside their house. Tom Selwyn talks to the
shoemaker about his position as an untouchable. Another untouchable, the potter, is
shown at work. Tom Selwyn discusses some of the analytic problems of understanding
the reasons for the potter?s lowly position. Shots of the potter?s house and another
potter working. Shots of members of the basket maker?s family. These people belong
to the Domer caste. Tom Selwyn discusses their position in the hierarchy. Shots of
Domer musicians at the wedding ceremony. Shots of the Pandit anointing the bride and
bridegroom, and symbolically binding them together. Finally Tom Selwyn discusses the
last ritual of the ceremony performed by a female member of the barber caste. |
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locator |
holdingsInfo?bibId=169401 |
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type |
Collection |
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label |
Principles of caste |
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Description |
This is the first of two programmes about the work of Tom Selwyn, a social anthropologist
working in the village of Singhara in central India. The programme was filmed in Singhara
and gives an anthropologist's interpretation of caste ideology in the village. In
Tom Selwyn?s view the caste system rests on twin ideas of purity and pollution; people
whose traditional occupations are thought of as impure are low in the hierarchy and
vice versa. Caste is best understood by looking at people at the extreme ends of the
hierarchy. This view is explored in the course of the programme which shows high caste,
ritually pure Brahmins, officiating at a marriage ceremony. It shows lower castes,
barbers, potters, washer-men and others, carrying out traditional occupations and
participating in ritual activity. There is also an interview with a leather worker
on why he thinks he's untouchable. |
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Publisher |
07f21de77e80d6bd38c3be6db6cb323d |
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Title |
Principles of caste |