The Gender of Caste: Representing Dalits in Print (Global South Asia)

Caste and gender are complex markers of difference that have traditionally been addressed in isolation from each other, with a presumptive maleness present in most studies of Dalits ("untouchables") and a presumptive upper-casteness in many feminist studies. In this study of the representations of Dalits in the print culture of colonial north India, Charu Gupta enters new territory by looking at images of Dalit women as both victims and vamps, the construction of Dalit masculinities, religious conversion as an alternative to entrapment in the Hindu caste system, and the plight of indentured labor. The Gender of Caste uses print as a critical tool to examine the depictions of Dalits by colonizers, nationalists, reformers, and Dalits themselves and shows how differentials of gender were critical in structuring patterns of domination and subordination. Scope and content: "Caste and gender are forms of social difference that typically have been addressed in isolation from each other: a presumptive maleness is present in most studies of Dalits, and a presumptive upper-casteness is present in many feminist studies of colonial India. The Gender of Caste enters new territory in its exploration of the gender of caste through representations of Dalits in print media in colonial north India. Among its subjects are images of Dalit women as victims and vamps, the construction of Dalit masculinities, religious conversion as an alternative to entrapment in the Hindu caste system, and the plight of indentured servants. An array of textual and pictorial material pertaining to Dalits is drawn from reformist, popular, and didactic literature; police reports; missionary records; and cartoons. The book shows how differentials of gender were critical in structuring patterns of domination and subordination. Through a gendered Dalit perspective, it historicizes axes of gender, caste, class, and community identities. Representations in print are used as a critical tool to examine depictions of Dalits by colonizers, nationalists, reformers, and Dalits themselves"--Provided by publisher "Caste and gender are forms of social difference that typically have been addressed in isolation from each other: a presumptive maleness is present in most studies of Dalits, and a presumptive upper-casteness is present in many feminist studies of colonial India. The Gender of Caste enters new territory in its exploration of the gender of caste through representations of Dalits in print media in colonial north India. Among its subjects are images of Dalit women as victims and vamps, the construction of Dalit masculinities, religious conversion as an alternative to entrapment in the Hindu caste system, and the plight of indentured servants. An array of textual and pictorial material pertaining to Dalits is drawn from reformist, popular, and didactic literature; police reports; missionary records; and cartoons. The book shows how differentials of gender were critical in structuring patterns of domination and subordination. Through a gendered Dalit perspective, it historicizes axes of gender, caste, class, and community identities. Representations in print are used as a critical tool to examine depictions of Dalits by colonizers, nationalists, reformers, and Dalits themselves"-- Résumé de l'éditeur

Caste and gender are complex markers of difference that have traditionally been addressed in isolation from each other, with a presumptive maleness present in most studies of Dalits (“untouchables”) and a presumptive upper-casteness in many feminist studies. In this study of the representations of Dalits in the print culture of colonial north India, Charu Gupta enters new territory by looking at images of Dalit women as both victims and vamps, the construction of Dalit masculinities, religious conversion as an alternative to entrapment in the Hindu caste system, and the plight of indentured labor.

The Gender of Caste uses print as a critical tool to examine the depictions of Dalits by colonizers, nationalists, reformers, and Dalits themselves and shows how differentials of gender were critical in structuring patterns of domination and subordination.

Cover Contents Abbreviations Preface and Acknowledgments Introduction: Gendering Dalits 1 Dirty “Other” Vamp: (Mis)Representing Dalit Women 2 Paradoxes of Victimhood: Iconographies of Suffering, Sympathy, and Subservience 3 Dalit Viranganas: (En)Gendering the Dalit Reinvention of 1857 4 Feminine, Criminal, or Manly? Imaging Dalit Masculinities 5 Intimate and Embodied Desires: Religious Conversions and Dalit Women 6 Goddesses and Women’s Songs: Negotiating Dalit Popular Religion and Culture 7 Caste, Indentured Women, and the Hindi Public Sphere Conclusion Glossary A B C D E F G H J K L M N P R S T V Z Bibliography Index A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P R S T U V W Y Z