The social structures of the Hindu caste system, The Bantu peoples of Africa and medieval Europe differ greatly in their social structure. The role of top class of three systems are different as well. However, there are also similarities in the way that medieval Europe and India treat lower class people. The Hindu caste system had four major classes which they gave different names based on their creators’ body parts, the Bantu people only had one ruling class, while the medieval Europeans had three classes which they called estates. Hindu tradition relates that the system of castes to different body parts of the creator god Brahma. On the top is Brahmin, or priests, then warriors (of the Kshatriya class), traders (of the Vaishya class) and laborers (of the Sudra class). The early Bantu social structure is simply based on kinship due to the low population, usually the higher status will bring higher power to the family, the man of the most prominent family would become the chief. As the population grows more complex political system was formed and the idea hierarchy was …show more content…
For example the lowest class of caste system is the Shudras, as Rigveda described, they were emerged from the feet of Brahma, mostly consisted of workers and peasants, Shudras were forbidden to touch people of upper classes and their jobs were considered the dirtiest and most disliked. There’s basically no social mobility for Shudras which means if a person was born a Shudra, he is very likely to spend his whole life being his role and interacting with people of the same class. The same goes peasants during medieval Europe. Adalberon, the bishop of Laon described peasants as an “unfortunate group possesses nothing without suffering”, indeed, they were require to work very hard on the lands that do not belong to them and most of their agricultural production would be taken away by their
Thousands of years ago, Indian society developed into a complex system based on different classes. This system is known as the Caste System. It separated Indians into different castes based on what class they were born into. As thousands of years went by, this system grew larger and became further complex (Wadley 189). This system caused frustration for the Indian citizens because they were receiving inequality.
The person's class status in the feudal system affected their social status in the Middle Ages. The serfs provide services and food when the knights needed it.
In India, for example, caste systems are used. The lowest caste is called Shudra, the Shudra are the unskilled and semi-skilled workers. They receive next to nothing for very labor intensive jobs such as farming and factory work. The caste after that is called the Vaishya. The Vaishya are businessmen and are more powerful than the Shudra. They still are paid very little and work in jobs such as market stalls. Th...
In every civilization there exists a hierarchy that is accepted by the people that are a part of it. This hierarchy, which is present in all societies, is called a class system and usually includes an upper class, a middle class, and a lower class. The upper class consists of those who are the richest in a society, the middle class consists of the working people, and the lower class consists of the poorest people. There is one class system that consists of five tiers, including one that is below its lower class, and differs from any other system; the caste system of India. In a caste system, the class that is received is hereditary and cannot be changed like in other societies. The civilization of India has an extensive history with this longstanding and controversial caste system that has evolved over time and is still in place today.
If the present day mom goes to the nearest grocery store, she might find that every price has a .99 behind it. When she goes home to make dinner, she’ll need to get 1.5 grams of salt for her grandma’s homemade lasagna recipe. But how does 1.5 mean one and a half? Between 320 and 550 CE, the decimal system that everyone worldwide uses today was invented during the Gupta Empire. In Northern India, everyday life was considerably different from then to now. Most citizens worshiped Hinduism which ultimately determined the civilization’s caste system. Artists and performers often experienced a more stable lifestyle than farmers. Wealthy families were able to afford entertainment and avoid heavy taxing. Life in the Gupta Empire was increasingly innovative
Caste systems were affected by philosophies and religion. Shown in the graphic organiser, “Father > son, older brother > younger brother… as taught in Confucianism…” This evidence shows of a simple caste system in China, a caste system that was not as strict as the Indian Caste System. These castes were separated by how much power a person had. A dad was more powerful than his son, and more powerful than his wife. This is the same thing with India. The Brahmins were more powerful than the Sudras. As shown by the research above, religion and philosophies affected the caste system in both India and China.
There are four main castes and one in which they consider to be the outcastes. The four main castes are the Brahmin, the next is the Kshatriya, the third is the Vaishya, and the fourth is the Shudra. The outcastes are in the group called Dalits. Each caste has a purpose in life, the Brahmin are considered to be the priestly caste in which they are teach the Veda, and are to “sacrifice for others and receive alms” (Institutes of Vishnu 5-10, pg. 44). The Kshatriya is considered the warriors or the ruler caste, they have constant practice in battles, and they are to protect the world from harm. The Vaishya are to be the merchants and the farmers, they tend to the cattle, they, “engage in farming, keeps cows, trades, lends money at interest, and grows seeds” (Institutes of Vishnu 5-10, pg. 44). The Shudra are the manual laborers who according to the Institutes of Vishnu under the Four Castes, are to serve the twice born men who are to sacrifice and to study the Veda, the Shudra also engage in all the different duties of craftsmanship (5-10, pg.44). In case of a crisis, each caste is allowed to follow the occupation of the caste that is below them in rank. The duties in which all four of these castes, whatever gender or stage of life, are to follow and hav...
Castes are also closed. The best example would be like Amish people. They are very religious and they only believe that you marry people from you community. There are no outsiders allowed. They can’t marry anyone from the outside or have contact with the outside world. Amish are very limited and don’t have anything to do. They believe in religion a lot and see at as something that can change everything they see. The next one is estates. Estates are based if a more of a medieval time. During this time only nobles owned land and everyone that lived in there land was peasant. The peasants were not allowed to marry outside their own. This was a closed system. Over time nobles got more power and they started to develop their communities and they ended up making a way for artisans and merchants to grow. The last one is social class. This is the only one that has an open system. This system is the current system that is used of people. There are 5 social classes. They are Upper class, Upper middle class, Middle class, working class, and lower class. This is the only system that is open. Meaning that they can change from one stage to another. The can go up or down on the stage of the
There are hundreds of different religions with each of them having their own different beliefs and practices. Hinduism and Christianity are two of the most different and yet most popular religions. They are different in almost every way. One is polytheistic and the other is monotheistic. One has no real religious leader or founder, and the other’s is known all around the world.
...mans, Khastriyas, and the Vaishyas are the upper class. Nobody under them gets any recognition. The Shudras and the Untouchables are the lower class. They mainly don’t exist in society. Hindu’s have some sacred objects such as cows and the Gangas River. The Gangas River is believed to wash away all evil.
In India, the religion of Hinduism in particular, provides two sources of support in regards to the social structure of the era. These sources are the Vedas and the Upanishads. According to The Rig Veda when Purusha’s body was divided “his mouth became the brāhman; his two arms were made into the rajanya; his two thighs the vaishyas; from his two feet the shūdra was born (Reilly, 92).” By splitting up the body in this way, there was a justification for the creation of the varna or caste system. The highest class or Brahmin’s were the priest class, who were also known as the most pure. In this role, they were the connecting figures between Purusha and his people, which is reflective of them being his mouth. The next upper division class was the Ksatriya or warrior/leader class. In the class, the role was to do the fighting which was reflective of them being Purusha’s arms. The artisan/farmer or middle class was known as the vaisyas. In this class, members represented the role of the thighs of Purusha, who were responsible for doing the brunt or tougher jobs in society. The nethermost social class was the sudra, who were serfs and servants. They represented the feet of Pursha, which is reflective of their status as the lowest class. Along with the Vedas, the Upanishads served as a written guideline for the varna. These works urged the concept of doin...
The rural society in the medieval Europe was based on well-defined hierarchy of the social classes. Though the people living in the rural areas were belonging to the lower class of the society, they were also divided into different sub-classes based on the tasks they performed in the society. These hierarchies were defined and stipulated by the churches and the emperors, and the rural society had to follow the orders or rulings. These hierarchies used to streamline the functioning of the rural societies as it defined the contribution of each individual towards the kingdom.
In each society, there are different types of rules and ideologies that are used in order to help govern its people. Within these communities, these rules create a social hierarchy developed through a ranked system based on either economic value or religious beliefs. A type of ranked system that most people are familiar with is the Caste System in India, which is a system of classification in a society based on birth. This complex social structure is most prevalent in India, where social hierarchy is in affiliation with Hinduism. It recognizes two concepts known as Varna and Jati. Varna is a word in Sanskrit meaning color and includes four main groups: the Brahmans, Kshtriyas, Vaishyas, and Shudras. The fifth group, the most segregated caste in the system, is the Untouchables. Within each Varna contains an array of sub-caste called Jatis, which are also based on birth. The rules of the cases are governed through religious ideas of purity and pollution. These two socially constructed ideologies determine whether or not you were respected in the community. Caste assignments in India are predestined at birth rather than a personal choice. Individuals act and dress like those of their own caste in public, due to strict caste laws. Pressures of these rules tend to brainwash people into conforming into what society considers pure, as we’ll see in Kakar & Kakar’s reading. As human nature takes precedent, caste rules become less relevant. Indulging in one’s own desires or needs, especially during times of hardship, outweighs any types of rules that we’ll see in Freeman’s reading and the movie Distant Thunder. Though the caste system is such an intrinsic part of life, when faced with needs to survive, it becomes nothing more than just a...
Caste System is a social system based on ascribed statuses, which are traits or characteristics of people at birth. The ascribed status includes race, gender, nationality, body type and age. The caste system ranks people so rigidly. A person cannot just change his caste any time he wants.
The caste system in India is elaborately structured to have an Indian touch to it, clearly distinguishing it from social structures worldwide. Caste is a word often used to describe a cluster of people who have a specific rank in the society. Each caste system is elaborately crafted to suit the needs of the society and they vary from group to group; each has its own rules and customs. Different chaste systems are planned in a hierarchical manner to become part of any of the four basic colors; varnas (a Sanskrit word for color). These include; the varna of Brahmans, identified with the learned class and priests; varna of Kshatriyas, which is encompasses warriors, rulers and property owners, the varna of Vaishyas, which attracts traders ; and lastly the varna of Shudras, who are servile laborers (Bayly, 1999).