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Untouchables

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The Untouchables

In a world where everyone would be totally equal and given the same opportunities,

every society would be egalitarian. According to the textbook, “egalitarian societies do not have

social groups with unequal access to economic resources, [and] they also do not have social

groups with unequal access to power” (Ember & Ember). Everyone is equal regardless of their

individual abilities. Many societies claim that all of their people have equal opportunities, but in

all reality, the overwhelming majority of societies have a class system in which “people are

stratified, or divided into levels” (Ember & Ember). The more money, power, and prestige a

person or group has, the higher their social status. One type of class system is a caste system

which is “a ranked group in which membership is determined at birth” (Ember & Ember).

An example of the caste system is being born a Hindu in India. The lowest rank of Hindu

Indians are the “Untouchables”. They are “outcasts — people considered too impure, too

polluted, to rank as worthy beings” (O'Neill 2). The people of a higher class rank can take

advantage of the Untouchables and they can commit crimes against them without any

repercussions. An example of this was at the beginning of the article entitled “Untouchable”

where a higher caste punished Girdharilal Maurya because he spoke up about wanting to use the

village well. “They broke his fences, stole his tractor, beat his wife and daughter, and burned

down his house” (O'Neill 1). The Untouchables also do not get any of the resources allocated to

the general population. From highest to lowest, the Indian caste system is as follows:

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Brahmans, Kshatriyas, Vaisyas, Sudras, and the Achutas (Untouchables). The higher the social

ranking, the more resources are available and given to the people. Mahatma Gandhi tried to get

rid of the Indian caste system, but his actions were unfortunately not enough. “One hundred

sixty million Indians serve this life sentence” (O'Neill 10) of being an Untouchable and there is

no silver lining.

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Student Name Professor Name Class Name Date The Untouchables In a world where everyone would be totally equal and given the same opportunities, every society would be egalitarian. According to the textbook, “egalitarian societies do not have social groups with unequal access to economic resources, [and] they also do not have social groups with unequal access to power” (Ember & Ember). Everyone is equal regardless of their individual abilities. Many societies claim that all of their people have equal opportunities, but in all reality, the overwhelming majority of societies have a class system in which “people are stratified, or divided into levels” (Ember & Ember). The more money, power, and prestige a person or group has, the higher their social status. One type of class system is a caste system which is “a ranked group in which membership is determined at birth” (Ember & Emb ...
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