Women in India Essay Example for Free

Women in India Essay The status of women in India has been subject to many great changes over the past few millennia. From equal status with men in ancient times through the low points of the medieval period, to the promotion of equal rights by many reformers, the history of women in India has been eventful. In modern India, women have held high offices in India including that of the President, Prime Minister, Speaker of the Lok Sabha and Leader of the Opposition. As of 2011, the Speaker of the Lok Sabha and the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha (Lower House of the parliament) were women. However, women in India continue to face atrocities such as rape, acid throwing, dowry killings while young girls are forced into prostitution; as of late rape has seen a sharp increase following several high profile cases of young girls brutally raped in public areas. According to a global poll conducted by Thomson Reuters, India is the fourth most dangerous country in the world for women, and the worst country for women among the G20 countries. Historical practices Traditions such as sati, jauhar, and devadasi among some communities have been banned and are largely defunct in modern India. However, some instances of these practices are still found in remote parts of India. The purdah is still practised by Indian women in some communities, and child marriage remains prevalent despite it being illegal under current Indian law. Sati Sati is an old, almost completely defunct custom among some communities, in which the widow was immolated alive on her husbands funeral pyre. Although the act was supposed to be voluntary on the widows part, it is believed to have sometimes been forced on the widow. It was abolished by the British in 1829. There have been around forty reported cases of sati since independence. In 1987, the Roop Kanwar case in Rajasthan led to The Commission of Sati (Prevention) Act. Jauhar Jauhar refers to the practice of voluntary immolation by wives and daughters of defeated warriors, in order to avoid capture and consequent molestation by the enemy. The practice was followed by the wives of defeated Rajput rulers, who are known to place a high premium on honour. Purdah Purdah is the practice among some communities of requiring women to cover their bodies so as to conceal their skin and form. It imposes restrictions on the mobility of women, curtails their right to interact freely, and is a symbol of the subordination of women. It does not reflect the religious teachings of either Hinduism or Islam, contrary to common belief. Devadasis Devadasi is a religious practice in some parts of southern India, in which women are married to a deity or temple. The ritual was well-established by the 10th century A. D. In later periods, illegitimate sexual exploitation of devadasis became the norm in some parts of India. Women in independent India Women in India now participate fully in areas such as education, sports, politics, media, art and culture, service sectors, science and technology, etc. Indira Gandhi, who served as Prime Minister of India for an aggregate period of fifteen years, is the worlds longest serving woman Prime Minister. The Constitution of India guarantees to all Indian women equality (Article 14), no discrimination by the State (Article 15(1)), equality of opportunity (Article 16), and equal pay for equal work (Article 39(d)). In addition, it allows special provisions to be made by the State in favour of women and children (Article 15(3)), renounces practices derogatory to the dignity of women (Article 51(A) (e)), and also allows for provisions to be made by the State for securing just and humane conditions of work and for maternity relief. (Article 42). Feminist activism in India gained momentum in the late 1970s. One of the first national-level issues that brought womens groups together was the Mathura rape case. The acquittal of policemen accused of raping a young girl Mathura in a police station led to country-wide protests in 1979-1980. The protests, widely covered by the national media, forced the Government to amend the Evidence Act, the Criminal Procedure Code, and the Indian Penal Code; and created a new offence, custodial rape. Female activists also united over issues such as female infanticide, gender bias, womens health, and womens literacy. Since alcoholism is often associated with violence against women in India many women groups launched anti-liquor campaigns in Andhra Pradesh, Himachal  Pradesh, Haryana, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh and other states. Many Indian Muslim women have questioned the fundamental leaders interpretation of womens rights under the Shariat law and have criticized the triple talaq system. In 1990s, grants from foreign donor agencies enabled the formation of new women-oriented NGOs. Self-help groups and NGOs such as Self Employed Womens Association (SEWA) have played a major role in the advancement of womens rights in India. Many women have emerged as leaders of local movements; for example, Medha Patkar of the Narmada Bachao Andolan. The Government of India declared 2001 as the Year of Womens Empowerment (Swashakti). The National Policy For The Empowerment Of Women came was passed in 2001. In 2006, the case of Imrana, a Muslim rape victim, was highlighted by the media. Imrana was raped by her father-in-law. The pronouncement of some Muslim clerics that Imrana should marry her father-in-law led to widespread protests, and finally Imranas father-in-law was sentenced to 10 years in prison. The verdict was welcomed by many womens groups and the All India Muslim Personal Law Board. In 2010 March 9, one day after International Womens day, Rajya Sabha passed the Womens Reservation Bill requiring that 33% of seats in Indias Parliament and state legislative bodies be reserved for women. Crimes against women Police records in India show a high incidence of crimes against women. The National Crime Records Bureau reported in 1998 that by 2010 growth in the rate of crimes against women would exceed the population growth rate. Earlier, many crimes against women were not reported to police due to the social stigma attached to rape and molestation. Official statistics show a dramatic increase in the number of reported crimes against women. Acid Throwing A Thomas Reuters Foundation survey says that India is the fourth most dangerous place in the world for women to live in. Women belonging to any class, caste, creed or religion can be victims of this cruel form of violence and disfigurement, a premeditated crime intended to kill or maim permanently and act as a lesson to put a woman in her place. In India, acid attacks on women who dared to refuse a mans proposal of marriage or asked for a divorce are a form of revenge. Acid is cheap, easily available, and the quickest way to destroy a womans life. The number of acid attacks have been rising. Child marriage Child marriage has been traditionally prevalent in India and continues to this day. Historically, child brides would live with their parents until they reached puberty. In the past, child widows were condemned to a life of great agony, shaved heads, living in isolation, and being shunned by society. Although child marriage was outlawed in 1860, it is still a common practice. According to UNICEF’s â€Å"State of the World’s Children-2009† report, 47% of Indias women aged 20–24 were married before the legal age of 18, rising to 56% in rural areas. The report also showed that 40% of the worlds child marriages occur in India. Domestic violence The number of incidents of domestic violence is higher among the lower Socio-Economic Classes (SECs). [citation needed] The Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005 came into force on 26 October 2006. Dowry In 1961, the Government of India passed the Dowry Prohibition Act, making dowry demands in wedding arrangements illegal. However, many cases of dowry-related domestic violence, suicides and murders have been reported. In the 1980s, numerous such cases were reported. In 1985, the Dowry Prohibition (maintenance of lists of presents to the bride and bridegroom) Rules were framed. According to these rules, a signed list should be maintained of presents given at the time of the marriage to the bride and the bridegroom. The list should contain a brief description of each present, its approximate value, the name of who has given the present, and relationship to the recipient. However, such rules are rarely enforced. A 1997 report claimed that each year at least 5,000 women in India die dowry-related deaths, and at least a dozen die each day in kitchen fires thought to be intentional. The term for this is bride burning and is criticized within India itself. Amongst the urban educated, such dowry abuse has reduced considerably. Female infanticide and sex-selective abortion In India, the male-female sex ratio is skewed dramatically in favour of males, the chief reason being the high number of females who die before reaching adulthood. Tribal societies in India have a less skewed sex ratio than other caste groups. This is in spite of the fact that tribal communities have far lower income levels, lower literacy rates, and less adequate health facilities. Many experts suggest the higher number of males in India can be attributed to female infanticides and sex-selective abortions. Ultrasound scanning constitutes a major leap forward in providing for the care of mother and baby, and with scanners becoming portable, these advantages have spread to rural populations. However, ultrasound scans often reveal the sex of the baby, allowing pregnant women to decide to abort female foetuses and try again later for a male child. This practice is usually considered the main reason for the change in the ratio of male to female children being born. In 1994 the Indian government passed a law forbidding women or their families from asking about the sex of the baby after an ultrasound scan (or any other test which would yield that information) and also expressly forbade doctors or any other persons from providing that information. However, in practice this law (like the law forbidding dowries) is widely ignored, and levels of abortion on female foetuses remain high and the sex ratio at birth keeps getting more skewed. Female infanticide (killing of girl infants) is still prevalent in some rural areas. Sometimes this is infanticide by neglect, for example families may not spend money on critical medicines or withhold care from a sick girl. Continuing abuse of the dowry tradition has been one of the main reasons for sex-selective abortions and female infanticides in India. Rape Rape in India has been described by Radha Kumar as one of Indias most common crimes against women and by the UN’s human-rights chief as a â€Å"national problem†. In the 1980s, womens rights groups lobbied for marital rape to be declared unlawful, as until 1983, the criminal law (amendment) act stated that sexual intercourse by a man with his own wife, the wife not being under fifteen years of age is not rape. Marital rape is now illegal in India but is still widespread. While per-capita reported incidents are quite low compared to other countries, even developed countries, a new case is reported every 20 minutes. New Delhi has the highest rate of rape-reports among Indian cities. Sources show that rape cases in India have doubled between 1990 and 2008. According to the National Crime Records Bureau, 24,206 rape cases were registered in India in 2011, although experts agree that the number of unreported cases is much higher. Sexual harassment Eve teasing is a euphemism used for sexual harassment or molestation of women by men. Many activists blame the rising incidents of sexual harassment against women on the influence of Western culture. In 1987, The Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act was passed to prohibit indecent representation of women through advertisements or in publications, writings, paintings or in any other manner. Of the total number of crimes against women reported in 1990, half related to molestation and harassment in the workplace. In 1997, in a landmark judgement, the Supreme Court of India took a strong stand against sexual harassment of women in the workplace. The Court also laid down detailed guidelines for prevention and redressal of grievances. The National Commission for Women subsequently elaborated these guidelines into a Code of Conduct for employers.

dying process Essay -- essays research papers

1.)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Explain how the answers to the self-inventories in the text concerning facts, attitudes, beliefs and feelings about death reflect our societal understanding or lack of understanding of death. I think that the self- inventory question reflected on both our understanding and lack of understanding about death related topics. Some of the answers to the questions on the inventory I knew without look at the answers, but some of the answers actually surprised me. The question about the death certificate was one of the questions that actually surprised me. I assumed before I did the inventory that every death certificate had a specific cause of death that was given on the certificate. Another answer that surprised me was that measles kill more people in third world countries than AIDS. The inventory actually made you think about all aspects of death. Differentiate between attitudes, experiences, beliefs, and feelings about death related topics. Attitudes refer to our a ction tendencies. Beliefs refer to our relatively stable and broad interpretations of the world and our place in it. Feelings provide us with qualitative information on our total sense of being. Experiences are the things that we go through in life that help form our attitudes, beliefs, and feelings. Each one is important in developing, but each one is also different. Attitude is how we react, or maybe it is the way we do not react. Your attitude can change every five minutes. Beliefs are the things that help us know who we are your beliefs do not change like your attitude. Most people feel more passionate about their beliefs. Our feelings let us know hurt, and happens. Our feelings help us develop our beliefs and attitude. Give an example of how your own experiences may have impacted upon your feelings and beliefs about death. When my grandmother died I felt terrible, I had never felt that way before. It is hard to explain the way I actually felt. I remember that I stayed to myself most of the time. I never wanted to hear anyone else talking about it or talking about her. Eventually I realized that that was how they were grieving, by talking about her and never letting her go in their hearts. I still do not like to talk about her death, but I will not get upset if I her anyone else talking about it. My beliefs about death I am not to sure about yet. There are so many... ...ntually go crazy if they had no way of dealing with grief. Changing ways of life and death is the way society has dealt with different types of life threatening illnesses in the past and the deadly illnesses we are dealing with today. Life expectancy rates today are much higher than those of the past. Women life expectancy rate is several years higher than males. This is do to better medical conditions, better technology in our society today. In the early 1900 the leading cause to death was pneumonia, influenza, and tuberculosis. In the 1940s heart disease became the leading cause of death in the United States and have remained there. In the future in the United States contagious disease will be at the top of the list. Tuberculosis is expected to make a come back do to situations like HIV/AIDS.I think changes are occurring in the death system because time and experiences changes everything. As technology has developed in the United States we have seen a decrease in many illnesses due do cures, and vaccines to some illness. I think changes are positive, we do not have a cure to HIV now but as long as things continue to change and technology continues to grow a cure will come soon.

A regular turn in American sign language Essay

In the next example, the Professor is suggesting that the next step is to separate portions of the Student’s narrative into chunks. She explains that narrative chunks in spoken languages are detected through linguistic cues, such as rhythm, intonation, and discourse markers (Chafe 1982). She concludes by saying that she does not know if ASL has these cues or if there are other kinds of cues. Her final remark, Ð ° rhetorical question, is interpreted into ASL as Ð ° direct question: Does ASL has cues? The Student immediately responds, â€Å"YES† The Professor’s delay at hearing Ð ° response is minimal, less than Ð ° half second. The briefness of this delay accounts for the illusion that the speakers are almost talking to each other, Because the Student begins to respond in ASL by the second potential turn transition, the exchange between Professor, Student, and Interpreter occurs seemingly naturally within Ð ° brief time span and without problems. That primary speakers are responding to the Interpreter in terms of the norms of their own language is also demonstrated by their nonverbal behavior. Both speaker’s nod their heads, smile and silently laugh, and make other gestures at moments that co-occur with utterances they understand in their own languages. For example, later in the meeting when the Professor learns that the Student will be going to another city to give Ð ° speech, she smiles and nods, but these expressions occur after she hears the interpretation in English, not after the Student says it in ASL. one wonders, then, whether the Student understands, intuitively or not, that the nonverbal information he sees the Professor engage in at that moment is attached to what he said moments ago noted that when people speak the same language, they know what facial signals go with what words and so can interpret the combination of the two signals. But when we interact with people who speak another language, any speaker might observe another speaker’s body and facial cues but most likely cannot associate these cues with their exact words, sentence, or meanings. In this section І have demonstrated how the Student and the Professor take turns at potential transition moments within their own language, and thus, with the Interpreter. Regular turns occur naturally in face-to-face interaction, and they also occur naturally in interpreting. The participants, the discourse, and the moment combine (McDermott and Tylbor [1983] call this â€Å"collusion†) to create interactional harmony whereby Ð ° turn happens successfully and comfortably. In regular turns, then, the Interpreter is an active participant who constructed equivalent responses in terms of message content and also in terms of potential turn transition. Knowing when and how to signal turns or pauses is discourse knowledge and an indication of communicative competence. Creating Turns From studies of no interpreted conversations, we know that speakers do not take turns or continue their turns only because they recognize Ð ° transition moment or Ð ° specific syntactic unit that allows for exchange. Bennett (1981) suggests that the structural regularities in discourse and Ð ° participant’s understandings of the thematic flow of the discourse make turn units â€Å"considerably more flexible† (emphasis his) than the notion of turns created solely from structural surface signals. Within conversations, participants create themes which unfold, diverge, and reconverge as the talk proceeds (Bennett 1981). Themes comprised of individual and shared motives, feelings about the subject, and the meanings that are uttered direct conversational contributions Turns, then, also come about through participants’ intuitive sense of â€Å"now† being the right moment to speak, or take Ð ° turn. After playing back the videotape of the meeting once, І asked the participants to focus on turn-taking. І asked them to recall, if they could, their motives and feelings around their turns, and why, in some places, they chose to speak. Predictably, their own reasons for taking Ð ° turn or continuing Ð ° turn were based in large part on their own sense of participation in the conversation and from Ð ° sense of wanting either to contribute to Ð ° theme or, in one case, to stop Ð ° theme. These developments are not predictable but are Ð ° part of conversational behavior. Moreover, the ways in which the interlocutors contribute to the flow constitutes an emerging pattern of conversational style (Tannen 1984). For example, at one point in the meeting, the Professor began to talk even though she could hear an interpretation. During her interview, І asked the Professor about this segment. Her response was, â€Å"І probably just decided it [the Student’s talk] was enough. І didn’t especially want to hear the answer now. І just wanted to set it as Ð ° topic that would be interesting for him to think about and report on during the semester. † The Professor began to talk from her own sense of the direction of the conversation and her desire to have the Student think about the topic and not initiate Ð ° longer discussion at present. To steer the conversation in Ð ° different direction and perhaps head off Ð ° lengthy discussion, she took Ð ° turn from her own sense of needing to alter the theme of the conversation, not from Ð ° surface syntactic signal. In another example, at the beginning of the meeting, the Student was looking at the Interpreter because the Interpreter was signing, and then he turned away from the Interpreter and looked toward the Professor and the telephone and answering machine. He began to talk while the Interpreter was still interpreting, not at Ð ° potential transition moment in ASL. His turn, too, has to be motivated by reasons other than an approaching grammatical unit or paralinguistic signal. When asked why he stopped watching the Interpreter and began to speak, the Student replied, â€Å"І knew where [the Interpreter] was going; І could sense the way his sentence would end. І wanted to see what she was doing to make the phone stop ringing. † (This he had learned from what the Professor had just said. ) Discourse knowledge, real world knowledge, Ð ° sense of conversational direction, speaker intention, and many other factors motivate speakers to take turns. Although interpreters cannot always predict when Ð ° speaker will talk, they can become accustomed to the possibilities of change and that turns can occur at the least likely moments, or rather, at any moment. Primary participants are actively involved in creating and responding to turns, and, for all intents and purposes, make arbitrary decisions which must be managed by an interpreter. More significantly, these examples demonstrate that primary participants are active in the emerging nature and flow of talk as the interpreter directs and coordinates the exchange.

The Handmaids Tale Essay - 968 Words

In Margaret Atwood’s ‘The Handmaids Tale’, we hear a transcribed account of one womans posting ‘Offred’ in the Republic of Gilead. A society based around Biblical philosophies as a way to validate inhumane state practises. In a society of declining birth rates, fertile women are chosen to become Handmaids, walking incubators, whose role in life is to reproduce for barren wives of commanders. Older women, gay men, and barren Handmaids are sent to the colonies to clean toxic waste. Fear is power. Fear is ever-present in Gilead; it is implemented through violence and force. It is through fear that the regime controls the Gileadian society. There is no way Offred, or the other Handmaids can avoid it. What used to be Harvard University, a†¦show more content†¦In Gilead Handmaids are seen as adulterous, harlots and are hated by everyone because of their role, â€Å"But the frown isn’t personal: it’s the red dress she disapproves of, and what it stands for.†(pg.19 ) they are especially hated by the wives of commanders. Handmaids are also branded like cattle, a numerical tattoo on their ankle consisting of an eye and four digits; similar to the tattoos on Nazi prisoners, prevents them from escaping. Offred refers to it as, ‘’ A passport in reverse.’’ (pg. 75 ) this reference implies that there is no escape or leaving her situation, as a passport would allow a person to leave a country. Atwood uses this tattoo to display the society’s exploitation of power, and has been related to that of the cruel regime of Nazi Germany. The Gilead regime uses language, particularly Biblical language to solidify its power. Language has a strong influence in moulding how people think, and it is fully abused by the rulers of Gilead, for example, the phrase, ‘’give me children or else I die.’’ (pg. 99 ) gave the republic of Gilead the idea to use handmaids to bear children for barren wives. Bible readings and prayers before the ceremony, Is another example the regime justifies its actions and the role of the handmaid, to disguise what is actually taking place, which is the exploitation and abuse of women. Offreds memories are a way for her to escape a society riddled with hopelessness. The authoritarian society of Gilead prevents her fromShow MoreRelatedThe Handmaids Tale715 Words   |  3 PagesImagine growing up in a society where all women are useful is to reproduce. The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood is an excellent novel of what could potentially be the fate of the future one day. The main character, Offred, moves into a new home where she is there to perform â€Å"rituals† with the Commander, head of the house, so she can hopefully reproduce herself. The Commander is a key character for he can get rid of Offred if he does not like her and he has all the power. The two end up havingRead MoreThe Handmaids Tale Essay1591 Words   |  7 PagesUpon reading The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood, one notices the tragedy of women losing rights. Imagine the feelings of losing all rights and freedoms; how hard the transition would be from an American society, c entered on freedoms, to the society where Offred lives in The Handmaid’s Tale. Thankfully for all Americans, Atwood’s prediction of what society would become in the future was inaccurate. But, not all countries enjoy the same freedoms and luxuries as America does; the treatment of womenRead MoreFeminism In The Handmaids Tale1709 Words   |  7 PagesThe Republic of Gilead, a dystopian world with a patriarchal society, is displayed in Atwood’s, The Handmaid’s Tale. More specifically, the novel takes place in what used to be considered the United States but is now being called the Republic of Gilead where freedoms and rights have been excluded, especially for women. The society nurtures a â€Å"theocratic, patriarchal, nightmare world created by men, with the complicity of women† (â€Å"Margaret (Eleanor) Atwood†). The separation of the freedoms betweenRead MoreInterpreting the Handmaids Tale657 Words   |  3 PagesInterpreting The Handmaid s Tale The Handmaids Tale is distinguished by its various narrative and structural divisions. It contains four different levels of narrative time: the pre-Revolution past, the time of the Revolution itself, the Gileadean period, and the post-Gileadean period (LeBihan 100). In addition, the novel is divided into two frames, both with a first person narrative. Offreds narrative makes up the first frame, while the second frame is provided by the Historical Notes, a transcriptRead MoreThe Handmaids Tale And The Crucible1695 Words   |  7 PagesResistance Futile? What do The Handmaid’s Tale and The Crucible suggest about the nature of resisting and rebelling against social order? Margaret Atwood’s, The Handmaid’s Tale, and Arthur Miller’s ,The Crucible, explore the consequences surrounding the nature of resisting and rebelling against social order. Resistance the refusal to accept or comply with something or to actively and passively fight against something. Atwood’s new government of Gilead in The Handmaid’s Tale enforces unthinkable oppressionRead More The Handmaids Tale Essays1979 Words   |  8 PagesThe Handmaids Tale The Handmaids Tale, written by Margaret Attwood, goes on to explore the consequences that come to be from the reversal of womens rights in a society called Gilead. It is what one can consider a cautionary tale. In the new world of Gilead, a group of conservative religious extremists have taken power, and have turned the sexual revolution upside down. The society of Gilead is founded on what is to be considered a return to traditional values, gender roles and the subjugationRead MoreThe Handmaids Tale Essay1215 Words   |  5 PagesPaula Hawkins, a well-known British author, once said, â€Å"I have lost control over everything, even the places in my head.† In Margaret Atwood’s futuristic dystopia The Handmaid’s Tale, a woman named Offred feels she is losing control over everything in her life. Offred lives in the Republic of Gilead. A group of fundamentalists create the Republic of Gilead after they murder the President of the United States and members of Congres s. The fundamentalists use the power to their advantage and restrictRead MoreFeminism in The Handmaids Tale626 Words   |  3 PagesPaper: Feminism in The Handmaid’s Tale In today’s news we see many disruptions and inconsistencies in society, and, according to Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale, humankind might be headed in that direction. The deterioration of society is a concept often explored biologically in novels, but less common, is the effect on everyday social constructs such as the position of women as a item that can be distributed and traded-in for a ‘better’ product. The Handmaid’s Tale elaborates the conceptRead More The Handmaids Tale Essay931 Words   |  4 PagesThe Handmaids Tale Serena Joy is the most powerful female presence in the hierarchy of Gileadean women; she is the central character in the dystopian novel, signifying the foundation for the Gileadean regime. Atwood uses Serena Joy as a symbol for the present dystopian society, justifying why the society of Gilead arose and how its oppression had infiltrated the lives of unsuspecting people. Atwood individualises the character of Serena Joy, as her high status in the society demands powerRead MoreThe Handmaids Tale Essay1732 Words   |  7 PagesBrenda Guillen Professor XXX Class November 8, 2017 Then vs. Now, the Realities of of Atwood’s ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ in Modern Day America The novel quot;The Handmaid#39;s Talequot; written by Margaret Atwood in 1985 is a fictional novel about Gilead, a place ruled by male religious fundamentalists who rape women labeled as handmaids to bear children for infertile wives. The society encourages the enslavement of women to control their reproductive rights. While Atwood’s novel depicts a fictional