Spivak, born in 1942 in Calcutta India, shows how post colonial India is influenced by Western cultures. Subaltern is the collection of people that are excluded from the hierarchy of society. In a third world country such as India, colonialism gives an opportunity for the culture of the country being taken over to be oppressed and destroyed.
Upon the the British colonization of India, the oppressive nature of some aspects of Indian culture were abolished, such as Sati. Spivak talks about the practice of Sati, where a woman burns herself alive to show her devotion and respect for her husband. Sati is described as an honorable practice in Indian culture, “individuals who sacrificed themselves in this way were called satis, from the Sanskrit word for “a good woman,” by association with the goddess Sati,” (https://victorianweb.org/history/empire/india/suttee.html). Although outlawing this practice was positive and beneficial for Indian women, deconstructing cultural practices is a strategy used by imperialists to further achieve disunity in the countries they were overtaking.
Disunity was already present in India due to this country’s long established caste system. Manusmriti, an Indian book that dates back to over 1,000 years before Christ was born, details India’s caste system. This book recognizes that a caste system is integral for order and regularity in society. The book outlines that there are four main castes for Hindu’s and many rules and stipulations are in place governing one can only marry within a certain caste, and there is no way to break out of the caste that one is born into.
Due to India being divided at the time of the British colonization, there was a great deal of inequality and wealth disparity already present at the time.
Taking the caste system into consideration, as well as unjust cultural practices, How does a wealth divide present in a country contribute to the nation’s vulnerability?
https://victorianweb.org/history/empire/india/suttee.html
https://theculturetrip.com/asia/india/articles/the-dark-history-behind-sati-a-banned-funeral-custom-in-india/
I learned about India’s caste system in a religion class I took last year when talking about Hinduism. There are four main castes, as you mentioned, however, there is also a fifth group that was added known originally as the “untouchables.” Gandhi sought to uplift them and they now refer to themselves as the Dalit which is a word meaning oppressed. I feel like this group would likely be the subaltern that Spivak talks about in her essay because they are even below the lowest of the classes in the Hindu four-class model. In this way, how would they ever have a chance to present their side of things to a large audience? They are both held back by colonialism as well as their own society (Invitation to World Religions textbook).
How does a wealth divide present in a country contribute to the nation’s vulnerability? I would say the people on the lower end of the wealth spectrum that do not have relatively any money do not usually have much of a voice for their opinions which could presume to be valuable if taken seriously in some conditions and without ever listening to some of the voices it may cause for a nation to be more vulnerable.
In my high school Theology class, I remember hearing about caste systems and the practice of Sati. I remember my class (all girls) were shocked to hear about how some widowed wives would burn themselves as a sacrifice for their husbands. I think the wealth divide makes a nation vulnerable because you have the rich ruling society. People on the bottom of the caste system will have to fend for themselves while the rich are taken care of. The nation may not have a strong economy or invest in their education and health care. All of these factors can lead to vulnerability.
A wealth divide in a country causes many issues in different areas. The countries vulnerability is a main one because anytime someone is divided there is bound to be issues along the way. Wealth is a big debate already because people say that wealth makes everyone only care for themselves. If this happens in a county that has a wealth divide it will cause fighting and suffering for many. They become vulnerable to other countries and people who have more money than them tend to act as though they are above them. This causes a divide in other areas such as government and even families.
By dividing the wealth of the nation into a strict caste system where the people who have the most power and resources are only a small part of the population, the nation becomes very vulnerable. If some opposing force wanted to take over, all they would have to do is take out the top class since the rest do not possess enough resources or power to efficiently fight back against this. Even ignoring this extreme example, the divide can cause cultural repercussions as they are unable to truly come together as one.
A wealth divide, or income inequality, is overall damaging for economies and does leave countries more vulnerable. People on the lower end of the income spectrum are very vulnerable to shocks, such as natural disasters, disease, or events such as a global pandemic.
Regarding the point about the practice of Sati, this really got me thinking about the lasting effects of colonization. Obviously deconstructing cultural traditions and ideals is inherently bad, but abolishing a practice that harms women seems like a great thing. I am conflicted on what to think about this but it makes me think that some international intervention can be a good thing, however not to the point where it becomes imperialism.
I think wealth divides contribute to a nation’s vulnerability in many ways, especially when no actions are being taken to minimize the divide. In a country being colonized, the wealthiest group(s) would likely be affected much less than the poorer ones. The current group in power is likely to belong to the wealthiest category, and that’s who the colonizers would go to if they had any interest in negotiation, allowing them to advocate for themselves. The poorer groups would not have this advantage, and are also more likely to be harmed directly or indirectly by the colonizers. A wealth gap can cause issues in a country not currently being colonized too; look at the US. Income inequality is only worsening here, and while marginalized groups are those who most often must deal with the consequences, it’s only a positive for the richest families who continue to get richer. Further reading: https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2020/02/07/6-facts-about-economic-inequality-in-the-u-s/