Story is Society: A Sociological Interpretation of Narrative Literature on Understanding of Caste, Class, Gender and Red Light Areas

Author

Sayak Mondal, Additi Mondal, Kohinur Khatun, Dr. Samir Kumar Naskar

Abstract

 Narrative literature, in addition to being an aesthetic art, is a deep social document that contains and mirrors social reality. This paper aims at understanding the sociology of literature, which will be the key to understanding persistent and interconnected social stratifications in Indian society, such as caste, class and gender in a highly marginalized form of space – Red Light Areas.

It is based on the fact that “stories are mirrors to society” as well as sites of resistance. Conventional sociology uses statistics, numerical data and survey reports to understand poverty, casteism and gender inequality but lacks the subjective and emotional experiences of oppression. Narrative literature compensates for the deficiency. A novel, a short story and/or an autobiography gives ethnographic insight into how untouchability is felt, how hunger forces migration, how patriarchy regulates women’s bodies – things which cannot be expressed by numbers alone.

The paper is divided into three sociological stages. Firstly, it analyses the representation of caste, class and gender in the Indian narrative literature. By using literary texts like Mulk Raj Anand’s Untouchable, Omprakash Valmiki’s Joothan, Bama’s Karukku, Premchand’s Godaan, Mahasweta Devi’s Draupadi it tries to understand how caste is presented in the form of graded humiliation, how class is explained as exploitation related to the ownership of means of production and how gender is defined as patriarchal control over labour, sexuality and domesticity. The theoretical base is taken from the Sociological Imagination theory by C. Wright Mills, who talks about the connection between the private troubles and public issues; class and status theory by Karl Marx and Max Weber; caste as division of labourers view by B.R. Ambedkar and G.S. Ghurye; feminist sociology of Simone de Beauvoir and Sharmila Rege on Brahmanical patriarchy and Kimberlé Crenshaw’s Intersectionality theory.

Secondly, and most importantly, the paper analyses sociology of Red Light Areas, going through their evolution from the ancient times to the present. In the Ancient Period, prostitution existed as an institutionally recognized institution in the form of Nagarvadhu system like Amrapali and Devadasi system where women had an artistic recognition and were regulated by the state law such as Kautilya’s Arthashastra. They were not spatially segregated and stigmatized as they are today. The Middle period consisting of Medieval period and the Colonal period represents a crucial turning

The Middle Period includes the Medieval and Colonial era, which is another important turning point. Due to the development of feudalism, the temple women have been increasingly sexually exploited by landlords and priests. Under British colonialism, the Red Light Area has emerged officially. The colonial administration established special zones “Lal Bazaars” or “Chaklas” for British soldiers such as Sonagachi in Kolkata, Kamathipura in Mumbai, and G.B. Road in Delhi. These zones were governed by the Contagious Diseases Act of 1868. The combination of famines, the Permanent Settlement, and the closure of local industries made poor peasant women, widows, and lower caste women move to cities and join these areas for livelihood. This period turned sex work into criminalized, segregated and stigmatized profession.

Nowadays Red Light Area is an intersection of caste, class, and gender. The studies show that the population consists predominantly of economically disadvantaged, Dalit, tribal, and minority members experiencing the oppression based on caste, class, and gender aspects. The structure has evolved to brothel-based, street-based, home-based, and online/app-based variants. The analysis touches upon the current legal paradox in India that sex work is not an illegal activity according to the Immoral Traffic Prevention Act [ITPA], 1956; however, running a brothel and solicitation are illegal. Another important point is the landmark Supreme Court judgment in 2022 which recognized the sex work as a professional activity. The paper also mentions rights-based movements such as Durbar Mahila Samanwaya Committee [DMSC] in Sonagachi advocating that “sex work is work” and focusing on health, education, and anti-trafficking activities. Another issue is the decreasing number of traditional brothels because of the real estate pressures and technological progress.

Finally, from the intersectional perspective, the paper claims that the Dalit woman in a Red Light Area experiences much more oppression than Dalit man and upper caste woman. The Dalit woman’s body becomes a place of intersection of caste impurity, economic exploitation, and patriarchy.

It could be concluded that the “story is indeed society”. In order to understand the social stratification of India, one has to know the stories, including those from the dark alleys of Red Light Areas. The literature not only reflects the reality, but also serves as a great instrument for social criticism and consciousness-raising. In this regard, it is recommended to incorporate literary texts as primary sociological materials and to use human rights and public health approaches instead of the moral policing approachto the Red Light Zones.

Keywords

Literary Narratives, Sociology of Literature, Caste, Class, Gender, Red Light Zone, Sex Work, Intersectionality, Dalit Feminism, Social Stratification

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References

1. Sociological Theory & Literature

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1. Primary Literary Sources – Story as Society

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1. Sociology of Caste, Class, Gender & Red Light Area

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