Untouchable paragraph

In Anand's The Untouchable, the British imposed their way of life on the Indians through the form of presenting an extravagant, refined lifestyle for them to idolize. Upon entering the life of the Indians, the British promoted their culture as the right way to live on earth. The interaction between these two cultures is a significant display of racial formation in world history. British's caste system set in place has created racial projects within Indian culture that exist to this day. The constant negative portrayal of Indians by the British has an immediate effect on how the main character, Bakha, views the world around him. Throughout Untouchable, Bakha is torn between his admiration for the lavish British culture and his loyalty to the Indian culture he was born in. This on-going struggle is showcased throughout Anand's novel in Bakha's experiences and shortcomings. Moments such as the hockey stick gift given to Bahka from Mr. Singh represent the socialization of British life into his society through a break in the paradigm of the caste system. The norm within this society expressed that communication amongst seperate castes wasn't socially accepted. Bakha's conflict is a depiction of the effect on the younger generations within the colonial Indian way of life.



The constant negative portrayal of Indians by the British has an immediate effect on how the main character, Bakha, views the world around him. Throughout Untouchable, Bakha is torn between the socialization by the lavish British culture and his pride towards the Indian culture he was born in. Socialization is the lifelong process by which individuals develop their human potential, acquire an unique personality, and by which culture is passed from generation to generation. Due to the society around him, Bakha develops racial project concepts about his own race. He is considered an untouchable which guides him to the belief that his life isn't heading in the right direction. While internally embracing the stereotypes of these castes, Bakha assimilates to the ideology of the British. He adapts to British culture with hopes of sculpting his future in their image.

Cluster Connections

During this semester, I've noticed that the topics brought up in each of my classes relate amongst each other. This race and culture cluster has broadened my vision of our society today and society's of the past. A common question brought up in each class has been "What is race?". Based on our in-class discussion mixed with my prior knowledge, I believe this question depends on the person answering. Having growing up in various cultures, we all share differing views of what race means to us. To me, race is an idea used to define and to draw inferences about groups of people because of their skin color. I also believe that this concept has separated the world over time rather than bringing everyone together. Racial formation has led to colonization throughout the world. With races set in place, certain ones believed in their own people as the superior race in comparison to others. For example, we've been analyzing the situation between the English and Indians in history. In English class, the book our class is reading is called "The Untouchable" which demonstrates the life of an Indian within the caste system while under English rule. The impact of this system and another instance of the English and Indian relationship was showcased in "Bend it like Beckham" which we watched for Anthropology class. In both, the main character, being Indian, idolizes British culture although they were socialized into English culture and way of life. The information received from the readings and the film, gave me a better understanding of the interaction and history between these two races. These classes have expanded my vision on race and connections between certain races over time.

New Twitter Handles

The information I saw on the twitter accounts that I recently followed were somewhat interesting. They seem to all focus or relate to rights for immigrants in the United States. Each handle serves as an advocate for equality. Some specifically focus on rights for those who are currently in prison. I think these twitter handles are useful for the fact that our news is keeping up with our evolving society. Having this information provided on a social network gives people an alternative to grabbing a newspaper or watching Channel 7. I think one major downfall of this method is in the personal accounts because the tweeter's social life becomes too involved and it partially takes away from the informational aspect of the account. Otherwise, I believe the use of twitter is important to spread such information due to the fact that our world is technologically-oriented.
On the @BAMN (By Any Means Necessary) account I recently followed, they represent a protest group fighting for integration and immigrant rights. They post their events and connect with other twitter handles to spread their message and voice.