HSC Arts (English Medium) १२ वीं कक्षा - Maharashtra State Board Question Bank Solutions for Sociology

Social movements arise generally from needs felt by one or more members of any given society. Through social interactions, these needs and concerns are communicated to many more persons. A network of people who share these concerns become the driving force for change in that particular society. Movements are usually guided by some underlying philosophies and goals. Indeed, several movements are associated with a founder or a core group. It can take several years, or even decades for a social movement to become very wide and expansive, across vast geographical territories.

Social movements such as the Social Reform Movement, Trade Union Movement, Tribal Movement, Dalit Movement, Women’s Movement, Chipko Movement, LGBT Movement, Civil Rights Movement, Rationalist Movement and so many more have emerged and grown.

As a social movement gains momentum, greater awareness is created in society. In fact, the study of several movements have found their way into the academic curriculum as well as research. For example, courses on Labour Studies, Gender Studies, Minorities’ Studies and Environmental Studies.

Social movements can stimulate critical thinking about social issues in the wider society of which we are a part. Some of these concerns lead to the passing of legislations. Every era or generation has its share of concerns from which may emerge new social movements.

    This is the real-life story of Rukmini Devi who lives in a small hut in Gaigotha Village in Wada Taluka of Palghar District in Maharashtra State. She belongs to the Warli tribe. Her husband is a marginal farmer who cultivates on two acres of land. They have two children, one daughter aged 10 years and a son aged 6 years. Both the children walk to school and back daily (located about 3 miles away).

    When cultivation season is over, (or if the rice crop is damaged due to heavy rains or pests) they face many hardships. A section of the crop is kept for their personal use, for the year. Tur Dal (lentil) is also grown in one small area, again for personal use. In a small backyard, they grow vegetables like chilies, cucumber, and bitter gourd (karela).

     During the off-season, both husband and wife go to the brick kilns (about 7 miles away) to do piece-rate work (That is, they get paid for each brick that they make). While the men earn Rs. 300 per day, the women earn Rs. 150-200. Rukmini Devi stated that they prefer to walk the 7 miles both ways because the bus fare is Rs. 35/- per head one way. They cannot afford it.

Indian films have a history of their emergence, growth and development. There were the days of silent films where viewers interpreted visuals on screen and constructed their own understanding of what the films may have tried to communicate. Then came the days of audiovisual films, black and white films and later, colour films.

People who can afford to watch films at theatres and those who can do so on their television screens at home are entertained by the stories that films tell us. There are all kinds of ideas, ideologies, tragedies, themes and values that films communicate. Today one can watch films on the internet on one’s mobile phones. Sometimes the explicit and implicit messages are received by viewers, but they can also be lost on them.

Besides actors’ abilities to ‘play varied roles or characters, there are a whole lot of persons involved with the production process as well as its marketing. This may include the film director, screenplay writers, designers, sound engineers, makeup artists and stylists, casting experts, musicians and so on.

Fields like Visual Sociology, Sociology of Mass Communication, and Marketing Sociology have a role to play in the study of these varied dimensions. Films as a source of knowledge play multiple roles even today. The story lines and types of films are ever increasing. Films are not limited to nor bound by standard themes, love stories or gender stereotyping. Films can cause much upheaval on the one hand and generate much interest on the other. Regional films and international films have added to the list of viewing possibilities and multiple interests.

Education, since the coming of the British to India has been secular in content. By this we mean, the content of education did not include the study of sacred texts. Schools were open for all - to learn and climb the ladder of vertical mobility. The study of English language as well as the opportunity to study in the English medium was available.

It is true that several Indians from certain social and economic strata were the first to access an English education. Many of them later constituted the intelligentsia of our society. We refer to many of them as social reformers, such as Raja Rammohan Roy, Ishwarchandra Vidyasagar, Pandita Ramabai, Maharshi Dhondo Keshav Karve. They worked for religious, social and educational reform in Indian society. Such visionaries of society continue even in the post-Independence era, to the present time.

Educational opportunities have grown by leaps and bounds in the last 73 years since Independence. One questions if the educated have merely acquired education or if the education has helped citizens become gainfully employed and more importantly, enlightened enough to transform society at the micro level.

It is necessary for the government to consider the interests of all sections of society. Each citizen can play a dynamic role in the development of all people in our society.

Indian society is a melting pot of cultures. The history of Indian society gives enough evidence of the process of accommodation. From early times migrants integrated into Indian society and influenced its culture. Our historical past is testimony to this fact of cultural diffusion.

Today, we describe our society as a composite whole that includes tribal, rural and urban communities. The way of life in these segments has their unique characteristics. However, it is also an observation that no one segment, or community can be seen in its “pure” state. On the one hand there is interdependence between communities and on the other this would imply a certain extent of loss of cultural elements such as language, beliefs, customary practices etc. Have we not seen how, for example, Warli or Madhubani Art has made it to T-shirts and wall hangings in many urban households? Also, how technology has reached the remotest corners of our country?

A question that may cross your mind may be, ‘Is there anything such as ‘pure’ culture? What constitutes “Indian culture”? ‘Can cultural extremism be valuable in the present world? These questions are valid as they set us thinking. Perhaps there is no single “answer”?

The causes of disharmony and strife are several-fold. Resistance to social change is one among many. Problems of contemporary Indian society include domestic violence, sexual abuse, child rights, problems of senior citizens, migrants, ethnocentrism, religious fundamentalism, linguistic fanaticism, environmental degradation, substance abuse and addiction to devices, mob lynching and so on. Given the varied types of social problems and their changing nature, there emerges a need to examine them in a scientific manner. The applicability of Sociology in its widest sense, includes the exploration of various themes that cut across fields such Masculinity Studies, Minority Studies, Film and Media Studies, Sociology of Sports, Environmental Sociology, Forensic Sociology, Gerontology, Sociology of Music, Medical Sociology, Marketing Sociology and so on.

Various government departments and voluntary organisations include sociologists on their panels to help steer policies and programmes. As Sociology is a people-centred discipline, it tends to create awareness and dialogue regarding human relationships. This is a valuable asset in governance and conflict resolution.