Posted on: 21-07-05 09:15:09
What is Happening to Indian culture ?
Rape capital and evil on wheels
The frequency of rapes in cars with tinted glasses has made women wary of walking on streets.On Wednesday morning a 23-year-old housewife was raped in a moving car, similar to the Dhaula Kuan case, in which a Delhi University student was gangraped by four men, also in a vehicle. Fear and nervousness grips women at the approach of a car on a lonely road.
Most women in Delhi claim to have become extra cautious, more so when they hear a car coming up behind them. And spotting cars with leering men who automatically slow down when they see a woman walking alone on the road, is nothing new.
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Orginally posted by Green_card_Nahin_mila
What is Happening to Indian culture ?
how do you attribute the rapes to 'indian culture' or lack of it?
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Quote:
Orginally posted by jake3d
Quote:
Orginally posted by Green_card_Nahin_mila
What is Happening to Indian culture ?
how do you attribute the rapes to 'indian culture' or lack of it?
The way Indian women are subject to rape and other kinds of ill treatment certainly has to do with the change in our culture.
Many women in India wear toe rings after their marriage.In olden times, a man would see a woman wear a toe ring to indicate that she was married. That was a deterrent of a kind. This man would then treat her with respect. He wouldn't make advances of any kind to a woman wearing a toe ring. That was the India we had.
In today's India, many women shudder to go out after sunset. In the past, women would fear of having their "mangal sutras" snatched. Things have gone a bit further - women get snatched in broad daylight, and gang raped in moving cars. Then we have two such brutal rapes in a span of 8 weeks.
Where are we moving to ? Certainly this is not an indication of "mera mahaan bharat".
Like Jake said, what does the culture have to do with it?
A rape is a crime, a heinous one at that. And those caught should be punished in the severest form. But the sad reality is it happens in every part of the world.
If the percentage of this crime in India is disproportionately higher, it is a failure of law enforcement. The culture in NO WAY fosters this, I think its pretty stupid to bring culture into this.
And Delhi isn't India, not every city is like this. The unfortuante truth of society is that Women all over the world have to be a bit extra cautious when travelling alone at night.
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Quote:
Orginally posted by STHIRU18
The way Indian women are subject to rape and other kinds of ill treatment certainly has to do with the change in our culture.
Many women in India wear toe rings after their marriage.In olden times, a man would see a woman wear a toe ring to indicate that she was married. That was a deterrent of a kind. This man would then treat her with respect. He wouldn't make advances of any kind to a woman wearing a toe ring. That was the India we had.
I think the guy should treat a woman with respect irrespective of a wether she is sporting a 'toe ring' or nike sneakers.
I dont think a 'toe ring' would really deter someone intent on commiting a rape. Rape is always been a part of Indian(or any other) society. Its probably more reported recently.
There is truth however that social attitudes about women have a part to play in such crimes. However, I dont see any culture that condones raping women.
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Quote:
Orginally posted by jake3d
There is truth however that social attitudes about women have a part to play in such crimes.
Changes in social behaviour, acceptances and preferences, finally leads to a change in culture, whether it be India or the west. In times of Ram, the Indian culture was to obey parents to such an extent that the son left his 'Raj-pat' to go to the jungles for 14 years - in today's world we cannot say that we have that culture any more. Roots yes, but it is no longer a part of our present day culture.
Similary, when we were kids, it was a part of our culture to touch feet of our parents every morning - today it has converted to 'hi dad-good morning' or a hug between a parent and child. A few generations later, Indians might talk of the concept of touching feet a bygone era, no more part of the Indian culture then!
And yes, what Sthiru18 has written is very right. These things like a toe ring, 'maang main sindoor', payal etc. had a social meaning to them, not just a part of jewelery or 'Shringar'. The reason why a young bride/housewife wore a ghunghroo vali payal was so that the elders in the family would know when the bahu was approaching them and would take appropriate measures either to sit straight, or stop smoking, or stop talking things about business/sex or whatever was not supposed to be done in front of a young woman.
These were all part of a culture that we learned from. Today, with change in social behaviour (where the young bahu goes out early in the morning to her office dressed in shirt and pants or skirts), the culture as such has taken a slight shift and over generations, will definitely change. Once upon a time, a woman (wife/mother/daughter) was not supposed to argue with the male in the family - that was a part of culture. Any woman who did that was outcasted socially or called names - that was part of social behaviour, and therefore, culture. Today, they are expected to participate as equals to men and so not only the social behaviour, but the culture has changed.
Yes Rape is not part of any culture - or is it part of EVERY culture??? We have rapes in India, and in Canada and they come in all forms and places - be it a moving car, or a jogging track. But because the social behaviour in India has changed a lot very fast (let's say in last 25-30 years), the frequency of rapes and methods/places adopted for it have changed to - and reasons too (the reasons to rape a sari clad woman also having a 'ghunghat' would be very different from the desire aroused by a woman wearing a low cut and tight fitting blouse!).
Chandresh
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Chandresh
Advice is free – lessons I charge for!!
Chandresh,
What you have written has a lot of merit. Like you said 'Culture' itself is subjective.
However, the respect accorded to women(like the examples you cited) existed side by side with other practices like sati/Dasi/Niyog pratha , preference for male offspring etc which were unfair to women. So since those unfair social practices were almost de-rigour in pre-British India, can I conclude that there was widespread rape practiced at that time? Would Indian culture to be blamed at that time for those rapes? If not why not...given that 'lack of índian culture' is being blamed now? Can one attribute it to lack or due to 'Indian culture'? Or are we talking only about ' indian culture' as we choose to define it 'individually' at convenient times?
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Orginally posted by chandresh
(the reasons to rape a sari clad woman also having a 'ghunghat' would be very different from the desire aroused by a woman wearing a low cut and tight fitting blouse!).
Chandresh
So by implication a woman wearing a low cut tight fitting blouse is 'asking for it' OR her rape is somehow more justifiable? I beg to differ.
There are people whose desires are aroused by goats
. There will also be reasons why.There have always been 'reasons' for rape...and any time in history(e.g: an invading army) and social attitude/norms(at any time) is enough 'reason' for those inclined to such behaviour.
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