NAME: _________________________________________

The Caste System

PART ONE. DIRECTIONS: Read the following and determine what caste
they belong to.

1. “On Monday, I must perform sacrifices to Shiva, god of destruction. On Tuesday, I must perform sacrifices
to Brahma, the god of creation. On Wednesday, I offer sacrifices to Vinshu, the god of preservation. On
Thursday, I sacrifice again to Shiva. It is very hard to keep all gods happy.”
This speaker belongs to the ________________ caste because______________________________________________
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2. “Life for those of us in this caste is not easy. Everywhere we go people treat us like dirt, or worse — they treat us like we are huge Hannah
Montana fans. We must clean toilets, pick up dead animals from the street, and clean up the waste products left behind by the sacred cattle
in the city. Our only hope is having good karma. I would not want to be reincarnated as a member of this caste.”

This speaker belongs to the ________________ caste because______________________________________________

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3. “Those in our caste must make important decisions for our society as well as defend it. My brother is
tremendously brave and fought against the evil people of Testmakerland and defeated those horrible creatures. I,
too, have tremendous power, but I don’t have to fight to get my way. I simply issue commands to be followed. And
unlike your teacher, these commands actually get followed.”

This speaker belongs to the ________________ caste because______________________________________________

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4. “Bob Dylan was right when he said ‘Everyone has to serve someone’. We may belong to a lower caste, but at least
th
we are not at the very bottom of the barrel. If we do all of our 7 grade Ancient History classwork, perhaps we will
have good karma and the next life will improve.”

This speaker belongs to the ________________ caste because______________________________________________

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5. “I can show you how to grow and/or sell ALL the things! Like pizza trees. Or chocolate
bushes.”

This speaker belongs to the ________________ caste because______________________________________________

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PART TWO. DIRECTIONS: Think about your mom/dad/primary caregiver. If you had to have the same job or career
as them when you grew up, what caste would you be in? Explain your reasoning.

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Now think about the job that you want to have. What caste would you be in if you achieved it?

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