16.

Gender and Women Empowerment

1. Fill in the blanks.
a) ……………………………………. was the pioneer of women’s education and widow
remarriage inMaharashtra.
b) ……………………………………………….. is a famous Indian writer and socialist.

c) During the ……………………………………. period, women were respected and given

equal status as men.
d) ………………………………………………. has written Hajar Churashir Ma.
(Ans: Irawati Karve, Mahashweta Devi, Rig Vedic, Mahashweta Devi)

2. State whether true or false. Correct the false statements.

a) One’s understanding of gender depends on the other societies of the world.

Ans: False. One’s understanding of gender depends on the society we live in.

b) Child marriage was a common feature and widows were not allowed to remarry.
Ans: True

c) Female infanticide is not prevalent in many parts of India.

Ans: False. Female infanticide is prevalent in many parts of India.

d) Sarojini Naidu and P.T. Usha have broken stereotypes to become great achiever
in her respective fields.
Ans: True

3. Name the following.

a) Discrimination amongst men and women resulting in their unequal treatment on
the basis of the gender of the individual. (Gender inequality)
b) First woman engine driver for Northern Railways in India from a tribal village in
Jharkhand. (Laxmi Kalra)
c) One of the initiatives started by the Government of India to improve the status of
Girl Child.(Save the Girl Child)

4. Give reasons

a) Gender and sex are two terms that are often confused and used
interchangeably.
Ans: Sex refers to the biological differences between men and women whereas
gender is socially acquired characteristics, roles and attributes connected to the
individual’s sex; that a society considers appropriate for an individual. The different
roles given to boys and girls as deemed fit by the society they live in are known as
gender.

b) Stereotyping of boys and girls begins at a very young age.

Buying cars as toys for boys and dolls for girls is the most common example. We
assume that boys do not play with dolls and girls are not happy with cars. Boys are
taught to be tough whereas girls are taught to be soft and subservient to others.

c) The Later Vedic period witnessed the deterioration of women’s status in

society.
Ans: Women were considered inferior to men. They were not granted any share in
their husband’s or father’s property. Women were denied education and many
restrictions were imposed on them.

5. Answer the following questions in brief.

a) Write about the contribution of Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain.

Ans: Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain is a famous writer who opened a girls’ school in
Kolkata in 1910. Although Rokeya learnt to read and write Urdu as she was from a
rich family, she was not allowed to study English and Bengali. She struggled her
way to learn these languages and published her famous book, Sultana’s Dream in
1905.

b) How was the life of women during the Rig Vedic Period?
Ans: During the Rig Vedic period in ancient India, women were respected and given
equal status as men. They were allowed to participate in meetings and religious
ceremonies. Women were educated and some composed hymns too. Widows were
allowed to remarry and had an equal share in their husband’s and father’s property.

c) Discuss the reforms introduced by the social reformers to uplift the position of
women.
Ans: Raja Rammohan Roy played a major role in the abolition of Sati, a practice in
which a woman burnt herself in her dead husband’s pyre. IshwarchandVidyasagar
was instrumental in the passing of the Hindu Widows Remarriage Act in 1856.
Swami DayanandSaraswati opened many schools and colleges for women.
6. Answer the following questions in detail.

a) Irawati Karve changed the way people looked at women’s learning in modern
India. Explain
Ans: Irawati Karve studied in a boarding school at Pune. She graduated in
Philosophy fromFergusson College in Pune and completed her Masters inSociology
from Mumbai University. She went to Kaiser Wilhem Institute for Anthropology,
Eugenics and Human Heredity to do her Ph.D. andbecame India’s first
anthropologist. She taught Sociology at the Deccan College, Pune and became the
Head of the Department of Sociology and Anthropology. She conducted research
on kinship, art, folk songs and oraltraditions as well. She wrote many books such
as Yuganta, Kinship Organisation in India, Hindu Society – An Interpretation,etc.
She was elected as the President of the Anthropology department of the Indian
Science Congress in 1947. She was also offered a lectureship in the School of
Oriental and African Studies at London University.
b) Elucidate the contribution of Mahashweta Devi in the field of literature.
Ans: Born to literary parents, Mahashweta Devi had close connections with cultural
andpolitical organizations of Bengal. Initially, she worked as a schoolteacher and
wrote for a journal. Nati, Hajar Churashir Ma, Rudali, Chatti Munda Evan Tar Tir and
Bioscoper Baksho are some of herpopular works. Her book, Jhansir Rani or the The
Rani of Jhansi isthe biography of the Queen of Jhansi, Rani Laxmi Bai who bravely
fought against the British in 1857. Mahashweta Devi wrote about the common
man, untouchables and tribal people. She has written over a 100 books which
include novels, children’s stories and plays. She is alsoassociated with tribal
organizations.

c) Write about women empowerment.

Ans: Provision of equal opportunities to women in social, economic and political
fields is termed as women empowerment. Educated men themselves have
supported the cause of women empowerment. This change in the attitude of
women and men has not taken place overnight. As read earlier, this changing trend
started way back in the 19th century when social reformers such as Raja
Rammohan Roy, Ishwarchand Vidyasagar, Swami Dayanand Saraswati, etc.
appeared on the national scene. These social reformers were supported by women
such as Annie Besant, Pandita Ramabai and Sarojini Naidu over the years. Women
have opposed gender discrimination and violence against them through rallies,
campaigns, protests and through showing solidarity for women’s causes.

7. Picture Study
1. Identify and label the different personalities in the picture

8. heading to be decided
 1. See, think and evaluate.
Various schemes to empower Women

 Carefully observe/analyse the above images.

 What are the various schemes mentioned?
 What is your evaluation about the schemes initiated to empower the women?
9. HOTS
What does the given image signify? How has a woman’s role in society
changed? Support your answer with appropriate reasons.