C. J. Fuller

I am from Tamil Nadu, having lived in numerous places in the West.

I am not from this community, but have heard about this community from outsiders.

As a result, it's always insightful to glean into a community from outsider perspective.

I wanted to get better insight on my Tamil People.

I took this work to understand more about history, communities in Tamil Nadu.

Here is the meat of the Community's values:

Investment in Education
Investment in Housing
Investment in Future Generation show more

Most people in the community are middle-class or upper-middle class.

This is the same pattern of Upper-Middle Class Americans, who go beyond and above to secure their Children's future

Tamil Brahmins — a well known community in Tamil Nadu.

Whether you like it or not, it’s worthy to acknowledge their contributions to Tamil Nadu’s history.

As every social group, there are pros and cons. One can bring in stories from the West.

The author has done excellent work, thorough, scholarly in writing about their history.

What impressed me the most, the stories of socio-economic class of Tamil Brahmins.

How older generation and younger generation looked into life, protected their kin.

One reading this, I could recall Prussian Junkers, Bengal Bhadralok, and few other socio-economic class.

This work helped me to connect political history of Tamil Nadu, along with Dravidian Movement.

It also helped me to understand political affiliations of people in Tamil Nadu.

In the early 20th century, most people in this community, aspirations were set high, to be CEOs.

This explains Tech industry in Tamil Nadu.

"Exposure" is social-cultural capital in Tamil language.

Also, this work would help you to understand arranged marriage process in a pragmatic way, when you read how communities make it happen.

I was surprised to find, many of the people in this community settled in New Delhi.

Outline:

1-The Village: Caste, land, and emigration to the City
2- Education and employment in the Colonial period
3- Education and employment after independence
4- The Changing position of Women
5-Urban ways of life
6- Religion, Music, and Dance
7- Tamil Brahmans as a Middle-Class Caste


If you are interested in social mobility, culture, jobs, history, or any cursory interest in India, Tamil Nadu. I’d recommend this book.

Any Westerner who is doing business, ought to read this work to understand how families, communities are tightly knit in Tamil Nadu.

Deus Vult,
Gottfried show less

How is the book?

Academic, Dry, Verbose, Technical.

Why read the book?

If one wants to know; how caste in India is studied by researchers?

As I am from Tamil Nadu; Chapters 5, 6, and 10 were relevant to me.

The Essays on Tamil Nadu is pertinent for me

This book was published in 1996, I'd say, some are outdated.

What is the Meat of the Book?

Well -- I'd make it easier for you, go through the outline.

Basically, continuing and change.

Although rigid, slow change is in process within show more traditions of Caste.



What are my own thoughts?

The narrative of Dravidian, Race and Politics were interesting; With regards to endogamous marriage, from late 1990's - to late 2020's, it's relevant - How?

When deciding for marriage, even among inter-caste marriage, many ask if a caste is acceptable or of higher caste.

As far of my understanding; Maybe Sociologists, Anthropologists might not be familiar with ground-reality of Caste i.e day-to-day role of it in villages, rural places.

I'd exhort Tamil People; to produce eminent sociologists, anthropologists, from the current generation.

They can construct, their own autonomous knowledge, that might be more accurate representation of society.


Deus Vult,
Gottfried show less

CONTENTS:
Popular Hinduism and Indian society
Gods and goddesses
Worship
Sacrifice
Rituals of kingship
Rituals of the village
Devotionalist movements
Devotionalism, goddesses, and women
Pilgrimage
Misfortune