indexing social status in India

[Jim Wilce]

On behalf of Kathinka Frøystad, who posted the following query on H-Asia,
I'd like to ask this list to respond to her query on how status is
"recognized" in public spaces there, particularly responses that would
highlight forms of social indexicality accessed or claimed by Indians.  I
recognize that not everyone on this list is familiar with this case by any
means, but I hope to see responses cross-posted to this list (as well as
directly to Kathinka, who is not on this one).

Thank you,

Jim Wilce

QUERY: Expressing social status in India.
*******************************************

From: Kathinka Frøystad" <Kathinka at prio.no>

Query: References on social status in public arenas, India

How do people categorise each others' social and economic status in
(sub)urban public arenas such as streets, markets and parks -- where
most
people are strangers to each other, and where caste is largely
invisible?

My observations from one of the cities in Uttar Pradesh suggest that,
middle class, upper-caste Hindus tend to categorise themselves as 'acche
log' (good people). Below them are 'chote log' (small people) or 'gande
log' (dirty/bad people), and above them 'bare log' (big people) or VIPs.

Caste and economic status apart, the basis for this categorisation seems
to lie in visual markers such as skin colour (the ideal is wheatish),
clothes, hairstyle, use of hairdye, make-up, and so on. In part, it also
seems to lie in mode of speaking, which for 'good people' ideally should
be 'sweet', fluent, correct, and if possible, dotted with English
phrases
or references to poetry. In part, the categorisation also seems to draw
on the degree to which people move about by foot, or -- if not --on the
type of vehicle they use. As such features apparently enable people to
classify strangers, and to discriminate 'small people' from 'good
people'
and so on, they have to be carefully cultivated.

I would appreciate any references to articles and books that seriously
deal with similar issues, preferably from urban South Asia.

Best regards,
Kathinka Froystad

Kathinka later added the following:
As far as social status is concerned, I have the impression that, the
speech features that 'reveal' them first and foremost are related to
pronounciation (traces of rurality, work-migration) or expressions that may
be interpresed
according to the scale of rudeness-politieness/culturedness? Ah, well,
speech seems to have more features than I dreamt of when I started to
take an interest in these issues.

In any case, I would be grateful if you cross-post my query to the
Discourse list, and I'd also be happy if you could send me some
information on this list, or its address.

Kathinka Froystad
International Peace Research Institute, Oslo (PRIO)
Fuglehauggt 11
N-0260 Oslo
Norway
Tel. +47 - 22 54 77 00
Fax +47 - 22 54 77 01
e-mail office: kathinka at prio.no
e-mail travel: kfroystad at hotmail.com

Jim Wilce
      Assistant Professor of Anthropology and Coordinator of Asian Studies
        Northern Arizona University
        Box 15200
        Flagstaff, AZ 86011-5200

fax 520/523-9135
office ph. 520/523-2729
email jim.wilce at nau.edu
http://jan.ucc.nau.edu/~jmw22/ (includes information on my 1998 book,
Eloquence in Trouble: The Poetics and Politics of Complaint in Rural
Bangladesh)
http://www.nau.edu/asian