Book

From field to factory: community structure and industrialization in West Bengal

Institute for the Study of Human IssuesPhiladelphia, Pa. • Published In 1978 • Pages:

By: Klass, Morton.

Abstract
This work is a study of the contemporary village of Gôndôgram (a pseudonymn) in West Bengal, India, during the early 1970s. The author explores and illustrates the complexities of community life in the village through the media of discussions on economic transactions, social relationships, and regligious beliefs and practices. In the course of his presentation, Klass examines certain previously held approaches to the nature of Indian village culture and suggests some new ones of his own. The principle objective of this work, however, '…is to shed some light on the mechanism, processes, and events of change -- as modern industry and the West Bengal rural community come into contact with each other' (p. 24). The author illustrates how such changes take place by his example of the establishment of the 'Das-Walters' bicycle factory just outside Gôndôgram and the multiple effects of its presence on the lives of the agriculturally oriented villagers.
Subjects
Sociocultural trends
Domesticated animals
Cereal agriculture
Manufacture of vehicles
Real property
Ethnic stratification
Household
Extended families
Community structure
General character of religion
Prayers and sacrifices
Organized ceremonial
Ethnopsychology
culture
Bengali
HRAF PubDate
2002
Region
Asia
Sub Region
South Asia
Document Type
Book
Evaluation
Creator Type
Ethnologist
Document Rating
5: Excellent Primary Data
Analyst
John Beierle ; 1992
Field Date
1970-1975 [p.5]
Coverage Date
not specified
Coverage Place
'Gôndôgram' [p.4] in the Asansol subdivision of District Burdwan, West Bengal, India
Notes
[by] Morton Klass
Includes index. Bibliography: p. 256-259
LCCN
78001552
LCSH
Bengalis