S.ST NOTES --GENDER AND WOMEN EMPOWERMENT

Q1 What is meant by prejudice?        

Ans:    Preconceived opinion that is not based on reason or actual

            experience; eg. Girls are not supposed to study rather do household chores.

Q2 What is meant by discrimination?

Ans:  The unjust or prejudicial treatment of different categories of

          people, especially on the grounds of race, age, or sex.

Q3 What is the difference between gender and sex?

Ans: Gender is a socially acquired characteristics, roles, attributes connected to an        individual’s sex that is considered appropriate for an individual by the society where as      sex is the biological difference between men and women.

Q4 What are stereotypes?

Ans: It means to believe unfairly that all people or things

         with a particular characteristic are the same.

Q5 What is gender inequality?

Ans: Discrimination amongst men and women resulting in their unequal treatment on the basis of the gender of the individual is known as gender inequality.

Q5 Who was Irawati Karve?

Ans: She is a famous Indian anthropologist born in

         Mynjan in Burma.

Q6 Make a comparative study of the position of women in the Rig Vedic and the                                                  Later Vedic period?

Ans:

Rig vedic Period	Later vedic period
Women were respected and given equal status as men.	The Later Vedic period witnessed the deterioration of women’s status in society.
They were allowed to participate in meetings and religious ceremonies.	Women were considered inferior to men.
Widows were allowed to remarry and had an equal share in their husband’s and father’s property	They were not granted any share in their husband’s or father’s property.
Women were educated and some composed hymns too.	Women were denied education and many restrictions were imposed on them.

Q7 Who is Mahashweta Devi?

Ans: Mahashweta Devi is a famous Indian writer

        and socialist.

Q8 What was the status of women during the Rig Vedic age?

Ans: 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.

Q9 Why is it difficult to change people’s views?

Ans: People in general, as well as the mass media reinforce stereotypes which makes    it difficult for people to change their views.

Q10 What is the role of women in today’s world?

Ans: Women today are free of social stigma and society has changed.

Q11 What is women empowerment?

Ans: Provision of equal opportunities to women in social, economic and political fields is termed as women empowerment.

Q12 Name some social reformers who brought about changes the state of women?

Ans: This changing trend started way back in the 19th century when social reformers such as Raja Rammohan Roy, Ishwarchand Vidyasagar, Swami Dayanand Saraswati worked for the betterment of women.

Q13 What steps have been taken by the government to eradicate gender inequality?

Ans: It has passed many laws that abolish social evils such as Sati, dowry, child marriage, female foeticide, female infanticide, etc.