A Comprehensive Analysis Of Kampel Village
Introduction
In Sociology, we study about people and their interaction with each other and various social groups. This sociological report is relevant in the sense that it has helped us to develop an understanding of relationships between individuals and wider society and culture. It has also helped us to get more intact with real-world situations, understand different aspects of social orders and a person's interaction with the group and society at large.
This project analyses the village of Kampel, which happens to be one of the most populated villages near Indore. This study was undertaken in-order to go beyond the horizon of contextual knowledge and get a better understanding of various customs, rituals, caste systems, significant cultural exercises and many other cultural elements that are related to rural lifestyle (Gemeinschaft). Moreover, an effort to explore another strata related to education, daily routine, occupation and awareness regarding government schemes was made. One of the main concepts of sociology, kinship i.e. the study of relation by the bond of blood, marriage and kinship ties, constitutes a major part of this project. The Kinship patterns in the village of Kampel has been an interesting topic to study. The village is an amalgamation of different types of families ranging from nuclear, where we could find primary kins to joint ones too, where tertiary and secondary kins relations were found. Apart from the study of kins, our attempts to explore the ground reality about the amenities and resources around the village has been a part of the study too. Kampel has a fairly good and rich cultural background that dates back to the time of Devi Ahilya Bai Holkar, which provides ample opportunities to discover the cultural and historical heritage of Kampel.
Review of literature
Society: It is defined as the aggregate of people living together in an ordered community. But there is much more to it than just groups of people living together. It is a group of people who share common cultural features such as language, values and basic norms of behavior and culture. It also includes "institutions" such as the Family or Government or Educational institutions or Religion. The subtle yet complex inter-linking patterns formed within all these constitute society. We sub-consciously know it but never realize it explicitly. The Founding Fathers of Sociology had described it in terms of: 1) Positivism - Auguste Comte, 2) Functionalism - Emile Durkheim, 3) Social action approach - Max Weber, 5) Conflict theory - Karl Marx.
However the modern sociologist sees society from a very different perspective. They have categorized it into 3 distinct senses or spheres:
- Society as structure, or upper-case society
- Society as solidarity, or communities of concern, care and consensus.
- Society as a creative process, or the imaginary dimension of communication and sociality.
These spheres constantly intersect, overlap, conflict and displace each other in complex and contradictory ways but at the end of the day, they come out together as an organic whole which is distinctively characteristic of communities all across the world.
Family: It is considered to be the structural unit of any society. It is a socially recognizable unit held together by strong bonds of emotions, kinship or blood ties or marriage relationships, which forms an emotional connection and when aggregated, gives rise to society .It is the prime construct of the society with production of off-spring and their upbringing in a suitable environment being its sole primary aim. Some sociologists see it comprising of a well-defined social structure with assigned roles for everyone (functionalism) whereas others differ by stating that it is an organic whole, where roles are loosely defined and there is no such strict restriction on expected behavior and conduct within the family. There are multiple types of families based on the point of view of the observer:
On a Micro level:
Family of Orientation: It is the family in which a person is born. It is characterized by blood relations and is usually the first social institution of which an individual becomes a part of. It is facilitated and socially accepted only through a Family of Procreation. People from two different Families of Orientation usually lead to creation of a Family of Procreation through the institution of marriage, as Incest is considered a Taboo in societies across the world.
Family of Procreation: It is a family that is formed through the institution of marriage. It consists of one or more husbands along with one or more wives and is instrumental in the bringing up of an off-spring, as the society usually considers only children born from legally married families to be legitimate and acceptable. Both types of families are distinguished by factors related to lineage and descent.
On a Macro level:
Nuclear Family: It is the smallest and most undividable unit of any society as it comprises of one or more parents living with their un-married children. It is also known as conjugal family as it constitutes a single bond of marriage and the resulting off- springs. It has become increasingly characteristic of modern-day urban society.
Extended or Joint Family: It includes parents, off-springs as well as other kins extending to multiple generations before and after. Also known as consanguine family as all members are related by some or the other ties of blood, although they also include marriage ties. It is symbolic of Indian Rural lifestyle.
Articles Reviewed:
Yogendra Singh (1986): Emphasized understanding of village life as it shows how these social entities affirmed the principles of stratification and autonomy, rather than being conceived as an organic whole. It is necessary to be able to provide a layman a portrait of the social life lived by rural India, which forms a major part of the demographics of the country and develop an awareness about the rural social structure and kinship ties. A thorough scientific analysis of rural life enables all stakeholders to chart out improved plans which culminate in social, economic and overall upliftment of the village. As the family forms the nuclear unit of the society so does the rural society form the basic unit of the Indian Society, which demands the acknowledgement of its varied nature.
Saurabh Arora, Bulat Sanditov (2015): Researchers, they analyzed the cultures of rural India, especially those that inter-mix with other social institutions. How societies actually Aid/Hamper rural development and then translate into lasting social network structures extending to all spheres of life was explored while attempting to characterize the true role of social institutions in everyday life. The impact of social and kinship ties on the social life of the village is a prominent one although its magnitude varies from community to community. These components have helped in materializing the norms, expectations and mores that define a local culture and which lends every community a distinct sense of identity which is uniquely characteristic of them.
Research Methodology
The primary source of our data collection was by directly interviewing people from the village personally. Before going to the village we prepared a guiding questionnaire that helped us ask contextually relevant questions in a simple and coherent way. Our first step was to establish a sense of understanding and create a bond of trust between us and every person that we interviewed. We did so by letting them know of our intentions to the fullest and why we are conducting this research. We assured them that all the data, names and whatever other information that they disclose would strictly be used for academic purposes only and no commercial use whatsoever.
As we were a team of 6 people, we divided the entire process into 3 parts and assigned 2 people as a sub-team to each task. While one sub-team was tasked with taking the actual interview , the second sub-team made notes on whatever information they provided whereas the third team recorded the entire interview process (with their permission) and conversed with the other members of the family. The sub-teams rotated themselves within these 3 tasks so that everyone gets to perform each at least once and experience the entire interview process on a first-hand basis.
Conducting the study
Following points were kept in mind while collecting and analyzing data during the research.
We tried to conduct interviews with people from diverse age groups so as to gain different perspectives of various issues. Elders of the village for example had more knowledge about traditions of the society than say, young people of the same household whereas the younger generation provided us with insights regarding the employment scenario and lifestyle choices.
To ensure fair and unbiased data, we collected information from different parts of the village, which in a way mirrored the social structure of the village. We went into areas which were economically well-off, areas in which only members of a particular community resided and parts which were segregated and a little away from the village in-order to gain an overall perspective which was not limited to a particular geographic area, community , sect or profession.
The mode of our communication was Hindi as we felt it was more relatable and easy for the people of the village and it ensured free flow of information between the interviewer and the interviewee.
We specifically tried to interview women to get a hands-on insight of the gender norms existing within the village We asked them various questions relating to aspects having a direct impact on their lives and how freely were they allowed to exercise their choice.
