Intersections: Gender and Sexuality in Asia and the Pacific
Issue 33
Caste, Gender and Sexuality in Asia

Guest editor

K. Suneetha Rani
(University of Hyderabad)



Call for Contributions

For centuries now, caste system has been one of the most influential and deciding factors as a pattern of social stratification and segregation in most of the Asian countries. The system is so deeply rooted that each and every aspect of human life in these societies is affected and shaped by it. Each caste in the hierarchy comes up with its own social and cultural norms for the members of its community. Women are the most vulnerable and the worst affected members of the caste based societies. While women in general suffer internal oppression and gender bias, women of the casteist societies bear the multiple burdens of their caste, class, religion, region and work apart from gender discrimination. Moreover caste not only prescribes the roles but also assigns duties and responsibilities and prescribes food, dress and other codes of conduct for people, especially women. In a similar manner is constructed the male gender with different set of roles and responsibilities. The sexuality of genders is also defined and decided according to the caste hierarchy. In some contexts, certain genders and gender roles are forcibly thrust on people to perform certain roles depending on their caste and vulnerability to exploitation. In recent times, these societies are transforming gradually owing to political, cultural, economic and social developments. In this context, caste and gender have become some of the most important concepts of the social and cultural discourse. While on one hand there are efforts on for casteless societies, on the other hand assertion of caste identities is also becoming a crucial strategy of resistance against caste and gender hegemony. We look forward to discuss the following issues in INTERSECTIONS:

  • How does caste system contribute to the construction of gender roles and sexuality?
  • How do the narratives of gender oppression debate framework of caste and vice-versa?
  • How do the rewritings, retellings and translations of classical/canonical texts write alternative histories from gender and caste perspectives?
  • How does oral tradition construct or deconstruct caste, gender and sexuality?
  • How are the creative representations of sexuality influenced by notions of caste and gender?
  • How do the various movements and voices centered on caste and gender intersect or conflict in changing societies?
  • How are politics and governing influenced by caste and gender?
  • How have the developments like globalization, liberalization and English education influenced the categories of caste and gender?
  • What is the role of religions in shaping the gender and conversion in caste-ridden societies where both caste and religion define gender and sexuality?
  • How does the postcolonial debate function in terms of caste and gender?
These and any other questions related to caste, gender and sexuality are welcome to be discussed.

The online nature of the journal allows for added flexibility in including images, video clips, and other supplemental materials.

Deadline for submissions: 1 March 2012

Submissions and enquiries should be directed to K. Suneetha Rani

Intersections' style guide and formatting instructions can be found on the submissions page.



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Published with the support of Gender and Cultural Studies, School of Culture, History and Language, College of Asia and the Pacific, The Australian National University.
URL: http://intersections.anu.edu.au/issue33/cfp.htm
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Last modified: 22 July 2010 1610