Topic Explainations and Reading Log

           I’ve always been interested in world religions and what effect they have on their followers. Another thing that I’m especially interested in is the effect peoples different physical characteristic have of their opportunities and acceptance. The Hindu caste system fit that pretty well. Especially the Brahmans and the Dalits since they are the most different of all the castes. They were treated completely differently by their skin color (race) because of Aryan invasions in Northern India who then made the natives work for them which formed the lowers castes. I wanted to know if the abolishment of the caste system had changed the treatment of the lower castes or effected the status of the Brahmans. Turns out that it did to an extent. Caste problems still exist and Brahmans are highly respected but things have still changed.

          The caste system has been a huge part of Hindu culture since its development. This means that it has a standing impact on Hindus in the past and in the present. It has caused the poor treatment of the Dalit people and privileged lives of the Brahmans, simply because of the difference in skin color. This custom was brought through Aryan invasions where the lighter skin Aryans over took the darker skinned northern Indians, making them the lower class. The Dalits were excluded from society and made to do the jobs considered ‘polluting’. In more recent times people started to rebel against the caste system because of the human rights violations against the Dalits. The caste system was abolished by the Indian government and the treatment of the lower castes has been significantly improved. But, even though there have been improvements violence against Dalits and discrimination by color still exists. Also it has weakened the authority and power of the Brahmans.

Reading Log

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian 1 hour 30 mins

Detailed outline and Thesis 2 hours

Reading/Working Log

Maximum Ride 20 mins

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian 2 hours

Annotated Bibliography ... Too long

Notecards 1 Hour

National History Day Project Research and Reading Log

           My topic is the effect of the abolishment of the Hindu caste system of the social status of the Brahmans (the highest class) and the Dalits (the lowest class). The caste system was officially abolished because people felt that the Dalits weren’t being treated fairly and didn’t have the same opportunities. The abolishment was supposed to have made things equal between castes and has been somewhat of a success. Dalits have begun to have similar lives to those of the other castes. At the same time it has also decreased the amount of religious authority and power the Brahmans have over the other castes But its long past has made it a permanent part of Hindus’ culture.

          For my research I still need to find some more useful sources for my annotated bibliography. I also need to eliminate the non-useful ones that don’t provide much detail, just the basic information. Before I can do anything else I need to finish my annotated bibliography. I’m going to analyze my sources for the note cards and start putting them into the categories I’ve come up with. Over the weekend, I’m going to have to work on compiling information into notecards a good bit.

Reading Log

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian 5½ hours

Maximum Ride 2 hours

NHDP Annotated bibliography/research 1 hour