VIDYAPEETH
12th Class
ENGLISH
We Too are Human
Beings
One Shot By- Ruchi Ma’am
Hello
Students
Bama
Bama
❑ Bama is a novelist and feminist from Tamil Nadu. Another name for her is Bama
Faustina Soosairaj. Born in 1958 as Faustina Mary Fatima Rani, Bama was raised
by a Roman Catholic family in Puthupatti, which was then part of the Madras
State. The grandfather of Bama was a Christian who had converted from
Hinduism. The Dalit community comprised Bama's ancestors, who were
employed as agricultural laborers. Her father was an Indian Army employee.
Bama received her early schooling in her hometown. She spent seven years as a
nun after graduating. Bama spent seven years as a nun before leaving the order
and starting to write. She wrote about her early experiences with the support of
a friend. These encounters served as the inspiration for her 1992 debut book,
Karukku.
Karukku
Introduction
❑ Title: Bama's Journey Against Untouchability
❑ Brief Overview: Bama, a student in the third class, discovered the concept of
untouchability through experiences in her childhood, leading her to challenge
the unjust caste system.
Childhood Realizations
❑ Bama's Innocence: She was unaware of untouchability until certain events
opened her eyes to her marginalized caste status.
❑ Witnessing Injustice: Observing the humiliating treatment of her community by
landlords sparked her initial awareness.
Eye-opening Incident
❑ Elder's Gesture: Describing the incident of an elder from her community
handling a parcel without touching its contents due to caste norms.
❑ Brother's Insight: Brother's explanation that it was not humorous but
humiliating, igniting Bama's anger and realization.
Questioning Traditions
❑ Bama's Rebellion: Her frustration at seeing her people bow to upper castes and
desire for them to stop undue respect.
❑ Brother's Advice: Encouraging education as a means to fight back against
societal injustices and uplift their community.
Education as Empowerment
❑ Education as a Weapon: Bama embraced education, empowering herself to
challenge the caste system.
❑ Transformation: Education enabled Bama to make friends, equipping her with
the tools to combat injustice effectively.
Conclusion
❑ Impact of Education: Highlighting how education transformed Bama into a
formidable force against unjust caste practices.
❑ Call to Action: Encouraging empowerment through education as a means to
combat discrimination and inequality
Question & Answers
#Q. Which hilarious story did Bama tell her brother? Why didn't this amuse him?
Bama told her brother about the time she saw an elderly man on her street
approaching a landlord while carrying food wrapped in strings without ever
touching it. Bama's sibling was not amused because he understood that the elder's
actions were a result of his status as an untouchable.
Question & Answers
#Q. What do Bama and Zitkala-Sa have in common?
Bama and Zitkala-Sa had both grown up facing discrimination. Although Zitkala-Sa
had endured mistreatment at the hands of White people during her time in
boarding school, Bama was subjected to untouchability from an early age due to
her birth into an untouchable family.
Question & Answers
#Q. What life lessons can be learned from the similarities between Zitkala-Sa and
Bama, despite their distinct cultural backgrounds?
In response, Bama and Zitkala-Sa came from distinct cultural backgrounds.
However, both had grown up facing discrimination and oppression.
Bama was offended to witness the humiliations her community's members were
going through because she was raised in a lower class household.
Question & Answers
They were forced to live apart, perform errands, and show humility to members of
the higher castes because they were deemed untouchables.
Zitkala-Sa, on the other hand, was a victim of extreme prejudice that was prevalent
towards Native Americans. Her blanket was taken from her shoulders by force
while she was a boarder. However, she felt even more defeated as a result of having
her long hair forced cut, since only mourners were allowed to wear short hair in
her culture.
As a result, as young, marginalized communities, Bama and Zitkala-Sa have
suffered.
Question & Answers
#Q. What counsel did Annan impart to Bama?
Annan told Bama to learn everything she could by carefully studying. He asserted
that the only ways they could overcome their humiliations were through learning
and advancement.
Question & Answers
#Q. What was the scene that made Bama laugh at first, but made her feel revolted
and angry?
At one corner of the street, a threshing floor had been installed. The Dalits resided
on that particular street. A few street men were putting in a lot of effort to separate
the grain from the straw. Perched on a piece of sacking that was stretched across a
stone ledge was the landlord. Bama noticed a street vendor approaching from the
side of the marketplace. By its string, he was holding out a packet.
Question & Answers
There was oil stains on the packet. It most likely contained vadais. Bama found it
amusing that the packet was being carried in that way because the vadais could
come undone disintegrate. However, Bama's older brother clarified to her that it
wasn't funny at all. It was thought that the landlord and his people belonged to a
higher caste. It was forbidden for the Dalits to touch them. It might contaminate
those from higher castes. Upon learning this, Bama became enraged and revolted.
"We too are human," she uttered. These degrading things should never be done for
them by our people. We ought to labor in their fields, collect our pay, and shut up
shop.
