Q 1 – How do you think stereotypes, about what women can or cannot do, affect women’s right to equality?
Ans. Stereotypes about what women can or cannot do affect women’s right to equality because they are termed weak and incapable of doing strong work. It is because of this reason that women are called inferior to men. They are paid fewer salaries/ wages than their men counterparts.
Q 2 – List one reason why learning the alphabet was so important to women like Rashsundari Devi, Ramabai, and Rokeya.
Ans. Learning the alphabet was so important to these women because only after that they became able to write stories, letters, and autobiographies which described their own experiences of inequality
Q 3 – Poor girls drop out of school because they are not interested in getting an education”. Re-read the last paragraph on page 62 and explain why this statement is not true.
Ans. This statement, “Poor girls dropout of school education” is not true because of the following reasons:
- There are no facilities in rural areas, especially in Adivasi areas.
- Not even proper schools.
- No teacher in the schools on regular basis.
- No schools near their homes.
- No transport facilities if the schools are far away.
- Families too poor to afford schooling expenses.
- Discrimination on the basis of caste, creed, religion or sex.
- Preference for boys for education and not girls.
Q 4 – Can you describe two methods of struggle that the women’s movement used to raise issues? If you had to organise a struggle against stereotypes, about what women can or cannot do, what method would you employ from the ones that you have read about? Why would you choose this particular method?
Ans. Two methods of struggle that the women’s movement used
- Campaigning: To fight discrimination and violence against women. Women groups spoke against dowry deaths, sexual harassment. Laws were formulated in 1997 to protect women against sexual harassment. Anti dowry laws were passed in the 1980’s.
- Raising awareness: It is an important part to raise public awareness about women’s rights issues. Public rallies, demonstrations were the methods used.
- We would use raising awareness. This way we will be able to let people know about the discrimination and gather their support raising awareness.
- It is a creative and positive way of expressing the views and thoughts of people on the concerned issues and involving more people.
- This way the people who are clueless about women’s problems or are unaware would also be involved.
Q 5 – What is the percentage of women engaged in agricultural work in our country?
Ans. 83.6% of women are engaged in agricultural work.
Q 6 – What does agricultural work mean to these women?
Ans. Plating, weeding, harvesting, and threshing.
Q 7 – When we think of a farmer we only think of a man. Why?
Ans. It is because a major portion of the agricultural work is done by man. Women only assist them.
Q 8 – Why was Ramabai given the title ‘Pandita’?
Ans. It was because she could read and write Sanskrit. It was a remarkable achievement as women were not allowed such knowledge in those days.
Q 9 – How did women support men in the pottery trade?
Ans. They collected the mud and prepared the earth for the pots.
Q 10 – Mention any one stereotype about what women can or cannot do?
Ans. Women can be good teachers but they are incapable of dealing with technical things.
Q 11 – How did Laxmi Lakra break the stereotype that only men could be engine drivers?
Ans. She became the first woman engine driver for Northern Railways.
Q 12 – What changes came to be seen with the emergence of new ideas about education and learning in the 19th century?
Ans. Schools became more common and communities that had never learnt reading and writing started sending their children to school.
Q 13 – Who was Rashsundari Devi? What did she write in her autobiography?
Ans. Rashsundari Devi was a housewife from a rich landlord’s family in west Bengal. She wrote about her everyday life experiences in her autobiography.
Q 14 – What did Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain do for the girls?
Ans. She started a school for girls in Kolkata which is functioning even today.
Q 15 – Mention any two reasons why many girls do not continue their education.
Ans. Poverty and discrimination are the two major reasons why many girls do not continue their education.
Q 16 – What is the purpose of conducting a census every 10 years?
Ans. Census is held every 10 years to count the whole population of the country. It also gathers detailed information about the people living in India—their age, schooling, what work they do, and so on.
Q 17 – What is meant by the Women’s Movement?
Ans. Women as a whole struggled for a long to bring out all-round improvement in women’s condition. This is known as the Women’s Movement.
Q 18 – What happened to Satyarani’s daughter?
Ans. Her daughter was murdered for Dowry.
Q 19 – What are the various means to spread awareness among the common mass?
Ans. Street plays, songs, and public meetings.
Q 20 – When is International Women’s Day celebrated?
Ans. International Women’s Day is celebrated on 8 March every year.
Q 21 – What do women do on International Women’s Day?
Ans. Women all over the world come together to celebrate the auspicious day and renew their struggles.
Q 22 – Give a brief life sketch of Laxmi Lakra
Ans. Laxmi Lakra belongs to a poor tribal family in Jharkhand- She studied in a government school. She studied hard and did well and then went on to get a diploma in electronics. She then took the railway board exam and passed it on her first attempt. She became the first woman engine driver for Northern Railways
In this way, she broke the stereotype that engine drivers could be men only. She says “I have challenges and the moment somebody says it is not for girls. I make sure I go ahead and do it”. Laxmi has had to do this several times in her life—when she wanted to take electronics, when she rode motorcycles at the polytechnics and when she decided to become an engine driver.
Q 23 – Who set up a Mission in Khedgaon near Pune in 1898? How did the Mission prove beneficial for the women?
Ans. Pandita Ramabai set up a Mission in Khedgaon near Pune in 1898. This was the place where widows and poor women were encouraged not only to become literate but to be independent. They were taught a variety of skills from carpentry to running a printing press, skills that are considered a male preserve. This Mission is still active today and does a lot for women’supliftment.
Q 24 – Was Rashsundari Devi a superstitious woman? If not, why not?
Ans. Rashsundari Devi was a housewife from a rich landlord’s family in West Bengal. She was not allowed to learn to read and write. During her time, some 200 years ago, there was a prevalent belief that if a woman learnt to read and write, she would bring bad luck to her husband. Rashsundari Devi took this belief as false because she was not at all superstitious.
She took a strict decision and taught herself how to read and write in secret, well after her marriage. She even wrote her autobiography in Bangla at the age of 60. Her book titled Amor Jiban is the first known autobiography written by an Indian woman
Q 25 – Although the literacy rates have increased since independence, what remains the worrying factor with respect to gender
Ans. It is true that literacy rates have increased since independence. According to the 1961 census, about 40% of all boys and men were literate compared to 15% of all girls and women. In the census of 2001, these figures have grown to 76% for boys and men and 54% for girls and women. This means that the proportion of both men and women who are able to read and have at least some amount of schooling has increased. But the worrying factor is that the percentage of the male is still higher than the female group. The gap exists even today.
Q 26 – Why was Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain stopped from learning Bangla and English? How did she manage to team these languages?
Ans. In those days, English was seen as a language that would expose girls to new ideas, which people thought were not correct for them. Therefore, it was mostly boys who were taught English. However, Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain wished to learn these two languages in addition to Urdu. Fortunately, she got the support of her elder brother and an elder sister and ultimately learnt to read and write Bangla and English.
Q 27 – Who wrote the story Sultana’s Dream? What is the story all about?
Ans. It was Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain who wrote the story Sultana’s Dream in 1905 at the age of 25. The story is all about Sultana’s dream. In her imagination, she reaches a place called Ladyland. Ladyland is the place where women had the freedom to study, work, and create inventions like controllin’ rain from the clouds and flying air cars. In this Ladyland, the men had no freedom at all.
They had been sent to seclusion. Their aggressive guns and other weapons of war defeated by the brain-power of women. As Sultana travels in the Ladyland, She awakes suddenly and becomes disappointed to see the reality.
Q 28 – What are the various ways women apply to fight discrimination and seek justice?
Ans. The various ways women apply to fight discrimination and seek justice are as follow:
(a) It has proved to be a great success. It has led to a new law being passed in 2006. This law gives legal protection to women against domestic violence which includes physical and msptrjjj.. violence within then- homes.
Women by dint of campaigning made the Supreme Court formulate guidelines in 1997 to protect women against sexual harassment at workplace. They also campaigned for bringing justice to those families which have become pray to dowry deaths. As a result of their campaigns, dowry laws were changed to punish families who seek dowry.
(b) Raising Awareness. Women, in order to fight-discrimination, work hard to raise public awareness on women’s rights issues. They do so through several means such as street plays, songs, and public meetings.
(c) Whenever a law or policy acts against the interest of the women, they rise in protest by holding public rallies and demonstrations. These are powerful ways of drawing attention to injustices.
(d) Showing Solidarity. Women associated with the Women’s movement also believe in showing solidarity with other women and their causes.
Q 29 – What do people believe about the women?
Ans. Many people believe that women make better nurses because they are more patient and gentle. It is believed that science requires a technical mind and girls and women are not capable of dealing with technical things.
Q 30 – What was the main role recognized for girls?
Ans. The main role of girls was recognized as kitchen work and marriage only.
Q 31 – What message do we get from the story of Laxmi Lakra?
Ans. The story of Laxmi Lakra tells us that girls also can do every job and compete in the exam. The story encourages us all that girls should be given full opportunity in every field of life.
Q 32 – What did children do in the past?
Ans. In the past, the skill of reading and writing was known to only a few. Most children learnt the work their families or elders did.
Q 33 – What role was played by the girls in the families of artisans?
Ans. In the artisans families where traditional works such as skills like pottery, weaving and craft are undertaken, the contribution of daughters and women role is supportive. Gradually, the children also achieve the expertise in the traditional work.
Q 34 – What changes occurred in 19th century for girls’ education?
Ans. In the nineteenth century, many new ideas about education and learning emerged, schools became more common and those whose ancestors never learnt reading and writing had started sending their children to school.
Q 35 – Name the important struggles under women movement activities.
Ans. Campaigning, raising awareness, protesting, showing solidarity etc., are some of the important struggles under women movements’ activities.
Q 36 – Name the important part of the women’s movement.
Ans. An important part of the women’s movement is fight against discrimination and violence including domestic and mental violence.
Q 37 – Give the name of book written by Ramabai.
Ans. Pandita.
Q 38 – Why was Ramabai given the title ‘Pandita”?
Ans. Ramabai was given the title Pandita because she could read and write Sanskrit. Those days such knowledge was not allowed
Q 39 – What was achievement of Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain for the girls?
Ans. Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain started a school for the girl which is functioning even today.
Q 40 – What do you understand about stereotypes and how do it affect the girls?
Ans. When we believe that people belonging to particular groups are bound to have certain fixed characteristics or can only do a certain type of work, is called stereotypes. Many people believe in stereotypes and do not provide education to the girls as they do to the boys. Due to the stereotypical thinking, in most families, once girls finish school, family member are encouraged to see marriage as their main aim in life.
Q 41 – Briefly describe the story of Laxmi Lakra.
Ans. Laxmi Lakra was girl and also poor but she got diploma in electronics and then passed the railway board exam in first attempt. Her parents were not literate but they struggled and overcame many hardships to make sure their children got an education.
She studied hard and did well and then went on to get a diploma in electronics. Finally, Laxmi Lakra who belonged from a poor tribal family of Jharkhand became first engine driver in Northern Railways.
Q 42 – Write in brief struggle of Rashsundari Devi and her achievements.
Ans. Rashsundari Devi was a housewife from a rich landlord’s family. At that time, it was believed that if woman will learn to read and write, she would bring bad luck to her husband and become a widow. About 200 years ago, at the age of 60, she wrote her autobiography in Bangla. Her book titled Amar Jiban is the first known autobiography written by an Indian woman.
Q 43 – What do you mean by Census?
Ans. Census is undertaken once in every 10 years. The first census was undertaken in 1971. In the Census, many datas are accumulated such as number of people, number of male and female, number of school going boys and girls, their socio-economic condition etc. These numbers are gathered as a whole and various heads are published as a result. These data are used in the planning of government policies
Q 44 – In the field of education mention Muslims and Adivasi status in India.
Ans. The 2001 census also found that Muslim girls are less likely, than Dalit and Adivasi girls, to complete primary school. There are several reasons why children from Dalit, Adivasi and Muslim communities leave school. Especially in rural and poor areas there may not even be proper schools or teachers who teach on a regular basis. Due to the transport unavailability, unable to bear the cost of educating all their children, boys may get preference in this situation.
Q 45 – Why do children leave the school? Give reasons.
Ans. In India, children leave the school for various reasons. Some of them are:
- Many children leave school because they are discriminated by their teachers and classmates.
- Many places particularly in the rural areas availability of schools is not in the access of children.
- Many families are unable to teach all children due to the poverty.
- Some of them feel insecurity on the way to school particularly parents of girls etc.
Q 46 – What was the result found in the census of 2001 about literacy?
Ans. On the basis of data received from census, the literacy rate is determined. Census is undertaken once in 10 years. In the most recent census of 2001, these figures have grown to 76 percent for boys and men, and 54 percent for girls and women. It has been noticed that SC, ST and Adivasi backgrounds girls leave school at a rate that is higher than the category ‘All Girls’. However, this gap is reducing but has not gone away.
Q 47 – What was the role played by Women’s Movement in various spheres for women?
Ans. There are other spheres such as – legal, violence and health, where the situation of women and girls has improved. These changes have not happened automatically. Women individually and collectively . have struggled to bring about these changes. This struggle is known as the Women’s Movement. Many men support the women’s movement.
Different strategies have been used to spread awareness, fight discrimination and seek justice. Efforts made by the women’s movement led the Supreme Court to formulate guidelines in 1997 to protect women against sexual harassment at the workplace and within educational institutions.
Q 48 – In what ways have women led their movement?
Ans. Women’s movement have been led by following ways:
- Campaigning: Campaigning is one of the important ways that led the movement. It was initiated to fight discrimination and violence against women. These campaigns have also led to new laws being passed. A law was passed in 2006 against domestic violence on the women.
- Raising Awareness: An important part of the women’s movements’ work is to raise public awareness on women’s rights issues. Their messages have been spread through street plays, songs and public meetings.
- Protesting: Public rallies and demonstrations Eire a very powerful ways of drawing attention to injustices.
- Showing solidarity: The women’s movement is also about showing solidarity with other women and causes.