In the post, Women Caste and Reform Class 8, the students will learn the interplay between gender, caste, and social reform movements in India during the colonial period. In the 19th and 20th centuries in India, the condition of women was a major part of the social reform movements. Practices such as Sati and child marriage were banned, and widow remarriage and imparting education to women were encouraged. Here are the Women caste and reform Class 8 History Chapter 8 Solutions that will be useful for the students.
Women Caste and Reform Class 8 Important Key Words
- Auspicious: Showing signs that something is likely to be successful in the future.
- Orthodox: Accepting and obeying traditional religious beliefs and practices.
- Pyre: A large pile of wood on which a dead body is placed and burnt in a funeral ceremony.
- Scripture: The holy books associated with any religion.
- Manual Scavenging: The practice of manually cleaning, carrying, and disposing of human and animal wastes from sewers and streets.
Women Caste and Reform Class 8 History Chapter 8 Questions and Answers
Let’s recall
1. What social ideas did the following people support?
ANSWER: Rammohun Roy:- 1. He spoke strongly against the caste system & made efforts to abolish the practice of Sati.
2. He established the Brahmo Samaj in 1828 CE.
Dayanand Saraswati:- 1. He founded the Arya Samaj on April 7, 1875.
2. He stresses one God and rejects idol worship & supports widow remarriage.
Veerasalingam Pantulu:- 1. He formed the “Rajahmundry Social Reform Association”.
2. He wrote and spoke extensively about equality and freedom.
3. He encouraged people to reason.
Jyotirao Phule:- 1. He served as a leader of a powerful movement against the oppression of untouchables in Maharashtra.
2. He established schools for girls in Maharashtra.
Pandita Ramabai:- 1. She was a great scholar of Sanskrit.
2. She founded a widow’s home at Poona to provide shelter to widows.
3. She wrote a book about the miserable condition of upper-caste Hindu women.
Periyar:-1. He established the Self-Respect Development and Dravidar Kazhagam.
2. He was a Dravidian social reformer and lawmaker from India.
3. He was against the caste system & supported equality for all.
Mumtaj Ali:- MUmtaj Ali argued for women’s education and encouraged women to read about religion and domestic management in a language they could understand.
Ishwarchandra Vidyasagar:- 1. He stressed education among the girls belonging to the lower caste.
2. He set up schools for girls in Calcutta.
3. He encouraged the study of the Sanskrit language and literature by the lower caste.
2. State whether true or false:
(a) When the British captured Bengal they framed many new laws to regulate the rules regarding marriage, adoption, the inheritance of property, etc.
(b) Social reformers had to discard the ancient texts in order to argue for reform in social practices.
(c) Reformers got full support from all sections of the people of the country.
(d) The Child Marriage Restraint Act was passed in 1929.
Answer: (a) True (b) False (c) False (d) True
Let’s discuss
3. How did the knowledge of ancient texts help the reformers promote new laws?
Answer: The knowledge of ancient texts help the reformers promote new laws in the following ways:-
1. Ancient texts helped the reformers to know about the bad social evils such as widow burning, caste distinctions, child marriage, etc.
2. These gave them great confidence and moral support to utilize in promoting new laws.
3. They did not get feared when people were against the reforms they had brought.
4. What were the different reasons people had for not sending girls to school?
Answer: The different reasons people had for not sending girls to school–
1. They feared that schools would take girls away from home.
2. The schools would prevent them from doing their domestic duties.
3. The girls would have to travel through public places in order to reach school.
4. They felt that girls should stay away from public spaces.
5. They thought that education would pollute the minds of girls.
5. Why did many people in the country attack Christian missionaries? Would some people have supported them too? If so, for what reasons?
Answer: Many people attacked Christian Missionaries in the country because
i. They feared that the missionaries would change the religion of tribal groups and lower-caste children.
ii. They suspected that they were trying to force them by using money power from Hinduism to Christianity.
Yes, some people have supported them because–
(i) The missionaries were setting up schools for tribal groups and lower caste children.
(ii) These children were thus equipped with some resources to make their way into a changing world.
6. In the British period, what new opportunities opened up for people from castes regarded as “low”?
Answer: In the British period, the following new opportunities opened up for people from castes regarded as “low”.
1. Many poor people left their villages in search of jobs that could be found in the cities.
2. As the city grew, there was a huge demand for labor – labor who dug canals laid roads, built buildings, worked in factories and communities, etc.
3. There is also a need for workers on various plantations at home and abroad.
4. Job opportunities were opening up in the cities. There was work in the factories that were coming up and jobs in municipalities.
5. Christian missionaries set up schools for tribal groups and lower-caste children.
7. How did Jyotirao, the reformer, justify their criticism of caste inequality in society?
Answer: Jyotirao, the reformer, justified their criticism of caste inequality in society
i. He set out to attack the Brahmans’ claim of their superiority to others.
ii He argued that the Aryans were foreigners, who came from outside the subcontinent.
iii He wrote a book ‘Gulamgiri’ in which he wrote extensively about his views on the caste system.
iv He proposed that the laboring castes and untouchables should unite to challenge caste discrimination.
v The people of Maharashtra gave him the title ‘Mahatma’ for his great work for the lower castes.
8. Why did Phule dedicate his book Gulamgiri to the American movement to free slaves?
Answer: Phule dedicated his book Gulamgiri to the American movement to free slaves to establish a link between the conditions of the lower castes in India and the black slaves in America.
9. What did Ambedkar want to achieve through the temple entry movement?
Answer: Ambedkar wanted to expose the caste prejudices that existed within Indian society through the temple entry movement.
10. Why were Jyotirao Phule and Ramaswami Naicker critical of the national movement? Did their criticism help the national struggle in any way?
Answer: Jyotirao Phule and Ramaswami Naicker were critical of the national movement because the nationalists had made seating arrangements according to caste distinctions at feasts. The lower castes were made to sit far from the upper castes.
Yes, Their criticism helped the national struggle to a great extent.
Women Caste and Reform Extra Questions Class 8
- Who supported the idea of the self-respect movement?
Answer: Periyar - Who advocated the concept of widow re-marriage?
Answer: Dayanand Saraswati - Who was the founder of the Satyashodhak Samaj Association?
Answer: Jyotirao Phule - When was the Widow Remarriage Act passed?
Answer: 1856 - When did Ambedkar lead three temple entry movements?
Answer: Between 1927-1935 - Who founded the Prarthna Samaj?
Answer: R.G. Bhandarkar - Which reform movement was founded by Henry Louis Vivian Derozio?
Answer: The Young Bengal Movement - Who started schools for Muslim girls in Patna & Calcutta?
Answer: Begum Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain - When did the first Urdu novel begin to be written?
Answer: The late nineteenth century - Under which Governor General did Raja Ram Mohan Roy initiate to ban on Sati?
Answer: Lord William Bentick - Who founded The Mohammedan Anglo-Oriental College?
Answer: Sayyid Ahmed Khan - In which state of India did the first primary school for girls start?
Answer: Maharashtra - Which social reformer worked for the upliftment of women in Maharashtra?
Answer: Jyotirao Phule - Who secretly learned to read and write in the flickering light of candles at night?
Answer: Rashsundari Debi - Name the important reformer who reinterpreted verses from the Koran to argue for women’s education.
Answer: Mumtaz Ali - Who was often treated as untouchables?
Answer: Shudras - Which book was written by Jyotirao Phule?
Answer: Gulamgiri - Who was the founder of Arya Samaj?
Answer: Dayanand Saraswati - Who established the widows’ home at Poona?
Answer: Pandita Ramabai - From which caste did B.R. Ambedkar belong?
Answer: Mahar - Who was the founder of Brahmo Samaj?
Answer: Rajaram Mohan Roy - Which low caste was Sri Narayan Guru belonged to?
Answer: Ezahavas - In which countries did the lower caste people go for plantation work?
Answer: Indonesia, Trinidad, and Mauritius - What did Rajaram Mohan Roy do to oppose the caste system?
Answer: Rajaram Mohan Roy Translated an old Buddhist text. - Who founded the Satnami Movement in Central India?
Answer: Ghasidas founded the Satnami Movement in Central India to improve the social status of leatherworkers. - Who was the Guru of Swami Vivekanand?
Answer: Ramkrishan Paramhansa - What was the original name of Swami Vivekanand?
Answer: Narendra Nath Dutta - Who said” Government of the people, by the people, for the people”?
Answer: Abraham Lincoln - When was the Child Marriage Restraint Act passed?
Answer: In 1929, according to this act no man below the age of 18 and woman below the age of 16 could marry. - What were the practices which made the lives of women in India miserable?
Answer: Child marriage, the purdah system, Sati, and ill-treatment of widows made the lives of women in India miserable.
Also Read: The Making of the National Movement 1870s-1947 Class 8 Easy
FAQ of Women Caste and Reform Class 8
What is the meaning of caste?
A social system in which individuals are born into distinct hereditary groups that determine their social status and occupation.
What were the challenges faced by women in the colonial period?
In the colonial period, women faced many challenges such as lack of education, child marriage, the practice of Sati, and restrictions on widow remarriage.
How did women reformers contribute to the empowerment of women?
Women reformers played an important role in raising awareness about women’s issues, establishing schools for girls, organizing women’s associations, and status and rights of women.
What were the challenges faced by reformers?
Here are some of the key challenges they faced:
Conservative Mindsets
Lack of Education
Gender Inequality
Caste-Based Discrimination
Legal and Social Barriers
Conclusion of Women Caste and Reform Class 8
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