Dalit Consciousness and Imitative Cultural Symbolism in Coming Out as Dalit by Yashica Dutt

— The social context of traumatic incidents defines, conditions, and propagates socio-cultural prescribed responses to certain types of experience often trying to regulate the strictures of forfeiture, memory, and grieving. Since traumatic events focus the fissures and gaps of the societal oppressive conditions, as well as the expansive limit of demonstrating experiences and incidents of fringes, they give birth to the politics of mourning, which is impelled by the societal prerequisite to surround, domesticate, and regulate any dynamism disturbing its recognized order. She elucidates several modern institutions that foster caste hierarchy in society. The article focuses on how Yashica Dutt's writing aims to create the concept of caste in the Indian socio-cultural aspect. Finally, the article makes the case that imitative cultural symbolism is a part of one’s identity and can be seen as a component of response towards inferiority and identity crisis. The article continues by pointing out how similar synergies are developed with racial discourses .


INTRODUCTION
Yashica Dutt delineates the issues, which Dalit community often faces in society. In Coming Out as Dalit,a memoir, she unravels how she hides her caste during academic education and depicts a hitherto concealed identity. Dutt examines the caste stratum and feels afraid to accept this social hierarchy which discriminated against her all her life In this text she often illustrates her mother's struggle to face domestic violence, poverty and helplessness. She provides a modern insight of understating caste through factual incidents and detailed account of Dr Ambedkar's legacy, his struggle and his fight for Dalit people. She traces back the hardship of Dalit people where her ancestors lacked the fundamental rights in society. In this memoir she covers several aspects that affect humanity i.e. caste politics, colour bias, Dalit patriarchy, domestic violence, poverty and everyday circumstances of Dalit families. In ethnic studies philosophy and other types of cultural research, there is a need to work towards the development of shared criteria for establishing key cultural symbols. This has gained weight as academics use the idea of symbolic change more frequently in their research on various cultural groups and identities. Symbols are viewed in these studies as mental representations of cultural concepts, items, or reality. In this context, core symbols are those that stand for a cultural group's fundamental ideas, regardless of race, ethnicity, or other factors.

II. DISCUSSION
The portrayal of Shashi's character, in the book is the key which is an instance of a modern -struggling mother who tries to create balance in life while handling multiple responsibilities. Through specific structures like marriage, society avails the concept of motherhood (a symbol) but Dutt breaks all these superfluous ideas. Shashi faces criticism from her in-laws because they criticize her modern way of living. Dutt frankly condemns her father's character as a drunkard who often beat her mother and created conflict. His abusive behaviour affected his personal life and he lost his job. His alcoholic behaviour created obstacles in Shashi's life as well where she struggled to manage household expenses. The vulnerability of Shashi, who forgot about her own identity in making her children's, is yet another aspect of poverty and patriarchy striking like a double hammer on a woman's existence.
The socially constructed familial structures and the normalization of institutional practices continue to position mother as the epitome of women hood. These kinds of structures seize their (women's) choices. In this context Amrita Nandy, a research scholar argues about motherhood and its structures. She asserts, "motherhood needs to be historicized to understand how its prose litigation practice and understanding get naturalized in women's lives" (Nandy, 53). Nandy emphasizes how the regulation and normalization of social structures are ingrained in females. Shashi wanted to pursue her education but soon she realized that she is the victim of patriarchy which put her in a role to be a perfect wife or mother. This assumption of an ideal wife and a good mother seize her dream of becoming an IPS officer. Although she was aware that her father took a decision of her marriage at her early age, she remained silent and subdued against her choice. The universality and essential beliefs of motherhood pushed women to the backdrop of vulnerability.
In the silence of victimization Shashi lost her identity and her dreams of being an IPS officer shattered off. According to the feminists, women's subjugation is established and justified through conglomeration of social and biological motherhood where society associates both social and biological motherhood with nature and the idealization of mother's labour is termed as love and natural also leads to subordination of woman in society. Extending the idea, the social and biological motherhood is directive and it is essential to separate both concepts and understand the notion of motherhood which enables woman's suppression in this context. She loses her dream job and gets tangled in a structural hierarchy that suppresses Shashi in several ways. Focusing on women issues, critics highlight specific factors which affect women's liberation i.e. social, political and financial equality of gender. In rural India caste is the major form of identity. In ancient times this system was an essential tool for socio-political mobilization of people but in modern times it is a result of colonial rule. British rule formulated the principle of demarcation of Indians.
British originated the inferiority complex among upper and lower caste people by legalization of this hierarchy. In this context Dutt quotes Rudyard Kipling, who believed the British to be a dominant and supreme species that would eventually rule the world, saying that it was "the 'more civilized' white man's duty to imperialize (and civilize) non-white peoples" (Dutt, 28). Kipling's statement is an evident instance of white supremacy and the implementation of racism on Indian civilization. His statement defends racism and British colonialism. Nicholas Dirks in Caste of Mind expresses, "Under colonialism, caste was thus made out to be far more-far more pervasive, far more totalizing, and far more uniform-than it had ever been before, at the same time that it was defined as a fundamentally religious social order" (Dirks,13). The visible emergence of caste groups encouraged them to rule Indian society easily. In this memoir Dutt introduces us with the concept of Reservation. During colonial times the caste system came into light as a social evil which discriminated against certain groups of people.
In the era of kings, Indian society was divided in four sections i.e. Brahmin, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas and Shudras. Among above all castes, Shudras were considered untouchables and the lower social class in the society. Earlier untouchables were not allowed to interact with other social groups. They were prohibited from education and social contribution. According to the Indian Constitution Article 14 demonstrates the "Right to equality" (Sharma, 1) which restricts discrimination of people based on gender, race, caste and religion etc. Initially this policy was made available for only ten years. After that legislators realized the need to retain the system of reservation in place to address decades of social discrimination of untouchables. Dutt explains how she faced humiliation because of her lower caste and the use of reservation. She elucidates piteous incidents of caste humiliation and emphasized how she used to hide her caste as to whenever someone asked her of her caste. Dutt unravels the stigmatization of social strata where she used to compel her caste in front of society. Every day she lied to people, even herself. She argues that this shame of being an untouchable she faced because of her use of reservation was quite suppressive. Dutt says and elaborates the idea of how Reservation holds importance in their lives. She asserts that in competitive exams reservation plays a vital role in improving their circumstances.
Dutt highlight the issue of women in society well, be it either Dalit or upper caste. The author reflects true incidents and shocking practices of sexual harassment of women at work place and even at home. She chronicles several incidents of sexual harassment and rape of Dalit women. She accentuates the rape case of Mathura, a teenager who was raped by two policemen in Maharashtra. In this context Vibhuda Patel in his research article Campaign Against Rape by Women's Movement In India upholds the view regarding role of authorities, specially police, "More broadly, demonstrators have called for compulsory courses on gender sensitization for all personnel employed and engaged by the state in its various institutions, including the police. Demonstrators have also demanded that the police do their duty to ensure that public spaces are free from harassment, molestation and assault. This means the police force itself has to stop sexually assaulting women who come to make complaints" (Patel,2). Patel raises the concern of gender sensitization. He emphasizes that to protect and support women and girls, the government must ensure that the safety of all citizens is taken seriously with proper implementation of laws and policies as well as accountability for their enforcement.
Apart from societal structures Dutt highlights the issue of Indian society's obsession with fairness (symbolic of the west). The idea of fairness and colour bias comes from Western cultures. In India the concept of colour connotation mainly emerged with British arrival to the country as the East India company. British used to practice racism amongst Black Africans. Social structures of colour bias perpetuate prejudice against dark skin and in patriarchal structures women are more likely to experience its negative effects. Dutt explicates the belief that fairness will bring social acceptance and better marriage prospects remains deeply entrenched in Indian society. Yashica explains how this colourism comes to India. She condemns the ingrained psyche of Indians with colourism where ubtan plays a vital role for glowing skin and even for brides. "The haldi ceremony in Hindu weddings intends to deliver a 'bridal glow'. Beyond ceremonies, these ubtan recipes have circulated for years, passed down from mother to daughter and, more recently, in the beauty columns of magazines. The letters grown women and teenagers write to these columns seeking advice to 'make them fair' are a heartbreaking reminder of how women are mistreated in our society, especially the arranged marriage market, because of their skin colour" (Dutt,(29)(30). Dutt also goes on to condemn the wedding ritual of haldi ceremony(symbolic) which intends to provide bridal glow and asserts how it has been shared through generations.
Stacy Ghansah in a research article "Colourism and Hair Text Bias", states that "Indian Matchmaking" reveals the sad truth about colourism in Indian culture. "Mentioned casually but frequently throughout the eight episodes the idea that candidates should be "fair," or in other words, have light skin" (Ghansah,9). Ghansah also attacked on the digitalization of colour bias in social media apps i.e. Instagram filters etc. Further he says that "Colourism has been brought to light because of the lack of validation towards the dark-skin community. Specifically, with filters, during an experiment "When asked what she thought of her filtered image, she replied, "Ew. This is completely whitewashed. The colours of my lipstick and dress are much muted, and I look entirely too bright. If someone didn't know me, they could mistake me for being much fairer skinned than I am. I don't like it" (Ghansah,12). 2023, 8(4), (ISSN: 2456-7620)  Her mother's obsession with colour is the consequence of the way our society is structured. Her mother uses ubtan on a regular basis to bathe and nourish her body. She includes a variety of herbs, spices, oils and natural ingredients which they could afford. Dutt says "I was born a light-skinned child who grew up to be progressively darker, until my skin tone was the same as Mum's. This became a constant source of anxiety for her. Before I was old enough to remember or protest, she started bathing me with ubtan-something about which I had no choice" (Dutt,30). Dutt explores her childhood experiences and shares how her mother always worried about her dark shade as compared to her younger sister who is much paler than her.

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Further, Dutt argues "I hated ubtan, especially the part where I had to sit on a tiny plastic stool waiting for the thick, cold paste to dry. I often tried to outsmart Mum by applying small patches on my arms or legs. Mum quickly caught on, and would come into the bathroom to rub it on me in big, cold goops" (Dutt, 30). Dutt remembers how her mother forced her to use Ubtan. She fascinates the reader through exploring her experiences. She unravels that sometimes in haste to go to school she often forgot to clean some difficult to reach areas such as behind the ears and elbows and that thick paste dried after a certain time and fell down to her notebook in small pieces. This humiliates her in front of colleagues, "I hated my classmates' cruel jokes even more than the ubtan. Even if on some confused level I understood that I needed to be fair to be accepted, and not 'Dalitlooking', there was no way I could explain that to them. So I'd quickly and wordlessly scrub it off when someone noticed that I still had some of my 'Dalitness' sticking to me" (Dutt,30). In this statement Dutt uses the word Dalitness, where she condemns the social hierarchy of colour bias and makes a concern about her acceptance as a Dalit.
Social and cultural psychology also helps to identify and explain individual differences in thoughts, feelings and behaviour that occur in societal situations. It also helps to understand why people act in certain ways. Here socioeconomic circumstances play a major role in developing people's thoughts. Psychologists did research on various societal tendencies and have developed an insight of people's societal circumstance and assert that psychological health depends on their societal identities. They focus on real world issues such as systematic discriminations, class division, exclusion of people, psychological trauma and traditional beliefs etc. Political theory signifies that Brahmins want to rule the society. Radhika Kapur in a research article "Theories of Caste System" opines "caste is the Brahmanical child of the Indo-Aryan culture cradled in the land of the ganges and transferred to other parts of the country. In the Brahmin period, there are a number of factors that led to an increase in their status" (Kapur, 2). This theory ensures that upper-castes retain their privileges through power relations; here we can relate this theory to Foucault's power relation theory.
Foucault maintains that the dynamics of power works everywhere where people actively seek and strive to maintain it. His understanding of power is not limited to control or domination but he also includes the concept of productive power, which can be seen as a means of creating knowledge and structuring social norms. Foucault's theory contends that power is inherent in all societal relationships including families, governmental organizations and social structures etc. He discovered the underlying power structures where some people are labelled as criminals, insane and lower class so that specific authorities could keep an eye on them and monitor them. Foucault further asserts that this supervision is the way of constructing control. Through this discourse some groups were placed in a position of power while others were made vulnerable to be manipulated and controlled.
According to Foucault this surveillance of power resulted in hierarchical social relations where specific language permits some people to be vocal and forbid others from the same resulting in their absolute silence. He emphasizes that the relationship between knowledge and power works in both ways. First knowledge reinforces the power of authorities while at the same time those in power can use knowledge to exercise control. In this context we can take an instance of upper caste people who exercise control over lower caste people through knowledge. Traditionally they were kings, preachers and warriors and created specific structures to obtain power over Shudras. At that time Shudras usually did lowly considered manual jobs i.e. cleaning etc. Upper caste authorities were expert in gaining knowledge through their established structures where they were skilled in businesses, preaching and agriculture etc. These skills provided power to them which they reinforced over Shudras. Thus fulfilling Foucault's claim "power is everywhere; not because it embraces everything, but because it comes from everywhere" (Foucault,93).
Similarly, Dutt elucidates how these structures worked in society; she relates to it with how her mother was always afraid about her being a Dalit. Shashi (her mother) who tried to take steps to maintain the upper-class status. Her social identity as a Dalit bothered her every time. Through societal establishment upper caste people maintained this caste hierarchy over generations. The life long struggle of Dalits depicts how the upper caste maintained the power structure. In this context Dutt proclaims, "Even when a Brahmin has no money, he or she almost always has education, a poor Bania nearly always knows how to run a business and has 2023, 8(4), (ISSN: 2456-7620)  Dutt asserts how power structure operates in society where upper caste people are more likely to be hired for higher paying jobs and a better access to opportunities which makes it easy for them to climb the ladder of success. However, Foucault argues that power is everywhere but it is only operated through societal establishments not by individuals. Further, "power is not . . . one individual's domination over others or that of one group or class over others. Rather power must be analysed as something which circulates.... which only functions in the form of a chain. It is never in anybody's hands" (Foucault,98). He demonstrates that power is not the dominance of one person over another and also not the dominance of one class over another. Instead it (power) needs to be examined as something that propagates or circulates.

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Dutt's mother strives to adopt upper caste cultural habits which she is not able to afford however it gives her a kind of satisfaction which she seeks for her social acceptance. Shashi made all possible attempts to look like a higher class lady. Apart from various habits she brings a cow to her home to learn Brahminical traits, "Mum got Laali-a brick red cow she thought would help bring us prosperity and good luck that we so badly needed. It was another one of her attempts to adopt upper caste, particularly Brahmin, habits" (Dutt,39). To maintain upper caste status her mother learns about milking and how to take care of a domestic animal. Although Dutt's entire family opposed her mother's extravagances for social acceptance, she struggled to maintain her higher class status. The psyche of Shashi is rooted in the stereotypical societal structure of society. During her admission at Sophia, Boarding school, before her interview her mother advised her to mimic mannerisms of the upper caste students. Her mother said that if they ask your caste then your answer should be "Parashar Brahmin" (Dutt, 35). Her mother advised her on how to behave to blend in with the other students and presented her daughter as a member of the upper caste.
Apart from her mother's concern, Dutt also tries to hide her caste and pretends to be upper-caste. Pretension is cultural symbolism as one pretends to be the symbol of something that he/she is not. The inferiorities and ambivalence in identities is explicit. From childhood to college days, she lied to her classmates and colleagues about her caste because of the psychological development of the sociocultural environment where she observed the caste hierarchy. Her understanding of caste left the imprint of inferiority on her psychology where her social-identity bothered her every time. She feels inferior, less capable and deprived in front of her colleagues. These class structures created inequalities in society. The class structures came out of the work divided and were established as a cultural aspect. It also contributed to the increase of the superiority and inferiority complexes. Superiority defines that a person or a particular class is holding power but interiority indicates a particular class's suppression in society. Prof. M.N. Srinivas, a well-known Indian sociologist, was the first to introduce the term "Sanskritization." In his book "Religion and Society Among the Coorgs of South India," the author used the term "sanskritization" to describe how the old caste system of Indian social structure. He discovered via his research of the Mysore coorgs that the lower castes were seeking to advance in the caste system by emulating some Brahmin cultural ideas. Because of this, they abandoned parts of their principles, which the Brahmins view as impure. Srinivas used the word "Brahminization" to describe this movement process. Later, he began to refer to it generally as "Sanskritization." The occupational theory of the labour practices. He agrees that these labour practices generate opportunities for individuals but claims that the process should be interesting, innovative and imaginative which can lead to greater productivity. However, in Dalits context the entire process is different. Guru argues "Generation after generation, they were pushed into occupations that were completely devoid of any possibility of innovation and imagination and hence were not impregnated with any possibility of knowledge. For example, they were pushed regularly into occupations like scavenging, sanitation and other types of manual labour which had inherent limitations in prompting them to do anything extraordinary in terms of creating knowledge" (Guru,5004). Guru condemns the idea of occupation and argues that these restrictions of knowledge creation are imposed by the elite class to keep them trapped in a cycle of poverty and deprivation.
On an average, a Dalit male manual scavenger earns less than `6,700 a month for entering six or seven clogged sewer manholes daily. Often, they don't get paid on time or at all" (Dutt,44). Guru's concept of T.T.B provides a lens for the analysis of Foucault's power relation which can help to understand the discourse that produces unequal social hierarchies. Further Guru questions the societal structures and its presumption by saying "some are born with a theoretical spoon in their mouth and the vast majority with the empirical pot around their neck" (Guru, 5003). Guru points out the metaphors, the spoon and pot and uses symbolic approach to emphasise the power of discrimination and inequality which is firmly embedded in Indian social hierarchy. Here pot is also the symbol to the untouchables of the nineteenth century. At that time, they were forced to tie the pot around their neck so that they could spit into it and not pollute other places. This leads to a state of silencing their own thoughts and ideas where their voices are not being heard. Dutt elucidates the helplessness of Dalit women and insecurity they face in society. She highlights the fact that as a woman and from lower caste and class they face triple marginalization. The economic exploitation of Dalit women pushes them to face hardships of life. Dutt delineates that this unfair treatment of these women deprived them in a vicious manner. Dutt condemns that in our society women's labour is undervalued.
Upper caste men consider themselves privileged and authoritative to control their (Dalit women) sexuality. There are multiple factors including structural forces, institutional policies and societal norms which create and sustain stratified social context. Gopal Guru in "Dalit Women Talk Differently" explicates that it is impossible to understand rape as a concern in terms of criminal behaviour, class strata and psychological abnormality. Instead of these societal factors he focuses on caste as a rigid hierarchy to suppress Dalit women. Guru remarks "caste factor also has to be taken into account which makes sexual violence against Dalit or tribal women much more severe in terms of intensity and magnitude" (Guru, 2548). He argues that this is largely due to the existing caste based power structure in which Dalit and tribal women are considered to be more vulnerable and deprived. These incidents highlight the unequal relations between upper and lower caste people where Dalit women are victim of these socio-economic inequalities. It also occurs that these women lack the resources to fight against sexual harassment and exploitation.
Despite of shouldering the responsibility of reducing abuse against Dalit and tribal women, police have also been involved in such shocking instances. In 1972, Mathura, a tribal teenage girl was raped by two policemen. Such incidents are a stark example of the violence and subjugation of Adivasi and Dalit women that they have endured for generations. Dutt documents several reports that shed light on the plight of these women who suffered police brutality in Bastar and Haryana. She seeks to challenge the societal oppression of these women by highlighting the issues related to sexual violence. She states "In Bastar, Dalit women have complained that policemen squeezed women's breasts to confirm if they were lactating mothers" (Dutt,144). She unravels shocking incidents of police brutality in Bastar where they objectify women as a sexual object to prove their masculinity. Dalit women are mere tool of pleasure for upper caste and treated as commodities, the same goes for their male counterparts. The word object is synonymous with Dalits for them. The consideration of Dalits as mere objects shows that they are nonhuman things for the upper caste. For instance, Elizabeth R. Eames in a research article Sexism and Women As Sex Object reclaims "object is nonhuman things" (Eames,141). Elizabeth argues that objectification of women is non-human.

III. CONCLUSION
To conclude, Dutt uses the term Coming Out in the book's title, which unravels her unusual journey as a growing Dalit child in upper-caste Indian society. The title is a witness to her long bearing of Dalitness and humiliation. She demonstrates how this sense of not belonging is complex for her, where she faces emotional sensation, mental draining, enmity and marginalization. However, she comes out of the abuse and accepts her identity. The rippling prose of this memoir is clear and concise. This memoir attempts to bring the underlying issue of caste hierarchy to the surface. Dutt highlights how marginalization affects the mental and physical health of these people. Dutt's personal 2023, 8(4), (ISSN: 2456-7620)  story of self-discovery, struggle and success as a Dalit woman inspires many. Her book serves to represent the collective stories of Dalits who continue to battle against the oppressive structures of social hierarchy. It is an eyeopening account of a deeply entrenched and rigid caste system and how it pervades all aspects of life with its invisible arms. Dutt's exploration of her roots, her upbringing and the environment in which she was raised helps us to contextualize the unique challenges that accompany growing up as a Dalit girl. The theme of recognizing the evils of casteism runs throughout her work, emphasizing the roots of the problem that can lead to inequality. Dutt touches upon a range of topics, i.e. from Dalit culture, caste politics, historical representation, etc. Striving to make a difference, Dutt shares stories of marginalized people and provides a deeper understanding of societal evils.