Upper middle class would be an overstatement. There are
carpenters, maids, and the like who also fly. When I came to the
US, I saved the airfare from my first job as rural dev consultant, it took
me about two years. Remember also in 1959, Ravi may not:), the Indian
rupee was overvalued, airfare probably was cheap for those who could raise
the cash. But within 30% for sure. Unfortunately we can't blame people
for being born into privilege. What she writes and how she does it is
another issue. Even in India, what I would consider austere
(internationally renowned) marxist academics in top state schools,
exercise the luxury of smoking relatively expensive Indian cigarettes
every day, perhaps equivalent to the daily wage of a rural landless worker.
Can we sanction this academic/Spivak for their indulgence? Besides, women
always dress better then men, certainly in India, and if expensive
garments mean fine silks and cotton, so be they. In the world of
synthetics, there's nothing better than promoting fine, comfortable
clothing, not to mention the many landless rural workers who make a living
weaving in India. Both the govt of India and many state governments have
actively promoted the handloom industry, especially the marxist-inspired
West Bengal state. There is a certain pride among Bengali women (Spivak
is one) wearing silk sarees woven in the villages of Bengal (Shantipur in
West Bengal and Tangail in Bangladesh, to name two villages).
Cheers, Anthony
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Anthony P. D'Costa
Associate Professor Ph: (253) 692-4462
Comparative International Development Fax: (253) 692-5718
University of Washington Box Number: 358436
1900 Commerce Street
Tacoma, WA 98402, USA
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On Fri, 25 May 2001, ravi narayan wrote:
> Date: Fri, 25 May 2001 17:22:42 -0400
> From: ravi narayan <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> Reply-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> Subject: [PEN-L:12222] Re: Re: Re: Re: A reply to Ellen Meiksins Wood
>
> Brad DeLong wrote:
>
> >
> > In 1959 in India--when Gayatri Chakravorty graduated from the University
> > of Calcutta with a First in English--80 percent of Indian women over 15
> > could not read. Her family was not "rich" by first-world standards (she
> > went to graduate school at Cornell on borrowed money), and thus it was
> > not "super-rich" by Indian standards.
> >
>
>
> certainly not super rich, but if you can afford even the flight ticket
> from india to the US you are already in the upper middle class (and i
> use the term loosely - my bet would be top 30%).
>
> --ravi
>
>
