‘I am the over-educated maid who must also earn a good living’: Exploring migration and sense of freedom among professional Indian women in Toronto

Ethnicities ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (5) ◽  
pp. 915-938
Author(s):  
Sutama Ghosh
Keyword(s):  
North America ◽  
Middle Class ◽  
International Migration ◽  
English Literature ◽  
Binary Opposition ◽  
Indian Women ◽  
Women Novelists ◽  
Good Living

Since the mid-1980s, several Indian women novelists have enriched mainstream English literature with stories of educated, middle-class, Indian women migrating to and settling in North America. The novels assert that by migrating to North America, the protagonists were able to find ‘freedom’. In this paper, I question whether international migration necessarily leads to ‘freedom’ for this cohort of Indian women and argue that it their histories and experiences of subjugation and emancipation are not necessarily in binary opposition, and that there may be a space for multiplicity. Based on their changing power positions, the respondents were placed simultaneously at the centre and at the margins in their own homes, at work and at the places of socialisation.

A Complete Replica of Contemporary Indian Society in the Fictional Works of Chetan Bhagat: A Detailed Literary Analysis of his Five Point Someone, One Night @ the Call Center and The Three Mistake of My

1970 ◽  
Vol 4 (6) ◽  
pp. 17
Author(s):  
Vikram Patel
Keyword(s):  
Middle Class ◽  
Call Center ◽  
English Literature ◽  
The Other ◽  
Literary Analysis ◽  
Indian Society ◽  
Indian English ◽  
Clear Cut ◽  
Middle Class Family ◽  
Fiction Writers

hetan Bhagat is one of the most influential fiction writers of contemporary Indian English literature. Postmodern subjects like youth aspirations, love, sex, marriage, urban middle class sensibilities, and issues related to corruption, politics, education and their impact on the contemporary Indian society are recurrently reflected thematic concerns in his fictions. In all his fictions, he has mostly depicted the contemporary urban social milieu of Indian society. Though the fictions of Chetan Bhagat are romantic in nature, contemporary Indian society and its major issues are the chief of the concerns of all his fictions. He has focused on the contemporary issues of middle class family in his fictional works. All of the chief protagonists of his works are sensitive youth and they do not compromise with the prevalent situations of society. Most of the characters are like caricatures that represent one or the other vice or virtue of the contemporary Indian society. The author has a mastery to convince the reader about the prevalent condition of society so that one can easily reproduce in mind, a clear cut image of contemporary Indian society. The present article is a sincere endeavor to present the detailed literary analysis of the select fictions of Chetan Bhagat keeping in mind how the contemporary Indian society has been replicated in the fictions.

City Management and the Emerging Welfare State: Evolution of City Budgets and Civic Responsibilities in Montreal, 1931–1951

1997 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 339-357 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jean-Pierre Collin
Keyword(s):  
North America ◽  
Middle Class ◽  
Social Needs ◽  
Fiscal Crisis ◽  
Political Life ◽  
City Management ◽  
Political Machines ◽  
The Great Depression ◽  
State Evolution ◽  
The City

The Great Depression of the 1930s transformed municipal political life in Montreal, as it did that in other major cities in North America. For one thing, the debate between populists and reformers was revived as the electoral scene underwent fundamental changes. In many cities, political machines running on patronage became more influential as the middle class began to desert the city for the suburbs. At the same time, the margin of budgetary maneuvering available to cities was shrinking, and local public finances were reduced. Municipalities that had been obliged to borrow to meet social needs resulting from the depression were faced with a prolonged fiscal crisis, which for many of them resulted in bankruptcy and trusteeship. This was Montreal's fate in 1940.

Migration and outward FDI: a double direction approach

2018 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 240-257 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jorge Alcaraz ◽  
Elizabeth Salamanca
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Latin America ◽  
Social Network ◽  
North America ◽  
International Migration ◽  
Network Theory ◽  
Social Network Theory ◽  
Best Interests ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Content Type

Purpose The purpose of this study is to identify, based on social network theory, the relationship between the direction of international migration (immigration/emigration) and the international movement of enterprises and their location. Design/methodology/approach A traditional gravity model and the Tobit estimation method are applied to three groups of countries from three different regions: Latin America, North America and the European Union. The study considers a period from 2001 to 2012. Findings The main results suggest that the international migration that goes from the European Union and North America to Latin America is related with the firms’ internationalization and their respective location. Practical implications Given that migration can be an important and reliable source of information, trust and knowledge, managers should see it as a “bridge” between the home and host countries, which, in turn, can increase their competitive advantage. Social implications Governments can learn how migration and outward foreign direct investment interact. In addition, they could develop political frameworks to accurately and effectively manage international migration (immigration and emigration) and FDI in the best interests of the stakeholders. Originality/value This study extends the social network theory by suggesting that networks are not only related with firms’ expansion abroad but as well with their location. This statement could be generalizable as long as emigration/networks (ethnic ties) are considered the links between the home and the host country.

Young Middle-Class Women, Consumption and Fitness in Contemporary India: ‘To Tackle All That is Thrown Her Way’

2020 ◽  
Vol 40 (1) ◽  
pp. 111-126
Author(s):  
Callie Batts Maddox
Keyword(s):  
Middle Class ◽  
Female Body ◽  
Cultural Practices ◽  
Multiple Roles ◽  
Global Markets ◽  
Indian Woman ◽  
Indian Women ◽  
Roles And Responsibilities ◽  
The Right ◽  
Working Out

This article examines the intersections of fitness, consumption, the middle class and the female body in contemporary India. Having grown up exposed to and interacting with global markets, brands and commodities, young middle-class Indian women seek to engage in cultural practices that distinguish them as members of an upwardly mobile class of urban professionals. For many young women, working out at a gym or fitness centre has become an important performative act that signifies ability to successfully navigate the globalised and cosmopolitan worlds. Drawing mainly from ethnographic fieldwork, the article suggests that the fit, young, middle-class body has become the ‘right’ female body in contemporary India and functions to reinforce a privileged social location. It underpins moralities of self-care and marks the rise of the global Indian woman prepared to tackle multiple roles and responsibilities.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document