Event Title

The Social Cost of Vegetarianism in India

Location

Hart 115

Start Time

9-5-2018 1:15 PM

End Time

9-5-2018 1:45 PM

Description

This study brings together scholarship in economics, sociology, and anthropology to explore the connections between dietary preferences, socio-economic class, cultural beliefs, and social ethics. We analyze household-level panel data to identify the socio-economic covariates of households that are vegetarian, meat-eaters, or that have shifted from vegetarianism to meat-eating, or vice versa. We also consider the role of social movements, political discourse, and state regulations that affect dietary preferences. We argue that vegetarianism in modern India is radically different from vegetarianism in the West. In India, vegetarianism is associated with social conservatism and is used as a mechanism to perpetuate patriarchy, caste-based discrimination, as well as religious intolerance. We support this argument by demonstrating linkages between vegetarian dietary preferences and conservative social beliefs and practices at the household level.

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Moderator: Susan Eliason

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May 9th, 1:15 PM May 9th, 1:45 PM

The Social Cost of Vegetarianism in India

Hart 115

This study brings together scholarship in economics, sociology, and anthropology to explore the connections between dietary preferences, socio-economic class, cultural beliefs, and social ethics. We analyze household-level panel data to identify the socio-economic covariates of households that are vegetarian, meat-eaters, or that have shifted from vegetarianism to meat-eating, or vice versa. We also consider the role of social movements, political discourse, and state regulations that affect dietary preferences. We argue that vegetarianism in modern India is radically different from vegetarianism in the West. In India, vegetarianism is associated with social conservatism and is used as a mechanism to perpetuate patriarchy, caste-based discrimination, as well as religious intolerance. We support this argument by demonstrating linkages between vegetarian dietary preferences and conservative social beliefs and practices at the household level.