A Cultural Materialist Comparative Study of Mulk Raj Anand’s Untouchable and Om Prakash Valmiki’s Joothan

Abstract

The paper attempts to identify the caste-based social structure of India by implementing the theory of cultural materialism. It evaluates how caste becomes a tool for social dominance and oppression of individual identity by comparing Mulk Raj Anand’s Untouchable and Om Prakash Valmiki’s autobiographical work Joothan. Both protagonists, Bakha (Untouchable) and Valmiki (Joothan), faced cultural dominance through ideologies of one class over another and how it completely blocks an individual's progress. It shows how people are subjected to both physical and psychological violence and how the Power of money and materialism shapes this society. While Indian culture is often projected as rich and diverse, the analysis reveals underlying materialism and inherent biases. The study demonstrates how inter-generational social practices, as depicted in Untouchable and Joothan, severely restrict social mobility for lower cast members.