Chapter 20 Flashcards
What is the central concept of narcissism as it relates to caste?
Caste creates a self-centered worldview in the dominant group, reinforcing their status as the default, ideal, and superior group, often without their conscious effort.
How does the dominant caste maintain its sense of superiority without effort?
Society surrounds them with affirming imagery and messages—from media to culture—reinforcing their centrality and superiority as normal.
What is the “trapdoor of self-reference”?
It is the caste system’s mechanism that insulates dominant-caste individuals from having to engage with or understand the lives of subordinated groups.
What is “group narcissism” according to Erich Fromm?
An inflated view of one’s group as inherently superior, which can lead to fascism and racialism when challenged.
How does caste resemble a narcissistic family system?
Caste assigns roles like the “golden child” (model minorities), “lost child” (indigenous peoples), and “scapegoat” (lowest caste), with the dominant group as the sun.
Why does the dominant caste often feel threatened by lower-caste individuals in leadership or authority?
The caste script teaches that dominant caste members should always be first, more knowledgeable, and authoritative—so reversal feels unnatural and destabilizing.
What is “caste performance”?
Behavioral expectations and roles people adopt based on their position in the hierarchy, observable especially in group settings.
What is “Brahmin-splaining”?
When someone from the dominant caste (e.g., Brahmin) lectures a subordinate caste person about topics the subordinate is more qualified to speak on—similar to mansplaining or whitesplaining.
How does “Nordic” identity serve as a signal in American caste dynamics?
It signals the top of the historic racial hierarchy from the eugenics era, shutting down comparison or questioning about ethnicity or lineage.
What insight does the author provide about identifying caste in India?
It’s often revealed not by language or looks, but by interpersonal dynamics—who leads, who defers, who interrupts.
