The Untouchables: Who Were They and Why They Became Untouchables
— B.R. Ambedkar
Publisher
Amrit Book Co.
Year
1948
Syllabus Area
Essay Introduction Hook
“Untouchability is not an eternal or natural condition — it is a historically manufactured social identity, imposed on a group through deliberate processes of exclusion, stigma, and the weaponisation of purity rituals.”
Core Thesis & Argument
Ambedkar traces the historical origins of the Dalit community, arguing that 'untouchables' were originally Broken Men — remnants of defeated tribes and Buddhist communities who refused to convert after Brahmanical counter-reformation. Untouchability is therefore not ancient or divinely ordained but a historically contingent social construction that can and must be dismantled.
🚀 Topper's Delta Application
Use the 'Broken Men thesis' to argue that marginalised identities are products of historical power, not natural inferiority. In essays on affirmative action or SC/ST policy, cite Ambedkar's historical analysis to ground the moral case for reservations in evidence, not just compassion.
Key Lessons for Civil Services
- ✓Untouchability was manufactured historically through exclusion of Buddhist communities after Brahmanical revival.
- ✓Beef-eating stigma was imposed on cow-herding communities who ate dead cattle — another historical construction.
- ✓Dalit identity is not natural but politically and religiously constructed.
- ✓Understanding the origin of untouchability is essential to designing effective remedial policy.
Related Quotes & Essay Tips
“History bears testimony to the fact that the untouchables were not always untouchables — they were made so.”
💡 Application Tip: Deploy in essays on affirmative action, historical justice, or the manufactured nature of social discrimination.
Analytical FAQs
Q: What is Ambedkar's 'Broken Men thesis' in The Untouchables?
A: Ambedkar argues that untouchables were originally 'Broken Men' — soldiers of defeated tribes and Buddhist communities — who were excluded from village settlements and stigmatised as impure after Buddhism's decline and the Brahmanical counter-reformation.