History of toilets and sanitation

[Guest guest]

There might be something on feces as "marking" untouchability in McKim

Marriott's work over the last 20 years or so. I remember seeing a lecture with

slides by him in which a village untouchable was proud of cleaning the privy of

the most important man in town. I may misremember, but I seem to recall a slide

with the man and his broom posing proudly in front of the stained wall outside

the second-story privy of the big shot.

 

Wendy Doniger's Origins of Evil in Hindu Mythology may have useful material.

One point therein is that evil is regarded as something that can be shoved off

onto someone and someplace else, but never eliminated.

 

As to chamber pots, they were commonplace until very recently in the West (saved

walking outside to a cold privy). I was just reading Thunder at twilight :

Vienna 1913-1914 by Frederic Morton, and it mentioned that the higher

aristocracy in their palaces and castles usually would have a chasse percee

brought in when needed, instead of modern plumbing. I read maybe 10 years ago

in the Spectator or some such British magazine that there are a few stately

homes in England which still rely on chamber pots instead of water closets.

 

Allen Thrasher

 

Allen W. Thrasher, Ph.D., Senior Reference Librarian

South Asia Team, Asian Division

Library of Congress, Jefferson Building 150

101 Independence Ave., S.E.

Washington, DC 20540-4810

tel. 202-707-3732; fax 202-707-1724; athr

The opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of the Library of

Congress.

 

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

INDOLOGY, "Allen W Thrasher" <athr@l...>

wrote:

 

"There might be something on feces as "marking" untouchability in

McKim Marriott's work over the last 20 years or so. I remember

seeing a lecture with slides by him in which a village untouchable

was proud of cleaning the privy of the most important man in town.

I may misremember, but I seem to recall a slide with the man and his

broom posing proudly in front of the stained wall outside the second-

story privy of the big shot."

 

I am not sure if feces has any special connotations in

untouchability, I might be wrong of course. I think that

untouchability is to do with handling carcasses - human and animals -

and that in turn due to association with death and spirits.

Untouchability might have been more to do with danger; that these

people were dealing with some very dangerous elements. The task of

feces removal might have been added to their chores out of sheer

convinience, foisting on a marginalised and powerless people, yet

another job that no one wants to do.

 

As for the proud scavenger who cleans for the most important man in

town, it might be just a simple pride about working for someone

important. For instance, if my lot was only to be a janitor, I guess

I would be proud to be a janitor at White House/Rashtrapathi Bhavan

than anywhere else !!

 

Regards,

Sugrutha