• Louis Dumont borrowed the idea of binary opposition from Lewis Strauss. Binary opposition refers to a pair of related terms or concepts that are opposite in meaning. Dumont employed binary operation of purity and pollution in context of caste in India. Dumont’s analysis of the caste system is based on the classical literature, historical examples, and the ideology of the caste system.
• He was also deeply influenced by BougIe’s cultural explanation of caste and his ideas that division of labour in caste system is not on economic basis, but on cultural basis and hence, is not exploitative. BougIe further argues that position of every other caste is relative to Brahmins and these castes evaluate themselves taking the position of Brahmins as reference and every caste is concerned with its boundary maintenance.
• Louis Dumont condensed the three core features of Bougle into one all-encompassing principle of caste as an ideology of separation of pure and impure.

Binary opposition Pure and Impure

• Dumont argued that caste is different & district social structure; it should not be compared with other social structure like class. He termed this structure as homo hierarchicus structure.
• He views caste system in terms of ideas and values, i.e., caste system is an ideology peculiar to Indian society. Ideology of Indian society is in binary opposition with Western ideology, modern against tradition, holism against individualism, hierarchy against equality, purity against pollution and status against power. Dumont emphasised on ideology because it is also reflected through ancient texts.
• According to Louis Dumont the Brahmins, assigned with the priestly functions, occupied the top rank in the social hierarchy and were considered ‘pure’ as compared to other castes, whereas the untouchables, being ‘impure’, and segregated outside the village.
• Untouchables were not allowed to draw water from the same wells from which the Brahmins did so. Besides this, they did not have any access to Hindu temples, and suffered from various other disabilities.
• He conceptualized caste as opposition of pure and impure. Three elements are central to his analysis-

1. 1. Separation on the basis of rules of the caste in matters of marriage and contact, whether direct or indirect (food)
   2. Interdependent of work or division of labour, each group having, in theory or by tradition, a profession from which their members can depart only within certain limits;
   3. Finally, gradation of status or hierarchy, which ranks the groups as relatively superior or inferior to one another.

• He identified a number of pure and impure practices which are attached with notions of purity and impurity. Endogamy, cleanliness, vegetarianism are considered pure and superior. Accordingly, impure occupations are separated from the class of sacred/pure occupations. Pure and impure are attached to not only occupation, but to the entire structure of ideas.

Limitation of binary opposition

• Yogendra Singh argued that Dumont failed to grasp change brought in Indian society by a modern democratic and egalitarian state which is based on the modern constitution.
• His binary perspective of purity and pollution also does not hold true in a lot of contexts, for instance tribal believe in sacredness instead of purity and pollution.
• Harold Gould believes that lower caste people imitate the way of life of higher castes not because of cultural aspects of purity and pollution but socio-political and economic dominance that higher castes possess.

Caste is not an unchanging structure. Simultaneously, it is also true that caste has religious, cultural as well as ritualistic backing. But over a period of time caste group has organised themselves as pressure group to secure economic and political gains. Louis Dumont’s calls this phenomenon as Substantialisation of caste. Hence in present context the caste has expanded its scope beyond the explanation of binary opposition.