Barriers Broken: Production Relations and Agrarian Change in Tamil Nadu

The result of an intensive study, Barriers Broken represents more than a systematic comparison of two major agrarian ecotypes. Is class structure associated with these ecotypes? Are variations of production ecologically grounded? How do these variations affect other levels of social formation--especially ideological and political venues? In addition to posing these questions, the authors explore issues such as: changes in the relation of production due to land reforms; patterns of generational mobility; land rent barriers to capitalist development; and consequences of credit capital for usury. By developing a quantitative methodology for studying agrarian class relations and linking an ecological analysis to class relations, technology, and patterns of agrarian change, Barriers Broken sheds new light on the current development in Third World countries. This unique volume will be of interest to students and professors in agriculture, economics, sociology, social anthropology, political science, and history. "There is something for everyone in this study. . .will enliven the areas of class analysis, research methodology, and ecological and social analysis of agrarian change." --Contemporary Sociology "In Barriers Broken, Athreya, Djurfeldt, and Lindberg provide just the kind of detailed analysis needed to refine the widely used but crude typologies current to the development literature. . . . Throughout these chapters, the authors reveal many interesting and provocative findings and offer clues and insights into the socioeconomic dynamics of rural production. . . . As a case study and research monograph, Barriers Broken is a significant contribution to the rural-development literature and will prove valuable to anyone interested in rural social relations and methods of agricultural production." --Social Forces