The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy depicts many types of oppression based primarily on the caste system in late 20th century India. Caste has many effects as the characters' qualities of life are compromised, people are opposed to each other, and some are treated unfairly. Roy uses the caste system and power roles to describe how people consent to social norms regardless of their morality, as they are more eager to please society and maintain their image than to act ethically. Velutha's self-esteem is put at stake because of people's ethical decisions. based solely on its unjustly fixed place in society. When Velutha returns to Ayemenem, Mammachi helps him by re-hiring him as a factory carpenter. The other workers were extremely upset by this because "Paravans weren't supposed to be carpenters", so to "keep the others happy, and since she knew no one else would hire her as a carpenter", Mammachi had to pay Velutha “less than she would a Touchable carpenter but more than a Paravan” (74). The prevalence of the caste system is emphasized when the word "meant" is italicized, showing that this was the expected norm to reject and alienate the Paravans. While Mammachi somewhat sticks to her ethical values ​​because “she knew no one else would hire her,” she also shows the priority of her reputation over her factory, which requires her to pay him less. This is a less extreme case of classism because Mammachi compromises and pays Velutha between the two salaries. However, if she had not felt the pressure to conform to the discrimination to maintain her own reputation, she would not have reduced her salary at all. Baby Kochamma falsely reports a case to the police where she claims that Velutha forced himself on Ammu. It distorts middle of paper... chamma is described as a "child" with connotations of ignorance and helplessness shown by the image of "downcast eyes". Even though Baby Kochamma hasn't really done anything wrong, the inspector makes her feel "chastised" and punishable simply because she interacted positively with an Untouchable. The caste system in India has not only caused oppression, ignorance and mistreatment of people, but it has also changed the mentality of society as a whole. Class separation leads to further separations between people, making some feel more powerful than others. This is a problem in The God of Small Things because it causes characters to feel the need to hold to certain images or standards at the expense of those less fortunate born into higher classes. Arundhati Roy poses many dilemmas in which the characters must choose between their own pride and dignity and helping others..