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Ecofeminist’s Interpretation of Cry, the Peacock
No full textThis paper delves into the domination of both women and nature regarding them as subordinates in Anita Desai’s Cry, the Peacock. The parallel treatment both women and nature get in the world indicate that they are inferior to men due to patriarchy. Along with the colonization of America by Europeans, the woman and nature have been subjugated. On the one hand, due to rise of science and technology, the hierarchy between humans and nonhumans has been created and humans have shown their dominance over nonhumans regarding themselves much superior to the nonhumans. So, the interconnectedness of all living beings is denied and relation between humans and nonhumans is terribly affected. On the other hand, due to patriarchy, women are treated as submissive as nature and both women and nature are dominated. The major objective of the paper is to explore the connection between ecology and feminism due to patriarchy.
Since the paper deals with the protagonist’s, Maya’s struggle to free from her husband, Gautam, the representative of patriarchy and her love for her pet dog, whereas her husband shows indifference to her and the dog, the suppression and domination of both Maya and the dog get revealed in the novel, the ecofeminism becomes the right theory for the textual analysis of the novel. In this context, Carolyn Merchant’s concept “Women and nature have an age-old association - an affiliation that has persisted throughout culture, history and language” (xix) becomes applicable reflecting the connection between women and nature. Likewise, from Merchant’s theoretical lens, Maya’s struggles in the select novel can be understood as Merchant states “Women are struggling to free themselves from cultural and economic constrains that have kept them subordinates to men in America society” (xix). Hence, for the theoretical concept, Merchant’s theory of ecofeminism has been adopted
Traumatised Women Caught in the Whirlpool of Religious Fanaticism and Patriarchy: A Study in Tehmina Durrani’s My Feudal Lord
Get PDFSince time immemorial, trauma has been an integral part of women’s lives. In every culture and milieu, women have borne physical and mental trauma and have suffered sexual and domestic violence by the patriarchal set-up. Patriarchy subjugated women, subordinated their existence and dehumanised them into objects. This widespread oppression of women is further intensified in Middle Eastern and South Asian countries like Pakistan with their fanatical attitude towards religious dogmas which further serves to marginalise women. Rigours of religion and shackles of patriarchy generate endless ordeal for these suffering women. Several memoirs published by women in Islamic countries talk about their brutalization and oppression by the religious fanatics. My Feudal Lord: A Devastating Indictment of Women’s Role in Muslim Society (1991) is one such memoir published by Tehmina Durrani. It bears testimony to the intense trauma and inhuman suffering endured by an educated Muslim woman at the hands of her powerful politician husband who takes away all her happiness, identity, dignity, children and leaves her psychologically wounded and damaged for life. The paper explores the trauma suffered by Durrani by virtue of being ‘doubly-colonised’ as a South-Asian Muslim woman, in the light of trauma studies. An attempt has also been made to see the exemplification of Hélène Cixous’ idea of L’ecriture feminine (which talks about writing through a woman’s body) in Durrani’s memoir
Death and Loss in Maya Angelou’s Poems ‘When Great Tress Fall’ and ‘The Lesson’
Get PDFDeath has remained a prominent and universal theme in English poetry. From the anonymous poems composed during the Old English Period, to the works of pre-Romantics, War poets and Modern poets, mortality has served as a unifying theme in English poetry. Elegy has remained an important form within the genre, lamenting the loss of an individual. Poets have dealt with the theme of death differently with some finding consolation in religious belief of afterlife to others seeing it as an indispensable aspect of life. Maya Angelou, an African American poet, has dealt with the theme of loss in few of her notable poems. The present paper aims to discuss death as an important theme in Angelou's “When Great Trees Fall” and ‘The Lesson”. The paper will further investigate Angelou’s use of language in the poems to express the emotion of loss and grief. It will also try to give insight into Angelou’s philosophy of life and death, and how she overcomes loss in her life
Globalization and Global Literatures: Deconstructing the Genres
Get PDFPost world-war life across the Globe has witnessed a sustained series of metamorphoses which has, consequently, caused cerebral turmoil. A lot of academic disciplines have come into existence and along with them have come a lot of new terminologies with promises of many new academic avenues wherein prospects of new, changed and “revolutionary” discourses have crept into. Diaspora, Multiculturalism, Ethnicity, Identity, Techno-culture and Globalization are certain fields which have caused a huge quantity of inking down a plethora of pages, seminars, anthologies and discussions. While, undeniably, these terms solicit newness because of its extensive innovative use, but the semantic domain, it tends to address may not be regarded as quite new, because they have been duly preceded by precedents. It is pertinent to understand the subterranean threads of such terms and its urgency why these terms have been so much in the lime light in the Postmodern and Poststructuralist discourses. The present paper intends to look into the warp and woof of Globalization and Global literature and what changes they foreground in the current swelled-tide of academic discussions. Is Globalization an entirely new concept or process or has it been a part of our existence and civilization for long, it has been one of the focal points of this paper
Urban Landscape in Paul Lynch’s The Prophet Song: Power, Surveillance, Resistance
Get PDFThis paper explores how Paul Lynch’s The Prophet Song portrays issues vis-à-vis surveillance, escape and resistance in urban landscapes. The dystopian novel envisions futuristic society wherein existing democratic government attempts to control citizens by using surveillance technologies, whereas, characters in the novel try to resist and escape from the totalitarian venture. The novel is a cautionary tale depicting civil liberties being destroyed in urban spaces by these technologies so raising questions of surveillance ethics. The paper attempts to study power dynamics in urban landscapes using Foucault’s notion of disciplinary power, surveillance and resistance provide crucial insights into the novel’s depiction of social control and resistance. The paper offers a perspective to re-think about structures of power dynamics and search for agency in urban landscape
Jabra Ibrahim Jabra: A Literary Journey through Jerusalem
Get PDFThe city of Jerusalem holds a profound and multifaceted significance in Palestinian literature, serving as both a physical and symbolic focal point. This research explores the various ways in which Palestinian author, Jabra Ibrahim Jabra, has depicted and engaged with the complexities of this ancient and contested city. From its historical importance to its role in shaping national identity, the image of Jerusalem is a recurring and deeply evocative theme that has profoundly influenced the literary expression of the Palestinian people. The research focuses on the depiction of the holy city of Jerusalem by analyzing Jabra’s novel Hunters in a Narrow Street. The novel represents, in terms of the predominance of the spatial setting, the three patterns of the city novel: the portrait, the synoptic, and the ecological. Jabra’s novel Hunters in a Narrow Street portrays Jerusalem in bucolic visions of its attractive terrain with an emphasis on the symbiotic interaction between Jerusalem and its Palestinian inhabitants, judging from the modalities of portrayal. The researcher through this research attempts to recover the heritage of Jerusalem by rearranging its chronology in such a way that ensures that Jerusalem should continue to be the first home of the Palestinians, and so the capital of Palestine
Gender Inequality in Marriage in Kate Chopin’s The Awakening and Marilyn French’s The Women’s Room
Get PDFThis research article explores the theme of gender inequality in marriage as depicted in Kate Chopin's The Awakening and Marilyn French's The Women’s Room. Both novels critically examine the societal constraints and expectations placed upon women in patriarchal structures and how these impact their autonomy, freedom, and identity within marriage. The article sheds light on the miserable situation of marriage in the 19th century in Western culture and the influence of patriarchal interference in forming Western culture. In Kate Chopin’s The Awakening and throughout the protagonist of the novel Edna Pontellier, the work reflects the lousy condition of marriage in the 19th century. Also, the study will deal with the continuity of women’s suffering in the 20th century through Marilyn French’s The Women’s Room and by the protagonist Mira Ward. Furthermore, the paper deals with the importance of feminism and women’s literature in defending women’s rights and demanding justice for them in the world. This comparative analysis highlights the evolving but persistent nature of marital inequality, emphasizing how both authors use their protagonists’ stories to critique and challenge traditional gender roles. The study concludes that while the two works are separated by time, they share a common feminist discourse that underscores the need for societal transformation to achieve true gender equality in marital relationships
Voices from the Margin: Subaltern Existence in Kazuo Ishiguro’s Never Let Me Go
Get PDFWithin the field of postcolonial studies, subaltern literary theory constitutes a foundational framework, foregrounding the voices and perspectives systematically marginalized and excluded by hegemonic power structures. Antonio Gramsci coined the term “subaltern” to describe groups that are socially, politically, and geographically subordinated from the colony or empire’s dominant power structures. The term has developed in literary and cultural theory to address the agency and portrayal of underprivileged populations. In Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro, the author deftly crafts a story that tackles the terrifying ramifications of human cloning while also offering a thought-provoking analysis of marginalization and quest for identity. Ishiguro creates a bleak future in Never Let Me Go where clones are produced exclusively for organ donation. Despite being supposedly given care and instruction, these clones are essentially ignored and denied agency. The novel uncovers the institutional dehumanization that clones experience through the first-person narrative of Kathy H., a clone who describes her existence at Hailsham and her later work as a career. Kathy’s observations show how the restrictive systems that govern her environment, determine her life and sense of value, revealing the complex interplay between societal standards and personal identity. Through textual analysis this research paper analyzes the work within the framework of Subaltern theory, highlighting the systemic marginalization of clones and the novel’s critique of societal and ethical norms
Sexual Violence in Toni Morrison’s Beloved and Alice Walker’s The Color Purple
Get PDFThe present research article discusses one of the worst human disasters of the 20th century, which is the persecution of black women in a society considered the first in the world. The work sheds light on the history of the emergence of America as a superpower at the expense of others, including blacks. Blacks are among the most important victims who were subjected to the most heinous forms of injustice, including slavery and abhorrent racial discrimination. It discusses the tragic situation that black women in America suffered from in terms of color, gender, and the patriarchal system in the 20th century through works based on true stories. Despite the intellectual and cultural development that America is experiencing, it is still in the twentieth century adhering to the ideas of the patriarchal system that is unjust to women. The research deals with Toni Morrison’s novel Beloved and sheds light on the true meaning of slavery and sexual exploitation through the protagonist Sethe, as she embodied the suffering of black women in America, especially since it is based on a true story. Comparing it to Alice Walker’s The Color Purple, where the protagonist Celie embodied the injustice of the patriarchal system and sexism and its effects on black women in America. The research explores the symbolic and common themes between both novels: the sadism and hypocrisy in dealing with black women. It highlights the role of the feminist movement in contributing to lifting injustice against women and its effective role in this field as it has been, since its inception, the free voice of women and the defender of their full rights. The two selected works embody this important role, especially since one of the works is from the nineteenth century and the other from the twentieth century
Mapping of Transcultural Identity: A Study of Anita Desai and Githa Hariharan Select Novels
Get PDFWe live in an era of interconnectivity, in which political borders and cultural boundaries are blurring and connecting numbers of people from all walks of life across the globe, experiencing the effects of dislocation, deterritorialization and cross-cultural acculturation. A hybrid culture has emerged, and multiculturalism appears to have progressed beyond simply combining and cohabiting different cultures to describe the growing phenomenon of cultural annihilation, which occurs when cultures collide, resulting in the first signs of a future universal culture. The writers of Indian roots put the world in a single frame by presenting multiple cultures through alien characters with different socio-economic, cultural, religious, and political background. The frequent journeys by characters to different places absorb the cultures of that places that arise multiple cultures conflicting ideologies. The research studies focus on mapping of transnational identity, transcultural encounters, and contradictory ideologies. The figuration of multiple displaced identities is to key to question of cultural borders and linguistic perturbed articulations