Analysis Of Long Silence Of Shashi Deshpande

In the nineteenth century, the “woman question” became essential. This was chiefly due to the British colonial rule. However, the British disregarded what the Indian women wanted, rather their objective was to “modernize” Indian women through their own means. The “woman question” further served as a scale for the British to determine how civilized its Indian subjects were, which they used as a justification for their imperial civilizing mission. (Forbes, 1996, p. 12). During this period, there was also a new wave of Indian male reformers. For example, Iswar Chandra Vidyasagar championed female education and led the campaign to legalize widow remarriage. He claimed that the Kali Yuga allowed the practice of widow remarriage (Forbes, 1996, p. 21). The Hindu Marriage Act was finally established in 1856, but it did create some further complications. Geraldine Forbes (1996) argues that these male reformers were not willing to relinquish the power of patriarchy, they continued to view women as their subjects. Rather, they did it for their benefit of modifying family

In the novels of Shashi Despande , Silence is the theme which can easily be felt by the readers throughout her novels. Breaking of silence by her protagonists in different ways makes their voice heard by everyone. So far as women’s work, speech,

3. A brief review of the work already done in the field: Writings on Indian society begin with the writings of Raja Rammohan Roy who wrote expansively on the rights of women and the predicament of Indian Peasantry. Opposing Sati Pratha, He fervidly asserted in “Translation of a Conference between an Advocate for, and an Opponent of, the Practice of Burning Widows Alive from the original Bungla” that “Those who have no reliance on the Shastru [Hindu sacred scripture], and those who take delight in the self-destruction of women, may well wonder that we should oppose that suicide which is forbidden by all the Shastrus, and by every race of men.” Raja Rammohan Roy minutely observed Indian society and emerged as its foremost exponent. Though Raja Rammohan Roy wasn’t a litterateur in a purist sense and surprisingly Gurudev (Rabindranath) chooses to dwell more on psychology of individual or family dynamics and it was natural for Sri Aurbindo to dwell on spirituality, it was Mulk Raj Anand who with his novels like Untouchable, Coolie, Two Leaves and a Bud, the Village

Women are humans, humans with emotions and the need for self expression. The men, throughout history, have degraded the female sex, they have always seen women as objects and a machine that helps reproduce and carry on their blood. Society formed the ‘perfect’ role for women and it was expected that they follow it. They were expected to be the loving, responsible, obedient, stay at home wives. Due to such an inequitable lifestyle given to women, they decided to fight for equality and defend their gender. They will later be known as feminists. According to Literary and Cultural Theory by Donald Hall, feminists focal point is to investigate the various ways women have been limited to social power and the liberty to self

Gender inequality is displayed in many countries around the globe. In India, the society begins gendering as soon as a child is born. In most cases, the birth of a daughter is unwelcome but that of a son is celebrated. The boys are brought up bold and outgoing while the girls are expected to be at home and do chores. While the other discriminations like economic or social discriminations are present outside the home, but gender discrimination is present outside and inside households. In a familial setup, the father is the head of the family and decision maker. The mother generally performs the ‘home making’. Even if the woman is employed, she is expected to do the domestic chores, in addition to her job. Even though she earns, she does not have the freedom to plan her salary or decide anything.

The behavior of men towards women in a patriarchal society is described by Manju when she describes society in India by stating, “In Indian society stress is given to create female persona for different stages, docile daughters, chase and obedient wives and sacrificing mothers. The only domain ascribed to female is to fit in this good daughter, good wife and good mother criteria. Husband and wife are considered soul mates. But man assumes himself superior to woman, and he never tries to create emotional bonding with his wife, to understand her wishes or act according to her consent” (234). The rest of this paper will analyze the effects that male dominance had on the women.

Before the rise of the feminist movement in the late 19th century, women were denied social power and the ability to self-express which led women to desire a voice of their own. Since then, feminism has been widely perceived and controversial which provoked feminists to emphasize women’s needs by confronting the social oppression of women and analyze how their feeling of self-doubt results in response to the constant power struggle between the two sexes. Not only did women protest for more rights, but men also sought equal rights, thereby strengthening the feminist movement further. In Donald Hall’s book Literary and Cultural Theory, he explores the various lenses of feminism by discussing how patriarchy affects the social, economic, and psychological

Traditionally, an Indian woman had only four roles and those were; Her role as a daughter, wife, sister, and lastly, a mother. The women in today’s time however are experiencing far reaching changes and are entering into new fields that were unknown to them. They are actively participating in social, economic and political activities. Unlike the older times, women today have received higher education.

Thus, to give voice to the suffocated psyche and suppressed desire of woman and lay bare ambitions and frustrations and soothe the aches and pains has been primary focus in Deshpande’s writing. Her works show that compromise is what characterizes the life of the common run of the middle-class women in India. Unable to defy social conventions or traditional morality,

The political and social events of the sixties and the seventies along with growing opportunities of education and employment for women encourage women belonging to the urban middle class to engage in literary activities. The thematic concerns of these women writers have been cantering around women related issues. The social setting for most of these writings is the urban middle class and the protagonist is, more often than not, a woman. Indian Culture treats women with utmost reverence. Women are identified with Adi Shakti or the primordial energy. Woman’s avatar as mother treated as highest manifestation of human relationship; It is the mother who gets precedence over all other principles of life including father and god in importance. She

Literature is the reflection of the society. It has major impact on the development of society, political system, culture, and civilization. Manju Kapur,in her novel presens the problem of the Indian women in the male- dominated society. Manju Kapur vividly shows the importance of education and freedom for Indian women. Through the character of Virmati, the protagonist of the novel, Manju Kapur makes the society aware of women's inner conflict and the cultural diversion in their life. She proves herself that there is no hierarchical division from male to express her 'self'. The women characters in this novel have explored themselves to establish an identity, not imposed by the male patriarchal society. Based on these perceptions many Indian

The consciousness of a changed time on the one hand, and the socio-cultural modes and values that have given Indian women a defined role, on the other, inevitably causes a sense of alienation in them which they overcome only with a determined effort. This happens with Jaya, the protagonist of That Long Silence also. In this novel Shashi Deshpande has described the sufferings of a woman writer who is also a housewife. Jaya is an intellectual woman who finds herself out of place in a society meant only for men. The novel begins with Jaya and her husband, Mohan moving out of their own flat to the old flat of Jaya's parental family in suburban Bombay. They had stayed in this flat immediately after their marriage when their financial condition was not so good. This time they have moved to this flat because Mohan has been caught in some financial irregularities in his office and so he sends his son and daughter on a holiday with a friend's family and moves with Jaya to this flat to remain out of sight for a few days. The childhood memories of the house and her isolation from the kind of life she has become accustomed to of late give Jaya a chance to look back at her life "and realize the reasons of her alienation from herself. She remembers her father who taught her to have confidence in herself. She remembers how her father always encouraged her to be resilient and courageous in life. The

Feminism in India is a set of movements which defining, establishing and defending equal political, economic and social rights and equal opportunities for Indian women. Feminist criticism was not inaugurated until late in the 1960s.Behind it, however lie two centuries of struggle for the recognition of women’s cultural roles and achievements and for women’s social and political rights marked by such books as Mary Wollstone Craft’s A Vindication Of The Rights Of Women (1792), John Stuart Mill’s The Subjection Of Women (1869), and the American Margaret Fuller’s Women in The Nineteenth Century

That Long Silence is a saga of a suppressed woman who is prisoned in the room of silence because they are unable to prove themselves as individuals. She tried to present an exceptional character of a woman who is desperately wishing to erase a long silence begun in childhood and rooted in her throughout her life. It is Jaya’s journey in search of one’s true self who confronts the gender oriented traditional speculation. Jaya being educated was leading a life without any purpose. She is an object of deep sympathy. A woman with graduation in English, a creative writer and a columnist doesn’t get the right place for her such attributes. Her husband brought up in a typical traditional environment perceived his wife as Sita and Savitri. All her family members are leading their lives as per their wish but she neither express herself nor achieve anything. So taking the shelter on silence she allowed her family to possess her body and soul. Others are silent towards her, no one take care of her expectations and happiness. This novel reflects how silence strengthens men and weakens women.

is only a creature of lust. There are only animal passions in his mind and nothing emotional and spiritual. There are no feelings and emotions in her sexual partner for the gratification of her animal desire for sex. The Freaks paints a rather helpless situation when the man is passive and the woman is burning with desire but she becomes helpless. She can’t find the real love except sex and lust in her husband. Actually she is hungry for the real love, but she is deprived of this. As a result, she is tired of her life. “Kamala Das’ love-relationship is a complex phenomenon which involves tensions of different kinds. The basic tension is caused by her failure to get love in abundance which for her is synonymous with spiritual fulfilment.” (Amga, H.L., 2000:169) The fact that she is able to make this fine discrimination between love and lust in male-dominated society, it makes her realize that she is a freak.