Indian Women Novelists in English: Art and Vision (2025)

WOMEN IN THE EYES OF INDIAN WOMEN NOVELISTS IN ENGLISH-A BRIEF OVERVIEW

International Journal of Novel Research and Development, 2024

The nineteen nineties has been the most significant decade for the Indian novels in English as it brought about a number of important changes in literary discourses. From time to time, various scholars and eminent critics of evaluate and interpret the major works of the major writers of this decade such as Anita Desai, Kamala Markandeya, Nayantara Sahgal, Shashi Deshpande, Arundhanthi Roy, Githa Hariharan, Manju Kapur and many other significant names. However, it is clear that Indian feminist movement was meticulously carved by the Indian women novelists as they were highly conscious of the women's liberation movement. By and large they have portrayed women and their stories with consciousness of the injustice being meted out to women by society. These novels have a feminist undercurrent, having woman as the central character. These women mostly rebel against the existing social set up and discard the idea of being submissive, suffering and sacrificing. The present paper aims to depict the different representations of women that Indian-English women novelists have depicted in their novels. In India, the concept of independence, the pursuit of character, protest and the spirit of resistance have always remained alien concepts when they have been used for women. However, these Indian women novelists innately understood the worries and presented women as someone who fights against the cover-up and abuse of a male-dominated society. The novels of these women novelists express cruelty, pain, and hopelessness they experienced themselves living in a patriarchal culture. Thus, it can be said that their work has shaped the experience of women in Indian English fiction and beyond.

New lights on Indian women novelists in English

2005

Introduction The Voice of Indian Women Novelists and their Status in the Contemporary Indian English Literature -A Critical Study

Indian women writers in English have made the most significant contribution in the field of the English novel. Indian novel has grown considerably in bulk variety, and maturity. The development of Indian novel follows certain definite patterns, and it is not difficult to trace its gradual progression from the imitative stage to the realistic to the Psychological to the experimental stage. In the growth and development of Indian English novel, the 1980s occupy a unique position. During this period, some very promising women novelists published their first works. Some old masters also came out with works, which show that their creative powers have been intact all along. It is during the eighties that Indian women novelists earned unheard of honours and distinctions not only in India but also in abroad. The works by these Indian women novelists, like third generation women novelists, speak eloquently about their originality and unprecedented inventiveness. Indian English literature is now a reality, which cannot be ignored. During the recent decades, it has attracted a widespread interest both in India and abroad. What began as a "hot-house plant" has now attained a luxuriant growth, branching off in several directions. The Indian women writers have made the most remarkable contribution to the sphere of fiction, which as Mulk Raj Anand says, has "come to stay as part of world literature." An idea of the true potential of this form of literature in India can be had by comparing the early novels by Indians with the recent arrivals in the same field of literary creation. However, Indian writing in English in the Contemporary literary Scenario enjoys equal status with the literatures of the other Countries. Especially Indian women writers have made their voice heard around the World in the Abstract: Feminist writings were of crucial interest to the Post-colonial discourse for two major reasons. First, both patriarchy and imperialism could be seen to exert different forms of domination over those subordinate to them. Because of this, it was important for the experiences of women under the patriarchal influence to come out to the forefront and expose the undue cruelty be held on them by men. It was necessary for the women to oppose this male dominance over them. We observe that women continued to define the borders of the community, class and race. They tried to exert feminism through their works. Though the Indian women writers try to depict the women as strong and focused in their vision to succeed in lives, they were, however, ablest to succeed in their lives only in the space allotted to them by the men. However, the Feminist writers tried to stamp their authority in a male dominated environment as best as it is possible to them. It was a very difficult path, as the women had to break through years of male dominance, taboos and beliefs that had heavily impregnated the society. In addition, critics argued that colonialism operated very differently for women and for men. This was so because women were subjected to both general discrimination as colonial subjects and specific discrimination as women addressed as 'double colonization.

An Insight into Indian Female Novelists Writing in English

Amazon KDP, 2023

This book deals with the themes of the novels written by Indian women novelists belonging to the three generations. Though not strictly, the journey of Indian women novelists writing in English is divided into three generation based on the sort of themes as well as the publication year of the novels. The first generation of novelists began with the publication of Toru Dutt's novel, Bianca, or The Young Spanish Maiden (1878), and continued till the publication of H. Kaveribai's Meenakshi's Memoirs in 1937. The release of Iqbalunisa Hussain's Purdah and Polygamy: Life in an Indian Muslim House (1944) and Zeenuth Futechally's Zohra (1951) identifies as the beginning of the second generation of Indian women novelists in English. The third generation of Indian women novelists begins with the publication of Manju Kapur's 1999 Commonwealth Writers' Prize-winning Novel, Difficult Daughters (1998).

An Exploration of Contemporary Indian Women Writers

Beginning from the Sangam period till the present day, women writings have contributed much to the growth of literature and have presented issues highlighting a women's world. However the success of women writings is highly acclaimed that it has won international recognition.Indian women's fiction is dealing with multiple issues concerning self and society. Trapped in a socio-cultural milieu women suffer inwardly, hence much of women's writing is primarily a critique of social justice and equality in a patriarchal society. Today fiction by women writers contributes a major segment of the contemporary Indian writing in English. Contemporary women's fiction is a challenge to master narratives. It focuses on "differences that make a difference" to women in dominant masculine culture. It is also significant that women writers have not simply been confined to the private realm but have moved beyond it. It provides insight, a wealth of understanding, reservoirs o...

INDIAN WOMEN WRITERS AN OVERVIEW

An exploration of the Indian women writers

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ADVANCE RESEARCH, IDEAS AND INNOVATIONS IN TECHNOLOGY

This work is to analyze the progress of Indian women in the field of writing right from the creation and sense the glitches faced by them. The themes of sexuality and man-woman relationship from the origin till the contemporary authors are discussed which became the theme of writing this paper. But they are found not merely as the raw material and each has engrossed various angles and given inimitable solutions. Their versatile treatment of women's issues reveals their sensitive nature as a woman writer, and this quality affirms their works as an outstanding contribution to Indian literature in English proving their uniqueness.

Voice of Women: A Study of Indian English Fiction

Kanpur Philosophers, 2021

My present paper is an attempt to study the contributory role of Indian women novelists. The Indian English fiction has made great strides in the last two decades. Indian diaspora has generated a new sense of enthusiasm and expectation in India. Indian literature is enriched with many talented women novelists as Anita Desai, Arundhati Rai, Shashi Deshpande, Shobha De, Jhumpa Lahiri, Kamala Markandaya etc. These women novelist have left their indelible imprint on the readers and gave new dimensions to the Indian English literature. They raised the problems and issues faced by the Indian women. Thus, we observe that all these aforesaid women novelists consistently raised the grave issues of the female subjugation and made their female protagonists to rebel against such fallacy and assert their powerful female protagonists.

THE INDIAN FEMALE CONUNDRUM: A STUDY OF THEMES AND ATTITUDES IN THE SELECTED WORKS OF FIVE CONTEMPORARY WOMEN WRITER

If the twentieth century afforded great change due to wars and decolonization, a great deal of the twenty-first century’s upheaval comes from globalization and technology on one hand and a new kind of warfare labelled terrorism on the other. The purpose of the research is to examine against the backdrop of this development, to what extent the image or construct of a woman has changed in India for readers, particularly by studying the way it has been depicted in the writing of Indian women authors. The fact that recently these authors have received international acclaim in the form of awards makes it even more important to understand how readers all over the world and India perceive the image of an Indian woman. In short how are Indian women being positioned? The texts studied are: The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri, who is a second generation immigrant; The Inheritance of Loss by Kiran Desai, a first generation immigrant; Ladies Coupé by Anita Nair and Difficult Daughters by Manju Kapur, both of whom are Indian nationals residing in India with a certain amount of western education, the latter being a ‘traditional’ intellectual. The last chapter deals with the ‘organic’ intellectual focussing particularly on two contrasting short stories—“The Hunt” and “Statue” by Mahasweta Devi. However, to substantiate the hypothesis and for the purposes of comparison, the study also takes a brief look at other novels by Arundhati Roy, Sudha Murty, Lalithambika Antherjanam, Sharmila Rege, Baby Halder and P. Sivakami, keeping in mind that many of these works are translations. The approach adopted is a close reading of the texts focussing on the female characters, themes and attitudes. On this basis, the theoretical approach adopted is the writer’s interpretation of Hegel’s master-slave dialectics and Fanon’s reinterpretation of the same, Freud’s love-hate binaries, Gramsci’s differentiation between the ‘traditional’ intellectual and ‘organic’ intellectual and Spivak’s vision regarding the role of the humanities. According to Hegel, consciousness does not exist in isolation but is always dependent on another for a sense of selfhood. As there is injustice and an imbalance of power in this world, the two consciousnesses engaged with each other will assume the roles of master and slave with respect to each other. The injustice inevitably results in a struggle for selfhood on the part of the slave; one way this selfhood can be attained is through recognition of the slave’s labour. A defining emotion in this relationship is fear and it is only by overcoming fear that the slave can break free. The ultimate fear is that of death. In addition to the instinct for domination, Freud does not see the true self as one entity but as in Marx, it is a balance between contradictory forces and in this case the dialectic is between Eros—the love instinct, and Thanatos—the death one. For Antonio Gramsci, a solution or an instrument of change is the ‘organic’ intellectual. The purpose of an intellectual is not to be “specialised” but to become “directive” that is one who is political and driven to bring about change. However, in the face of globalization and the crisis that it brings with inequality, war and terrorism, according to Spivak, hope is available through education in the humanities, for it is through the humanities that one can bring about “the empowerment of an informed imagination” (Spivak, “Righting Wrongs” 2). The aim of the research is to try and understand whether western education helps to envision a new-age woman, whom this study defines as self-reliant, able to question roles and norms society has set for her, thinks independently and uses her own free will to choose to live life for herself rather than be subservient to the needs of her husband and family, or is this education an impediment. Thus in addition to intellectual and economic independence, she must be emotionally independent as well. It must be stressed that this concept of new-age is an ideal which is strived for but never actualized because it is dynamic and constantly changing over space and time. Also one must be wary of the tendency to generalize women who vary on the basis of geography, race, economics, caste and so on. The thesis statement explored is that although in some cases western educated Indian women may ostensibly live more liberated lives, the characters or images of women in the novels by the selected writers are more circumscribed as women. Another concern of the study is the difference between lived and written reality. A questionnaire based on the movie The Namesake taken by a community of informed readers in Pune indicated that in reality the image of the woman may have changed on the page but not in the minds of women and hence paradoxically in reality the concept of ‘new-age’ is a myth. The key women protagonists analysed are Ashima and Moushumi from The Namesake; Sai, her grandmother Nimi and her mother along with Noni and Lola in The Inheritance of Loss; Akhila and her companions in the coupé in the novel Ladies Coupé and Mary in ‘The Hunt’ and Dulali in ‘Statues’. The research hopes to indicate, that the most revolutionary change in the image is captured in the characters drawn by the Indian woman who is an ‘organic’ intellectual. By working intimately with the subaltern, she is aware of the urgency for change unlike a more privileged woman. She functions as a “permanent persuader” who is an instrument of change. Thus perhaps one answer to the conundrum could be that the writing of the ‘organic’ intellectual has the potential to capture one of the myriad images of a new-age Indian woman. As for a definite final one, perhaps it can never be found as it will always be dynamically changing and evolving and hopefully aspiring towards an ideal concept akin to the one defined by the study

Indian Women's Writing: From the Past to the Present

SYNERGY

Indian women have been writing for millennia but their voices have been lost in a male dominated conservative world. This is being remedied by scholars who wish to provide readers and students of literature with a balanced view of literature as an activity undertaken by both men and women. This provides women readers, students and academics with selfesteem when they realise that women have been writing for ages and literature has not just been written by DWEMs (Dead White European Males). Women’s writing should be moved to the centre of literary discourse from the margins where it has stagnated for centuries. For men it provides a corrective to a male centric world, which can also restrict men with stereotypes of expected masculinities.