A FEMINIST PERSPECTIVE IN ARUNDHATI ROY’S THE GOD OF SMALL THINGS: A STUDY

International Journal of Computer Science (IJCS) Published by SK Research Group of Companies (SKRGC)

Abstract

Arundhati Roy’s The God of Small Things offers a compelling critique of the patriarchal, social, and political structures that shape and restrict women’s lives in postcolonial India. Through the lived experiences of female characters such as Ammu, Mammachi, and Rahel, Roy exposes the deeply ingrained systems of oppression operating through family, caste, gender, and tradition. This chapter examines the novel from a feminist perspective, focusing on the marginalization of women, the regulation of female sexuality, and the varied forms of resistance both subtle and overt enacted by women against patriarchal authority. By situating the novel within feminist literary discourse, the study highlights Roy’s challenge to dominant socio-cultural narratives and her articulation of female agency within oppressive frameworks.

References

1. Beauvoir, Simone de. The Second Sex. Vintage , 1989.
2. Chanda,Ipshita.Reading The God of Small Things as a Feminist Text.Indian Literature,Vol. 45,no.2 ,2001.
3. Kumar, Radha. The History of Doing: An Illustrated Account of Movements for Women’s Rights and Feminism in India. Zubaan, 1993.
4. Roy, Arundhati. The God of Small Things. IndiaInk, 1997.
5. Showalter, Elaine. “Feminist Criticism in the Wilderness.” Critical Inquiry, vol. 8, no. 2, 1981, pp. 179–205.
6. Mishra,Binod.Women in Indo-Anglican Fiction:A Feminist Study of Arundati Roy’s The God of Small Things.Atlantic Publishers,2008.

Keywords

Feminism, Patriarchy, Gender, Postcolonial Literature, Arundhati Roy