Patriarchy and Feminism are always at loggerheads for Identity & Primacy: A study through the fictions of Anita Desai

Abstract

The construction of gender is not an overnight formation, rather a continuous process intimately connected to other historical developments in society for generations. Feminist scholars, writers, and researchers have consistently insisted on percolating the message that "Gender is a social construct" because, the general image of women as docile, lovable, simple, and weak, creates the ground for exploitation, and denies its rightful place in society by the patriarchal determination. This is the reason; many feminist writers raise the subject of female identities, in order to give women a sense of belongingness in their fictional works. This paper examines cultural and other potential factors of gender construction in the society, as a contributing element for isolation and loss of identity of Women in a family through select works of Anita Desai. It also looks at gender relations globally; the socio-psychological compulsions while highlighting the fact, that men and women have rigidly defined roles as well as a range of social and moral obligations attached to these gender roles, which requires to be adhered to.