RESEARCH PAPER

TOPIC: FEMINISM: A DEATH UNSUNG

Guide Presented by:

Dr. Beena Rathi Dr. Neetu Rameshchandra Agrawal

Associate Professor & Head

Department of English

Smt. Radhabai Sarda College of Arts, Commerce & Science

Anjangaon Surji

______________________________________________________________________________

Abstract

The present article throws light on the aspects of Radical Feminism which has become the need of the
hour as a result of day by day increasing scenario of giving more importance to boys or a male child and
considering females or a girl child inferior, come what may her achievements. This paper also puts focus
on increasing rate of female foeticide.
 Feminism: A Death Unsung

In the 1960s and early 1970s the subject of feminism was women’s experience
under patriarchy. The long tradition of male rule in the society silenced women’s
voices, distorted their lives and lost its existence. Banished from education and from
public life, even women writers found refuge in literary forms despised by men, in
diaries, letters and in sentimental fiction. Their literary scholarship found no
inclusion in canon.

The mid 1980s are in retrospect a moment of great change in feminist criticism.
“French Feminism” started dawning with the feminist scholars like Julia Kristeva,
Luce Irigaray and Helena Cixous. The works of these women became a matter of
interpretation. Liberal and radical feminists had been in disagreement since the
1970s regarding the direction the women’s movement. Radicalism put forth the
very essence of a female and departed it from patriarchy. Women essentialist’s
arguments are innately capable of offering a different ethics from men. Men
abstract themselves from material world as they separate from mothers in order to
acquire a license to enter the patriarchate. They, consequently, adopt a violent and
aggressive posture towards the world left behind which is now construed as an
“object”. Women on the other hand, are not required to separate from the mother
as they acquire a gender identity. They simply identify with the closest person;
who is their own mother. No separation is required that launches precarious
journey towards a fragile ‘identity’ predicated on separation that simply denies its
links to physical world. Essentialist feminists argued that men think in terms of
rights when confronted with ethical issues while women think in terms of
responsibilities to others. Women are more caring because their physiological and
physical ties to physical being remain unbroken.
But a woman knows herself much better than a man. She creates herself in a map
of history, a strong feminist. She knows, she exists in her body as a young Marx
says,

The first premise of all human history Adrience reach in her “Notes towards a
politics of location “ (1986) writes ”A politics of women’s questions”. We are
not ‘the women question’ asked by somebody else: we are the women who
ask the questions, we are trying to break the false male universe.

Indian History of women faces vicissitudes right from her worship to female
foeticide, the religious idol of women seems a blasphemy. In ancient India, vedic
text gave importance to the worship of goddess. A woman was referred to as
“saamrajani”, the queen of mistress of the home in performance of religious rites.
Manu, the law giver said, ”The Gods are satisfied wherever women are honoured,
but where they are not respected, rites and prayers are ineffectual”. The hypocrisy
of Indian society is pellucid here as, on one hand it worships Durga, Kali and
Lakshmi and on the other hand it doesn’t hesitate to kill what is believed.

Although the preference for bearing son has been prevalent in Indian household
from time immemorial, vedic society did not disturb that part of the society that
gave prominence to female supremacy under its fold. A newlywed bride is usually
blessed to be a mother of hundred sons. When a woman becomes pregnant, other
women in the family chant mantras exhorting the female foetus to be transformed
into a male one.

In India, female infanticide has been practiced for centuries with the earliest
evidence being provided by Sir Jonathan Duncan in 1789. In Vedic age (1500-
1000BC) though they were worshipped as goddesses, however with the passage of
time the status of women underwent a significant and sharp decline and they were
looked down as slaves of slaves.

This gender discrimination is prominent in India because women are keener on

bearing and rearing a male child. Obnoxiously, this is the ultimate truth. A woman
for whom the whole tantrum of feminism is elevated since decades herself bears
the onus for her existence.

Increased availability of advanced technologies, especially ultra-sonography has

irrevocably decreased sex ratios. Modern technology edifies wonderful future for
us .Day to day development serve as bliss to humanity but this technology is a
curse due to which the female community is vanishing gradually. Previously when
a girl child was born, she was either given poisoned milk or buried alive. But now
ironically speaking this process has become easier. Appalling though, our great
medical practitioners have started a brisk business of sending girls from, ’womb to
tomb’. They charge these people exorbitantly. The easy availability of mobile
scanning machines has made doctors voracious.

The bias against female in India is grounded in cultural, economic and religious
roots. Sons are expected to work in the fields, provide greater income and look
after parents in old age. In this way, sons are looked upon as a type of insurance.
Sons are responsible for preservation of the family name. As per Hindu belief,
lighting the funeral pyre by a son is considered necessary for salvation of the spirit.
Gender discrimination manifests itself in the form of delay in seeking medical care,
treatment taken from less qualified doctors and spending lesser money when a
daughter is sick. Prevalence of malnutrition is more in girls than in boys.

Parents who abandon baby girls are taken in Mahesh Ashram run by yog-guru
Devendra Agrawal, a holy man. They have distributed posters around the city,
Udaipur, ”Don’t throw away , give them to us.” Agrawal once pointed out, ’see
that little girl ,the cheerful one ,a tiny girl with sparkling eyes lying in 16 metal
cribs .She was found in a gutter with only her head poking out two weeks ago. She
was only half an hour old.

The evil practice of dowry is widely prevalent in India. Daughters are treated as
economic liability. Dowry system is intensely followed in many parts of India.
Rates of a bridegroom are fixed according to his financial and educational
background. Women gain precedence in family only after giving birth to a male
child. Women herself don’t want to exonerate from such ties.

The UN says, an estimated 2000 unborn girls are illegally aborted every year in
India, as a result after 1000 boys there were 943 girls in 2011 which has
desperately dropped down to 930 girls per 1000 males in the year 2018-19.
Although there is an improvement in literacy rate among women, still boys should
be educated enough to respect and regard girls. Government has recently started
“save girl child” campaign.

Govt. has taken hardcore measures against radiologists and doctors in the last few
years. Many doctors, especially, lady doctors were found culprits who were
ruthlessly involved in these killings. The most inhumane and shameless part is that
some doctors breed dogs to eat the flesh of these unborn babies. Does our tradition
permit them? Just for a few bucks they are selling morality and committing such a
sinister act. But despite the strict actions taken, this business of doctors is
flourishing secretly day by day, and who is the cause? Again after a long
roundabout the conclusion is ‘we are going to them for this brutal act.’

The only expectation is that Feminists should take a new leap and shoulder the
responsibility of radical awareness against female foeticide among women.
Otherwise without women the whole world will ramshackle one day. No matter
how many acts govt. will impose on medical practitioners and radiologists,
ultimately it is we, who are responsible for this.

It’s an appeal, that it is a sort of contagious disease which should be eradicated by

the vaccine of education and strong will power. Then only the ratio of the Universe
will be synchronized.

REFERENCES:

1]Ayers David, Literary Theory –A Reintroduction

2]Wolfreys Julian, Introducing Literary Theories

3]Literary Theory :An Anthology Revised Edition –Edited by Julie Rivkin and
Michael Ryan

4]WWW.Wikipedia.com