From “Other” to “Self”: A Pakistani Female’s Existential Quest in Bapsi Sidhwa’s The Pakistani Bride
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.47067/jlcc.v4i3.116Keywords:
Existence, Self, Feminism, Domestic AbuseAbstract
This study attempts to highlight the patterns of existential feminism as they appear in Bapsi Sidhwa's novel The Pakistani Bride, analyzing domestic abuse which has been a significant impediment to women's advancement and success. This research will also emphasize on the existentialist feminist theory that asserts that women are the products of civilization and are constantly expected to appease men, depriving them of all forms of autonomy and turning them into objects for men. This study attempts to illustrate all the scenarios where men are free from all the traditions and rules set by society and exploit the image of marriage. The injustice and abuse of women in Pakistan's tribal regions, as well as their battle for independence, are discussed in this study. A leading existential feminist named Simone De Beauvoir labels males as "Self" and women as "Other." The exploitation of women's lives will be examined in this research using the concepts of "Self" and "Other." Nowhere in the novel does a woman exist as an independent “Self”. In being the subject man even forgets his relationship with his object (woman). Women are punished for acting upon their own will and are neglected. The reason for this study is that the existential experience of the female "Self" in Pakistani fiction has frequently gone unrecognized. Researchers have seldom investigated the dimensions of a woman's life concerning her independent "Self," which she ruthlessly denied. This study digs into this area of a woman's existential quest.
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