A Comparative Analysis of the Representation of Dalit Women in Select Life Writings

Dalit life narratives today constitute one of the most significant and rapidly growing bodies of Indian literature, providing authentic voices to the communities historically silenced by caste oppression. For centuries, Dalits have endured systemic social, cultural, and economic discrimination, often being reduced to the status of slaves within the rigid hierarchy of Indian society. Within this framework of marginalization, Dalit women suffer a double burden—experiencing caste-based humiliation on the one hand and gender-based subjugation on the other. Their oppression is intensified through poverty, exploitation, and exclusion from mainstream narratives. This paper undertakes a comparative analysis of two seminal Dalit autobiographies: Joothan by Om Prakash Valmiki and Karukku by Bama Faustina. While both texts emerge from different regional, linguistic, and cultural contexts—North India and South India—they converge in revealing the dehumanizing experiences of untouchability, discrimination, and the struggles of asserting identity in a hostile society. The study particularly focuses on the representation of Dalit women, exploring how their voices, often overshadowed even within Dalit discourse, articulate unique experiences of resistance and survival. Issues such as gender inequality, social injustice, systemic violence, and the quest for dignity are critically examined in both narratives. By bringing these texts into dialogue, the paper highlights the shared as well as divergent conditions faced by Dalit women, thereby contributing to an understanding of their subaltern identity. The analysis underscores the power of life writing as an instrument of protest, empowerment, and cultural assertion against centuries of caste and patriarchal oppression.