Subverting the Patriarchal Hegemony in Ismat Chughtai's "Lihaaf"

Women’s commodification and objectification perpetuate into social and cultural structures through “ho(mo)mosexual monopoly”(Luce Irigaray). Men dominate in women’s exchange because of the valorization of men’s needs and desires by socio-cultural institutions. Subsequently, the fulfilment of male desires becomes the norm which eventually leads to the subjugation of women and their bodies creating gender inequality. The systematic perpetration of patriarchal hegemony cages women within the notion of the feminine mystique too. As a consequence, women perceive themselves as the happiest while serving men as dutiful wives, altruistic mothers, and coquettish mistresses. For a critical understanding of pervasive patriarchal hegemony in social institutions, this paper attempts to reread Ismat Chughtai’s “Lihaaf” through the critical lens of second-wave feminists Helen Cixous, Luce Irigaray, and Betty Friedan. The analysis also focuses on the language of women or ecriture feminine which the female characters use in expressing their desires, and needs of their inner voice. Thus, the study urges the urgent necessity to acquire harmonious coexistence of genders in cultures by subverting the patriarchal hegemony.