Feministic Perspective in Manju Kapur's Novel: Custody

Feminism is a broad term that has been used in relations with the social issues and problems of women in the contemporary society. Nevertheless, the women throughout the world occupy the secondary place in the male dominated society. She is suppressed and exploited at the hands of her own consanguinity. She is treated as a subaltern and deprived from the natural power that she should get and create her own identity. The very idea of feminism is highly focused on ‘women’ and the role of the feminist is to create awareness among the women who helplessly suffers and do not raise any voice against the existing system. In this process, there is not only active involvement of the women but the rational thinking men also are supporting this challenging task to liberate the women from the unending chains of slavery and emancipate from it giving equality, rights and justice. Many western thinkers especially John Stuart Mill advocated the liberation of women and fought for their privileged rights. In his text The Subjection of Women (1869) asserts, “How difficult it would be for women to free themselves from the constraints and influences of the male literary tradition..." (qtd in M.A.R.HABIB,p.691). John Stuart Mill also expressed his great concern about the gender discrimination and the way women are treated in the society and pioneered to fight for their right. French feminist Simone de Beauvoir pertinently describes and gives voice in her epoch making book, The Second Sex (1949). She writes “One is not born but rather becomes a woman. No biological, psychological or economic fate determines the figure that the human female presents in society; it is civilization as a whole that produces this creature” (Beauvoir 457). Again Beauvoir comments: “it is not by increasing her worth as human being that she will gain value in man’s eyes; it is rather by modelling herself on their dreams” (68). In oriental countries like India the social reformers Raja Ram Mohan Roy in Bengal and Mahatama Jyotiba Fuley in Maharashtra did the yeomen service for the advancement of women. In the twentieth century the champion of downtrodden, the maker of Indian constitution Dr. Ambedkar also tried to pass the ‘Hindu Code Bill’ in the assembly so as to give equal rights to the women in India.