Patriarchy and Resistance: Feminist Representations in Indian English Fiction of Anita Desai and Kamala Markandaya

Abstract

In this essay, two of the most significant authors in Indian English literature, Anita Desai and Kamala Markandaya, discuss the dynamics of patriarchy and resistance in a few of their works. Both authors draw attention to the various ways that patriarchal systems suppress, marginalize, and restrict women, but their stories also show covert and overt ways that women resist. Women's internal conflicts, psychological estrangement, and existential search for selfhood are highlighted in Anita Desai's works like Clear Light of Day and Fire on the Mountain, which represent a kind of resistance based in personal awareness. The socioeconomic and cultural factors that influence women's subjugation, on the other hand, are highlighted in Kamala Markandaya's novels, such as Nectar in a Sieve and A Handful of Rice, which depict survival, tenacity, and fortitude as acts of rebellion against structural injustices. This paper makes the case, via a comparative feminist lens, that Markandaya reveals the socio-economic aspects of patriarchy that are ingrained in tradition and poverty, whereas Desai challenges it through the psychological landscapes of domesticity. By offering a variety of resistance tactics that shed light on the complexity of women's lives in contemporary India, these stories collectively broaden the conversation surrounding Indian feminism.