Reclaiming Identity: A Feminist Reading of Dalit Women Writers
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.24113/smji.v14i5.11773Keywords:
Dalit feminism, identity, intersectionality, caste oppression, women’s resistance, Indian literature .Abstract
This paper investigates how Dalit women writers reclaim and reconstruct their identities through literary expression, particularly from a feminist perspective. By focusing on texts by Bama, Urmila Pawar, and Baby Kamble, this research examines the representation of resistance, voice, and autonomy amidst systemic caste and gender oppression. Utilizing feminist literary criticism and intersectional theory, the paper foregrounds how literature becomes a site of resistance and reclamation. These narratives not only challenge caste and patriarchy but also redefine the scope of feminist discourse in India.
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References
Bama. Karukku. Translated by Lakshmi Holmstrom, Oxford University Press, 2000.
Pawar, Urmila. The Weave of My Life: A Dalit Woman’s Memoirs. Columbia University Press, 2008.
Kamble, Baby. The Prisons We Broke. Translated by Maya Pandit, Orient BlackSwan, 2008.
Rege, Sharmila. Writing Caste
Writing Gender: Narrating Dalit Women's Testimonies. Zubaan, 2006.
Guru, Gopal. "Dalit Women Talk Differently." Economic and Political Weekly, vol. 30, no. 41/42, 1995, pp. 2548–2550.
Crenshaw, Kimberlé. "Mapping the Margins: Intersectionality, Identity Politics, and Violence against Women of Color." Stanford Law Review, vol. 43, no. 6, 1991, pp. 1241–1299.
Tharu, Susie, and K. Satyanarayana. No Alphabet in Sight: New Dalit Writing from South India. Penguin, 2011.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Mansi Singh
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
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