A
systematic analysis has been made in this paper to put
R K Narayan's female protagonists in the right perspective
highlighting his feminist concern. Starting from Savitri
in The Dark Room (1938) to Bala in Grandmother's
Tale (1992), Narayan's women characters grow stronger
and show that the emergence of the `New Woman' is not
a myth or a utopia. R K Narayan's new woman has certainly
emerged, and she has left an indelible mark on the Indian
psyche. However, this new woman is not imported from
the West. Rather, she has emerged from the rich treasure
of Indian culture. She has a strong base of Indianness
and is deeply entrenched in values, traditions and ethos
that are exclusively Indian in form and content. Narayan's
new woman is bold, self-reliant and assertive. She struggles
for freedom, asserts equality and searches for identity.
In the process, she empowers not only herself but also
her man. Narayan's new woman might not have brought
earth-shaking changes, yet she has certainly showed
that she is assertive, bold and strong, and is involved
in bringing positive changes not only in her man but
also in the society. Narayan had progressive ideas about
women and this thinking reflects unambiguously in his
fiction.
Narayan's
writings cover a span of nearly six decades. This was
the period when remarkable changes occurred not only
in the Indian society but also in women's priorities
and choices, their approach to cultures, traditions,
customs and social norms. The submissive and docile
woman of the 1940s and 1950s, and the educated and assertive
woman of the 1960s and 1970s have been substituted by
the bold and rebellious one of the 1980s and 1990s.
The accomplished woman in the 21st century
is strong and independent. However, it is understood
that the last two decades of the century witnessed the
emergence of the new woman, who is not in constant conflict
with the man, but yearns to be one with him, walking
hand in hand.
At
the same time, she realizes her strength, asserts herself
and rejects choicelessness. She exercises great control
over herself and her circumstances, seeking to bring
transformation not only in her surroundings but also
in her male partner. She may not have tried to bring
earth-shaking changes, yet her attempts to bring social
change show that she has commitment and conviction. |
