Women are being treatedas the ‘other’ since they are subordinated to their men. The main reason behindthis treatment of women is to subjugate them under the patriarchal dominanceand utilize them whenever needed.
Women tend to have minor role in this maledominated society and are not allowed to express their own views and ideas. Therole possessed by women is to please their men and do all the household choresas an unpaid labor. The research brings out how the female characters aresubordinated in the patriarchal society with reference to ManjuKapur’s”Difficult Daughters”. As a feminist writer, ManjuKapur’s novels raise strongprotest against the male dominated Indian society. She took a whole eight yearto finish this book and has won the Common Wealth Writers’ Prize for the year1999. In this paper an effort is made to analyze the sufferings of the threegeneration women Kasturi, Virmati and Ida.
First to start withKasturi who gives birth to eleven children which makes her health completely deteriorates.She follows the ancient rules and accepts the patriarchal dominance and shecannot reject giving multiple births. Then secondly Virmati, who becomes secondmother to her siblings and is burdened with all the responsibilities ofhousehold work. Harish, Virmathi’s husband is represented of the patriarchalsociety.
His dominant role oppresses Virmathi who compels her to abort theirbaby. The last one to join is Ida, who is once again a prey to the burden ofpatriarchal expectation. Virmathi shows her disappointment on Ida and tells herto live to her father’s expectation. Virmathi who breaks the rule when asked byKasturi, forces Ida to do the same. The unequal and oppressed role of women canbe observed in all the three female characters that undergo a loveless lifethrough their mother and dominant life throughout their life by their husband.
