In quest of identity and the self: Feminism, Self-Discovery and Development in Shashi Deshpande's that Long Silence and Margaret at Wood's the Hand Maid's Tale

Abstract

For a long time, the female bodies were treated as victims under the male chauvinistic social set-ups. They were viewed as weaker and more vulnerable self and viewed as a damsel in distress. They were treated like pawns in the hands of men. The current study intends to investigate the sprouting identification of the self and self-discovery of the female leads in the two novels, Margaret Atwood‟s The Handmaid‟s Tale and Shashi Deshpande‟s That Long Silence. The paper interprets how the authors portray the journey of the self through several trials and torments and how at last the female leads break their long silence resulting in their liberation. The female leads face a lot of uncertainty, distrust, violence, oppression of the self, and silence towards patriarchy and finally rise as a “New Woman”. The two novels are written in reply to breaking the long silence that confines women. The two writers discuss the harsh social circumstances and customs that prevent the self-development and progress of women.