From Silence to Self-Discovery: The Journey of Women in Shashi Deshpande’s Narratives

Abstract

Women protagonists in different cultural and social narratives can be seen encountering personal and external challenges. These difficulties are critical in their quest for self-awareness and resistance to societal conventions. Authors use ‘symbolic silence’ and narrative restraint to highlight the challenges and strength of their female characters, encouraging readers to face and question the power and control mechanisms that perpetuate gender inequality. These observations usually conclude with self-discovery and empowerment, in contrast to the silenced voices who claim their agency from their muted identities. The present study aims to study the famous novels The Binding Vine, That Long Silence and The Dark Holds No Terrors to explore Shashi Deshpande’s narratives through the lens of silence to self-discovery and understand the relation between these concepts, which, whether consciously or unconsciously, shape the very essence of women's existence