From Silence to Selfhood:
Feminist Metamorphosis in Assamese Women’s Fiction
Dr. Manusmrti Sharma
ABSTRACT
For centuries women have been denied full
justice—social, economic, political, and constitutional—and largely
ignored as the “second sex.” The twentieth century witnessed the
rise of a fresh consciousness about the marginalized position of
women, resulting in the birth of the women’s liberation movement.
Many women writers from North East India have vociferously explored
women’s issues and highlighted women as individuals shaping their
own destinies through assertiveness and self-confidence. The body of
work by early Assamese women authors added significantly to the
canon of Assamese literature and paved the way for later generations
of women writers. The present paper examines selected works of four
Assamese women writers—Indira Goswami, Jahnavi Barua, Arupa Kalita
Patangia, and Mitra Phukan—to explore how these writers depict
women’s struggles amid social, cultural, and political constraints
in the region. It also reveals the process of feminist metamorphosis
their female protagonists undergo, from victimhood to empowered
individuals who challenge traditional gender hierarchies in Assamese
society.
Keywords: Assamese women’s writing; feminist fiction; selfhood;
emancipation.
