Beyond the Battlefield
Trauma, Patriarchy, and Structural Violence in Women’s Literature From Asia
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 7147705 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Shahbaz Aslam (0000-0002-9034-2519, University of Gujrat, corresponding author), Zafar Iqbal (0000-0003-3323-229X, Department of English, National University of Modern Languages (NUML), Islamabad, Pakistan.), Sobia Abid (0000-0002-3567-1870, University of the Punjab), Muhammad Zahid Bilal (0009-0007-2431-8354, University of Okara) |
| Year | 2025 |
| Volume | 41 |
| Issue | 4 |
| Pages | 89 |
| Publication date | 2025-01-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Asian Women (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1225-925X • E-ISSN: 2586-5714 |
| Publisher | XMLink (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.64446/aw.2025.12.41.4.89 |
| OpenAlex | W7117708395 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 21 |
This paper examines how contemporary Asian literature portrays trauma and oppression, with a focus on the experiences of women and the struggle for autonomy, through a comparative analysis of works by Han Kang (South Korea), Arundhati Roy (India), and Dng (Vietnam).Drawing on feminist and trauma studies perspectives, the study analyzes Kang's The Vegetarian, Roy's The God of Small Things, and Dng's Paradise of the Blind.Despite disparate cultural settings, a patriarchal modern Korea, caste-conscious postcolonial India, and post-revolutionary Vietnam, these texts converge in depicting individuals crushed under patriarchal, socio-political, and familial violence, yet who variously resist or bear witness to these oppressions.The paper discusses how each author uses narrative strategies and symbolism to expose the "horror" of patriarchal violence, the trauma of historical upheavals, and the complex interplay of personal and political memory.It finds that while Kang's work uses bodily autonomy and refusal (even self-destruction) as protest against violence, Roy's novel highlights the "Love Laws" of caste and patriarchy that traumatize and destroy lives, and Dng's novel critiques the burden of tradition and political ideology on women's lives.Across these narratives, themes of gender inequality, societal norms, and the lingering impact of collective trauma are prominent, yet each also gestures toward resilience, whether through solidarity, reclaiming voice, or personal liberation.By situating these works in a pan-Asian context, the paper underscores their shared humanist and feminist concerns that transcend cultural specificities.The analysis draws on published research in literature and feminist studies to support its comparative insights
Poison control · Structural adjustment · Structural approach · Structural violence · Asian American and Pacific Histories · Postcolonial and Cultural Literary Studies · South Asian Cinema and Culture
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |