Reading nationhood, gender and identity in the novels of Anita Desai

Abstract

Nationalism within postcolonial studies is a problematic issue and the inclusion of the "women's question" has further complicated the nationalist discourse in the Sub-continental context in particular. Some women writers in various manners have observed this complexity. The paper is a reading on how Anita Desai identifies Indian women with the changing realities of national identity. Unlike the contemporary male writers Desai has moved away from portraying the broader vision of nationalism, and epitomizing national identities. In opposition with the convention of historical and nationalist constructions by male writers Desai challenges to focus on the private domain of individual women. Although she rejects the larger narrative of nationalism she has discovered a "new' identity of Indian women. They are constituents of a hybrid culture as produced in the process of decolonization or neocolonization or self-achieved freedom by educated women as well as subaltern figures. Indian women in her novels are not presented as "Mother India" or spiritual entities willing to sacrifice their lives to protect their family or country. Desai complicates her narrative by contrasting traditionalism and modernism; by creating a binary connection between indoors and outdoor to extend a new concept of nationhood as illustrated through the self-denying and self-empowering women of India.