The Core of Women's Lit

Women's literature is a broad term. There are many themes and motifs under the surface of female writing, and I believe the nature of women's lit is unique and very telling of the plight of women over the past centuries.

One major theme I have noticed in Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale and Jasmine by Mukherjee is the search for an identity. In The Handmaid's Tale, the main character, Offred is stripped of her identity and given a number. She is viewed as a handmaid, not as a woman. In the Republic of Gilead, Offred does not have an identity, she is simply another handmaid who is used and abused by the Commanders in the town. The Commanders are the men, the alpha males. In Jasmine, the main character struggles to find herself; she is forced to adapt to different cultures, as she moves from India to the US. She soon marries, but feels herself stuck between two worlds. When Jasmine marries Prakash, he wants to make her a "new kind of city woman" (77), and she reflects, "Jyoti, Jasmine: I shuttled between identities" ( 77). This loss of identity and self is further heightened as Prakash wishes to recreate Jasmine, and she feels lost. When she is stripped of her identity both literally and figuratively; she feels exposed, confused, and must embark on a search for her true identity.

Another theme I see in these two books and in women's literature as a whole is a sense of rebellion. Perhaps this resistant side of female authors stems from oppression in the days when women were not given equal rights, not given the freedom of their male counterparts. In my opinion, women today are still not treated equally, but it is undeniable that the situation has improved over time. In The Handmaid's Tale, Offred refuses to accept her fate in the new and revolting Republic of Gilead. She does everything she can to try and hold on to the past. She constantly has memories of Luke, she can mentally escape Gilead, but she one day hopes to physically leave the Republic behind. However, towards the end, the book takes an unexpected when Offred gives herself up and stops fighting the way of life she despises so much. In Jasmine, the main character fights the pain in her life by refusing to think about her hardships. She minimizes the damage and fights on. She is strong. This refusal to be dragged down by her past is evident through Mukherjee's short, blunt, and impersonal style of writing. I believe there are many hidden messages in women's literature. This may be due to the fact that female authors have always had a lot to say but were never given the chance. The struggles of females are evident in their literature, as the hardships they endured and the issues they faced are at the core of women's literature.