Female Socialization in Anita Desai’s Clear Light of Day : : A Postcolonial Feminist Study

Abstract

By studying Clear Light of Day (1980), this research attempts to spotlight the position of Hindu women within the patriarchal society. It presents socialization as a pillar of patriarchal perpetuation. Desai proposes an alternative form of socialization, wherein females are bestowed with a limited degree of autonomy in the construction of their individualistic persona, as exemplified through the protagonist as a contemporary woman. Employing postcolonial feminist theory, this study shows the heterogeneity of women’s experiences by scrutinizing Das’ daughters. They are brought up within the same middle-class family but have different standpoints concerning their chosen role models, which shapes their future consciousness concerning women’s position. Education plays a vital role in women’s lives since it acts as a tool to obtain economic, cognitive, academic, social, and political objectives.