A Comparative Study of Namita Gokhale and Arundhati Roy: Intersecting Oppressions in The God of Small Things and Things to Leave Behind through the Prism of Ecofeminism
Sr No:
Page No:
5-8
Language:
English
Authors:
J. S. Jehu Raju*, Prof. V.B. Chitra
Received:
2025-10-16
Accepted:
2025-11-23
Published Date:
2025-12-02
Abstract:
This research delves into the themes of oppression, gender, and the environment in Arundhati Roy‟s first book, The God of
Small Things (1997), and Namita Gokhale‟s historical epic, Things to Leave Behind (2016), in a comparative approach. Using the
Ecofeminist framework, this research attempts to show how the exploitation of women and nature, within the postcolonial Indian
framework, is interlinked and is a result of a particular form of patriarchy. The research investigates the intersectionality of oppression
through the female characters and protagonists, Ammu in Roy‟s novel and Tilottama/Kavita in Gokhale‟s, as they navigate and resist
the systems of hierarchy based on gender, class, caste, and traditions. While Roy seeks to explain and critique the social fissures and
their numerous ecological implications in a contemporary environment, Gokhale‟s historical writing reflects the growing ability to
resist the imposition of liberal feminism at the cross-purpose of culture, the environment, and the gendered social order in the Kumaon
region. Both authors address the imposition of patriarchal structures in their narratives and the related need for social and ecological
justice.
Keywords:
Ecofeminism, Patriarchy, Intersectionality, The God of Small Things, Things to Leave Behind, Gender Oppression, Social Justice, Liberal Feminism, Caste, Environment.