A Critical Study of New Women’s Desire and Autonomy: A Feminist Perspective in Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay’s The Final Question
Author : Divyanshi Joshi and Mohd Farhan Saiel
Abstract :
The Final Question is written by Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay presents the protagonist Kamal, who asserts her individuality and challenges the dominance of a masculine society. Through her independent thinking and strong sense of identity, Kamal embodies the emergence of the “New Woman,” one who is free to express themselves freely without fear of social repercussions. The women of this era are allowed to think for themselves, do whatever they want, and basically live on their own terms. Kamal questions society for its narrow perception of women’s desires and aspirations. Chattopadhyay portrays women not as passive figures but as powerful agents of change, capable of fighting for their needs and reshaping societal perspectives. We see there is a lot of discrimination based on caste within the text, too, which shows how much society has not progressed until now. This text shows how much the desires and autonomy were suppressed by the other gender, and the story of a Bengal community in Agra, which has a lot of indifference about Brahmos Samaj and other they can accept people from high society but could not if someone is from low caste there was a lot of difficulties Kamal goes through as coming from low caste community to fit in the society through her experiences the study exposes how women’s desires and autonomy are constrained not only by patriarchy but also by rigid social hierarchies.
Keywords :
New Women, Desire, Autonomy, Dominance, Patriarchal Society.
