The Beauty of Womansplaining: The Authoritative Speech of Devi in India, in the World

Abstract

This chapter discusses how the figurations of an alternative mode of masculinity that is non-aggressive and receptive to female voices, which have been explored in the complex and heterogeneous cultural texts emerging from the Indian goddess traditions, become relevant to the contemporary feminist discourses on masculinity. It underlines the plurality of feminist discourses and seeks to carve a space for the authoritative female voices from the Indian goddess traditions within those discourses. Most importantly, this chapter underscores the necessity for an atmosphere that mandates men’s listening to female (and feminist) voices in a world still marked by gender inequality and violence. Therefore, this concluding chapter foregrounds the Goddess as a figure that can encourage a more dialogic structure of gender relations in coming times.