Women and Nature Wrongly Associated: Love as the Only Solution in Roy’s The God of Small Things

Abstract

This article analyzes Arundhati Roy’s intricately-woven novel The God of Small Things (1997) for ecofeminist implications. It highlights the points of convergence between sexism and ecological degradation, expounding the role of love as a remedy to most social and environmental problems. Ecofeminism incorporates a wide range of sociopolitical and cultural subtleties arising from the transformation of sanctified and ecofriendly conceptions of the ecosystem into a cash economy. Opposing violent revolutions and social unrest, Roy’s polemic stance verges on the essentiality of what she calls “small things” in alleviating such deviations and enticing a shift in people’s interaction with the other. In the face of patriarchy and hierarchy, the researcher advocates for love as the ultimate factor in bridging the gap between oneself and others. Hence, love disturbs ideologies of capitalization, fragmentation, and polarization. Viewing ecofeminism as a predominantly empathetic domain, the researcher investigates love in its most comprehensive form, encompassing all components of the ecosystem.