Women Predicament in 'A Journey on Bare Feet' by Dalip Kaur Tiwana

Abstract

The autobiographical impulse and act is central to woman's writing in India. The range of Indian women's writing generates an unending discourse on personalities, woman's emotions and ways of life. In a way, it presents the socio-cultural state in India from a woman's stance. It affords a peep into Indian feminism too. Besides giving a historical perspective, it throws ample light on woman's psychic landscape. It takes us to the deepest emotions of a woman's inner being. The varied aspects of woman's personality find expression in the female autobiographical literature. We find that a deeper study of women’s autobiographies unravel the hidden recesses of feminine psyche of Indian society. Whatsoever the position of women maybe, behind every social stigma, there is woman, either in the role of mother-in-law, sister‑in‑law or wife. The women writers with sharp linguistic, cultural and geographical environment represented the problems and painful stories of Indian women from 19th century until date. However, they have not shared the contemporary time of the history, the problems of patriarchal society, treatment women, broken marriages and the identity crises for the women remained similar. Women writers have also been presenting woman as the centre of concern in their novels. Women oppression, exploitation, sob for liberation are the common themes in their fiction.
 Dalip Kaur Tiwana is one of the most distinguished Punjabi novelists, who writes about rural and innocent women’s physical, psychological and emotional sufferings in a patriarchal society. As a woman, she feels women’s sufferings, problems, barricades in the path of progress as well as the unrecognized capabilities in her. Dalip Kaur Tiwana has observed Indian male dominated society very closely and has much understanding of social and ugly marginalization of women. She can be considered a social reformer as she is concerned with human conditions and devises for the betterment of women's condition in Indian Punjabi families. This paper focuses on the theme of feminist landscape. It presents the miserable plight of women characters. She has come across since her childhood. Women, who felt marginalized, alienated, isolated and detached in their lives, but were helpless as no law was there in her time to punish the outlaws. Dalip Kaur Tiwana beautifully portrays the landscape of her mind. The paper shows how Dalip Kaur Tiwana presents the unfortunate image of her mother, grandmother aunts and some other obscure women who were unable to mete out justice during their life time.