Objectification Of Feminine Body Ii Manto's Short Story The Insult: Feminist Critique

Objectification Of Feminine Body Ii Manto's Short Story The Insult: Feminist Critique

It is the law of nature those who have power rule the weak and sometimes the powerful makes such rules that the other category also suffers. So, human being lives in a society that is divided into certain divisions called class, race, ethnicity, political and social power, and gender; where societies have divided people into male and female gender. Literature being a representative of human society has always produced and discussed these ideas in different ways.

 The present study has attempted in finding the objectification of females through the perspective of feminism in the short story “The Insult” by Saadat Hasan Manto. This study has incorporated the method of textual analysis, through the lens of Martha Nussbaum and Rae Langton about the feminist perspective on objectification. This study has found that men who are in power are making patriarchal rules to control women, categorize women, and make them exchangeable objects where women always sacrifice themselves physically and mentally. 

The phenomenon of suppression of women and their objectification has long been depicted in literature around the world for centuries. In a reaction to that, several movements started marking the birth of the modern notion of feminism, and the properly documented instance of it comes from the four feministic movement waves, the objectives were different, but their aim was the same, i.e., equal rights for women.  These issues were also present in the Indian subcontinent under the British influence. There are many prolific writers in Urdu Literature like Ismat Chughtaai, Akhtar Sheerani, Ashok Kumar, and one of them was Saadat Hasan Manto, Indian born Pakistani writer famous for his bold language and feminist themes.

 His work consists of twenty-three collections of short stories like Colder than Ice, Tassels, and “The Insult”. Manto’s works are widely criticized for their obscene themes. Manto’s writings illustrate the daily practices of people around him. Therefore, he gives a deep insight into the role of women in society. In this short story, the author sketches Sugandhi as an Object of the commodity which becomes the focus of this study. Her wondering for a place in society as a woman remains a mystery throughout the story. Throwing out the picture of the policeman in front of him, in the end, shows her firmness against the patriarchy. It shows that she is strong and not dependent on men.

 This research will use feminism as a lens of analysis on Manto’s short story The Insult, and this study will investigate the feminist perspective on the objectification of a woman.