LANGUAGE IN INDIA

Strength for Today and Bright Hope for Tomorrow

Volume 15:3 March 2015
ISSN 1930-2940

Managing Editor: M. S. Thirumalai, Ph.D.
Editors: B. Mallikarjun, Ph.D.
         Sam Mohanlal, Ph.D.
         B. A. Sharada, Ph.D.
         A. R. Fatihi, Ph.D.
         Lakhan Gusain, Ph.D.
         Jennifer Marie Bayer, Ph.D.
         S. M. Ravichandran, Ph.D.
         G. Baskaran, Ph.D.
         L. Ramamoorthy, Ph.D.
         C. Subburaman, Ph.D. (Economics)
         N. Nadaraja Pillai, Ph.D.
Assistant Managing Editor: Swarna Thirumalai, M.A.

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Daughter Writes Back: A Study of Difficult Daughters

Jitender Singh, M.A., M.Phil., NET


Abstract

The word daughter denotes in Indian culture a specific role played by a girl as the reservoir of family repute, a symbol of obedience and an embodiment of the mother’s aptitude. The amount of closeness, ripened during the upbringing of the daughter, fixes mother and daughter in a relationship of its kind, glued with the knots of perennial dilemma. The present paper aims to bring into consideration Manju Kapur’s debut novel, Difficult Daughters (1998). Touching the fabric of mother-daughter bond, the novel is a kind of reaction of the daughter which travels through the sea of doubt, despair and disillusionment. The paper exhibits the questioning spirit of the daughter in relation to her self-doubt and self complacency which she receives as her asset from the mother. Woman as a daughter is in the whirlpool of conflicts, for along with biological changes she is expected to learn all the required attributes of a wife and mother. The paper is an endeavour to show the need for the daughter to write back to measure the effect of her suppressed emotions and to see what kind of relationship is shared by mothers and daughters.

Key words: mother, daughter, relationship, family demands, cultural restrictions

Meaning of Daughter and Relationship with Mother and Family

The word daughter denotes in Indian culture a specific role played by a girl as the reservoir of family repute, a symbol of obedience and an embodiment of the mother’s aptitude. It seems as if every daughter is born with some kind of debt, owing to her mother, to be paid by reincarnating her mother’s self and perpetuating the aspiration and values of the mother’s private domain. The amount of closeness, ripened during the upbringing of the daughter, fixes mother and daughter in a relationship of its kind, glued with the knots of perennial dilemma. Stupefied by the mother’s expectations and demanding nature, the daughter generally seeks a secure refuge, either in education or in a lover, not knowing the consequences of the impending separation.

Focus of This Paper - Manju Kapur’s Debut Novel Difficult Daughters (1998)

The present paper aims to bring into consideration Manju Kapur’s debut novel, Difficult Daughters (1998). Touching the fabric of mother-daughter bond, the novel is a kind of reaction of the daughter which travels through the sea of doubt, despair and disillusionment. The paper exhibits the questioning spirit of the daughter in relation to her self-doubt and self complacency which she receives as her asset from the mother. Woman as a daughter is in the whirlpool of conflicts, for along with biological changes she is expected to learn all the required attributes of a wife and mother. The paper is an endeavour to show the need for the daughter to write back to measure the effect of her suppressed emotions and to see what kind of relationship is shared by mothers and daughters.

This is only the beginning part of the article. PLEASE CLICK HERE TO READ THE ENTIRE ARTICLE IN PRINTER-FRIENDLY VERSION.

Jitender Singh, M.A., M.Phil., NET
Assistant Professor
Department of English
Hindu College
Sonepat 131001
Haryana
India
jitenderwriter@gmail.com
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