Gender Perspectives on History: A Comparative Analysis of Postcolonial Narratives

by Ayesha Mirza

Retrieving history by postcolonial authors is, in essence, an attempt to rebut the histories of their regions as presented by colonial masters; and to assert their own identity as an independent whole. Thus postcolonial history is either a rendition of a lost pre-colonial history, or reflection of the colonialist’s adventures, assaults and exploits of their territory by colonial master. By exposing the colonialists’ clandestine motives and all the bruises they gave the conquered peoples, their cultures, traditions, religions, histories and land, the postcolonial authors assert their right and ability to be masters of their own regions. The retrieval of pre-colonial pasts is a means to prove that the native was capable of running his empire over thousands of years, and he can do so in the future as well. Thus retrieval of history is a means of decolonizing. However, while writing history, the focal points vary from author to author. Furthermore, the history written by female writers is glaringly different from the history written by male writers. Thereby, while Achebe gives a nostalgic account of his clan before the British colonizers tampered with it, Buchi Emecheta unveils the deterioration that took place in the household of a common woman due to that assault. While Ahmad Ali’s concern is the Delhi of yore, Sara Suleri busies herself in drawing parallels between the colonial history and the history of her home.

The foremost aspect of difference between histories in male and female postcolonial narratives is the choice of political or domestic domain. While female writers are more concerned with the domestic sphere of life, male writers often write from the political standpoint. Thus Nnu Ego of Joys of Motherhood realizes; “she had been trying to be traditional in a modern urban setting. It was because she wanted a woman of Ibuza in a town like Lagos that she lost her child. This time she was going to play it according to the new rules” (81). The history narrated in the entire novel is the history of a woman, a doubly colonized person, striving to cope with male oppression in a new setting where the man subjugating her is himself at the whims of his colonial master. Similarly, Nawal Al-Saadawi in narrating the life history of Firdous exposes the various means whereby man oppresses, uses, abuses and crushes a woman. The chronology pictures a man in the roles of father, uncle, husband, lover and pimp; and brings to light the several acts that leave none of the men innocent. “'I am saying that you are criminals, all of you: the fathers, the uncles, the husbands, the pimps, the lawyers, the doctors, the journalists, and all men of all professions” (110). Likewise, Sara Suleri narrates the history of her own life, of the people associated with her, of her own household. In her Welsh mother we see not just a silenced woman, but a woman who is a collaborator in her being colonized by her husband. Iffat’s elopement is not just an instant of her deep love for a man and her father’s Pakistan; it is a history of the subalternized household of her father, and the revolt thereof. Similarly, Sara’s decision to avoid marriage to her uncle’s son, and later, her flying away from Pakistan is reflection of a long history of double standards that she has endured in her father’s household. Men on the other hand are interested in the political domain. Ngugi places his narrative, A Grain of Wheat, in the setting of Independence Celebrations. He concerns himself with the struggles of Kihika, the mystery of this legend’s betrayal into death, the concerns of common man regarding the future of Kenya. He is keen to expose the various faces that form the new Kenya- the freedom fighters and the collaborators of white man and the common man whose sole concern is to rise higher up on the pedestal of social status, and yet is ruined by the ravages of colonization. Similarly, Achebe’s Things Fall Apart is a historical account of Okonkwo’s struggle to assert and preserve his identity, his motherland’s sanctity, his customs and traditions in the backdrop of colonial project. His life history ending in suicide at the humiliation of being a part of a clan that was not ready to fight for its honour is in essence an attempt at retrieving a pre-colonial tribal history. Likewise, Mohsin Hamid tells the story of postcolonial Pakistan whose people are far from liberated. The cruel and impenetrable class divide, the blind eye that the social elite turns towards the misery of socially deprived, and the life history of the banker Daru’s attempts at liquefying the social boundaries; all put in the backdrop of the 1998 Pak-India Nuclear exploits portrays the history of a post-colonial nation. In short, while most of the women writers trace the history of their double colonization, men display the history of people in the political arena.

Hence the history narrated by men is the history of colonial oppression, of colonizer’s assaults on the native’s land, property, honor, customs and traditions. Conversely, women portray the history of man’s oppressive rule over woman. Thus while Sara Suleri does talk of the political changes that take place on the landscape of Pakistan, it evidently concerns her because of her father’s assertiveness. The novel is more about the father’s colonization of his wife, and children and less about the post-colonial Pakistan. On the other hand, Mohsin Hamid clearly tells the history of the bourgeoisie indifference towards the lower stratum of society.

Another major difference between the history circumscribed by women and men is the role of women as active workers or passive recipients. Saadwi’s Firdous lives a life of endless struggles in the quest of a better life. Her running away from her husband’s house, from the asylum of Bayoumi, from Sharifa’s patronizing, and finally her breaking free of all men by stabbing Marzouk; each of her acts shows an active defiance of chauvinistic laws. Similarly, Nnu Ego’s struggles for the sustainence of her family, in bringing her kids up, in obliging her man, in keeping the traditions of Ibo tribes alive are a history of a strong woman who suffers for a cause; the cause to be a respectable woman. The factor that she discovers that all her struggles were nothing but attempts to uphold man’s rules is an awakening a woman could not have made without going through all the pains she went through. In Meatless Days Suleri portrays Dadi and Iffat as strong and active women. The incident of Iffat’s chasing the vagabonds who teased Sara is one instant of the extent to which a woman can go to save the honor of people she loves. Her step away from her father’s home is another instance of an active assertion of will. Similarly, Dadi’s ending up slaughtering a goat defying her son’s laws is another instance of a strong willed, resilient woman who actively renounces any impositions by others and puts her foot firmly to protect her beliefs. Similarly, Ayah in The Ice-Candy Man by Bapsi Sidhwa is the resilient character who despite her hardships and double-colonisation, plays a redemptive role in the wounded society. Sidwa’s portrayal of women emphasizes that the task of nation building cannot take place without the active participation of women. Thus women can be seen working actively in the pre- and post-colonial arena. Conversely, male representations of woman in history are passive. Juggat Singh’s Nooran in Train to Pakistan is a passive recipient of his caresses. The only act she performs is that of a weak resistance against his advances. On the other hand, Juggut Singh risks his life in order to save the train carrying his beloved from becoming a ghost train. Through out the novel, Juggut is seen as either acting, or stoically enduring the hardships that befall his lot, for example as a suspect in jail. Ngugi’s rendition of women, however, is not so passive. His women play a vital role in the liberation of Kenya. However, those women are subordinate to the men who are actively fighting against colonization. Hence when Njiri joins Kihika in the forest, it is not because of her ideals regarding liberation; she does so in Kihika’s love. Although Mumbi is the actor when accepting and rejecting Gikonyo and Karanja respectively, her her ability to attract men towards her is the reason for her being strong. Achebe, on the other hand, pictures more passive women. Ojiugo, despite her fascination for Okonkwo, was not allowed to marry him until he became a respectable man. In her married life, she lived on the whims of her husband, got beaten up by him, and her only respite remained with her adorable daughter. In short, the portrayal of women by men writers is that of a passive recipient of favors or abuses of their male counterparts. On the other hand, women authors in their narratives give a rendition of a history of women actively playing their part in society.

Another aspect that distinguishes male writers from female writers is their rendition of women as silent. The history that women portray shows females as not only actively participating in the society, but also making their point of view heard. The loudest example of this portrayal is by Saadawi who pens down the voice of Firdous. Firdous is that person who has the courage to speak out whatever has been tabooed by the male-dominant society. This courage she believes is the reason for the men to be afraid of her. Similarly, Dadi in Suleri’s Meatless Days is the loudest character who makes her presence felt in a colonized household. Thus, her demand for tea cannot be ignored; neither can her stance regarding religious festivities. Conversely, the women in male-authored texts are silent. Okonkwo’s wives silently endure the beatings he gives them. Hukam Chand’s ‘girl’ silently creeps by her side when he wants to steal away from the worries of life. Ahmad Ali in Twilight in Delhi portrays Bilqeece as a woman silently accepting her husband’s favors, and silently enduring his rudeness. In short, women portray women as alive, who know their mind and speak that out. Men’s portrayal of women is that of a silent picture not playing any part in history other than appeasing their owners.

The history written by women is essentially a history of self-realization. Firdous in Woman at Point Zero after her life long struggles ends up finding the answer to an enigmatic question: “I knew why they were so afraid of me. I was the only woman who had torn the mask away, and exposed the face of their ugly reality.” This awareness of her unconquerable power over men, however, dawned on her only after she had seen the ugliest of ugly faces of men. History teaches her a lesson; “I want nothing, I hope for nothing. I fear nothing. Therefore I am free. For during life it is our wants, our hopes, our fears that enslave us.” Thus the history of Firsdous’s life culminates at a newfound knowledge of the self. Nnu Ego in Joys of Motherhood also goes through all the hardships of life, and her life’s history makes her discover the hollowness of her acceptance of man’s standards set for women. Thus by the end of the narrative she evokes God; “God, when will you create a woman who will be fulfilled in herself, a full human being, not anybody’s appendage?” (186). On the other hand, women in Achebe’s narrative are never seen thinking beyond their household chores and mundane troubles. Nooran in Train to Pakistan follows the opinion of Juggut’s mother and leaves for Pakistan. Hence she is portrayed as a selfish woman whose only concern is her own life as opposed to Juggut Singh who gives his life for Nooran. Ngugi and Mohsin Hamid, though, give more space to women. The women they portray; Mumbi and Mumtaz respectively, are more self-conscious. These characters also symbolize the dawn of self-consciousness upon a nation after the silent suffering. However, such instances of self-conscious women in male-authored narratives are to be found only in the later postcolonial novels. The history of women portrayed by men always remains silent and mindless, like a juvenile who needs men to protect her and think for her.

In short, the history that postcolonial men write in their narratives is different from that pictured by women. Men are more concerned with the political sphere of life as opposed to women’s preoccupation with the domestic domain. Women are silent, passive and non-reflexive in men’s stories. They do not play any part, or very little part, in the nationalist or resistance movements. They are relegated to home life, and are peripheral to man’s existence. Conversely, women are treated as essential to the survival of the entire society by the female authors. The women in these novels are active and vocal. Their histories are histories of patriarchal oppression, double colonization, pain and agony, and the resulting self-consciousness. 

Citation:

APA: Mirza, Ayesha. "Gender Perspectives on History: A Comparative Analysis of Postcolonial Narratives". Literary Theory in Practice, October 10, 2011. Web. Date of Access. <http://ayesha-mirza.blogspot.com/2011/10/gender-perspectives-on-history.html>.

MLA: Mirza, Ayesha. "Gender Perspectives on History: A Comparative Analysis of Postcolonial Narratives". http://ayesha-mirza.blogspot.com/. 10 Oct. 2011. Date of Access. http://ayesha-mirza.blogspot.com/2011/10/gender-perspectives-on-history.html