The Secret Murder of Joy: An Ecofeministic Study on Alice Walker’s Possessing the Secret of Joy

Authors

  • Abirami V
  • Leelavathi M

Abstract

Throughout the history of evolution of humankind, there has been disparity and discrimination. Diversity in nature and its creation has always been upheld through this discrepancy that exists in the society. Ecofeminism essentially is an amalgam of the feminist and ecology movements, the former centring on the concern for women and the latter on nature. It emphasizes the relationship between human beings and nature, since it stresses that the human being has an organic connection with nature. The focus of this research paper is to explore the status of Black Women through an Ecofeministic lens as portrayed in Alice Walker’s possessing the Secret of Joy. Walker launches an uncompromising attack on the plain sexist culturalism of female genital mutilation where the female body is subjected to disfigurement on account of patriarchal ideologies. As a way of opposing colonial Imperialism, Tashi, the protagonist of the fiction goes under the knife and Walker explicitly parallels the subjugation of native black women and nature through the label called culture by the androcentric society.

Keywords: Ecofeminism, Black women, sexist culturalism, FGM, subjugation.

Downloads

Published

2016-05-20

How to Cite

V, A., & M, L. (2016). The Secret Murder of Joy: An Ecofeministic Study on Alice Walker’s Possessing the Secret of Joy. ANGLISTICUM. Journal of the Association-Institute for English Language and American Studies, 4, 51–55. Retrieved from https://www.anglisticum.org.mk/index.php/IJLLIS/article/view/827

Issue

Section

Volume 4, Conference Proceedings, Special Issue, 2015