The Life of Women in Rural Sindh: A Critical Analysis of Fahmida Raiz’s Short Story The Daughters Of Aai from the Perspective of Cixous‘S Eriture Feminism

Abstract

Abstract:  This qualitative research aims to analyze Fahmida Raiz’s short story The Daughters of Aai in the light of Helene Cixous’s Ecriture Feminine(1975).The theory recommends various characteristics for a feminist literature, including  female author, writing about women’s issues and sexuality within the text, as well as describing female body parts and processes related to their body. To explore the elements of the theory in the short story, the researchers collected data from the text. After comparing it with the theory, the researchers concluded that the short story serves as a faithful illustration of the theory because it adheres to conditions required for a feminist literature. The researchers observed that the short story’s author is a female, Fahmida Raiz, who addresses women’s issues in rural Sindh through different characters in the short story .Firstly, Aai experiences considerable hardships in her life, juggling multiple tasks such as hard labor, looking after seven children and managing a drug-addicted husband. Secondly, Fatimah falls victim to sexual harassment and unwanted pregnancies. Lastly, Mumtaz grapples with forced marriage and lacks property rights to her late husband’s inheritance.  Furthermore, the paper noticed a departure from usual linguistic norms of the Pakistani society, as the writer explicitly describes breasts, menstruation, pregnancy, and abortion in the short story.