Portrayal of Patriarchal Oppression of Married Women

Women in Indian society have been tied down and exploited by cruel people reinforced by the patriarchal setup which was the accepted societal norm in India not many decades ago. This oppression finds resonance in many short stories like ‘The Intrusion’ by Shashi Deshpande and ‘The Shroud’ by Munshi Premchand. Budhia and the deliberately unnamed protagonist of ‘The Intrusion’ are (arguably) the central figures of both of these short stories. These characters aptly represent the pitiable condition of married women oppressed by patriarchy which has subjugated, de – humanized and subsequently objectified them over centuries. Deshpande creates an unnamed protagonist who is married to a supposedly educated man who has a job that can sustain him, however, Budhia in ‘The Shroud’ is married to an uneducated ‘shirker’ but still receives more or less the same neglect and exploitation from her husband, her father-in-law and the society in general. This present research paper is a humble submission to critically analyse how the oppression of married women at the hands of patriarchal norms is portrayed in Indian literature and how the plight of women remains consistent irrespective of the time period or social conditions. A comparative analysis between these two stories can easily reveal the subtle yet infinitely binding limitations placed on women by a society in which the vulnerable unnamed protagonist of ‘The Intrusion’ is raped by her husband and will likely be traumatized for her entire life and where Budhia receives only exploitation, even after death.