Struggle to map her own world
This is written for the "Sleepy Sunday Contest – II" by Weblog in which we are asked to write based on the picture below:
Woman until very recently was made to think she was meant to be within the four walls. Even history quoted that her individuality was restrained within four walls in general and inside the kitchen in particular. She until very recently was considered a Man’s property and this is true for many even now.
This dependence might be due to several reasons and I would like to highlight two of the most obvious:
1) Woman wanted herself to be under Man’s rule because it was her family Tradition OR
2) She was forced to be Man’s property by the Society, since it was called “Culture” >built< by the society.
Either way, she was seeing the world from behind a veil put on by men and society in the name of tradition and culture and also in the name of “religion” which they follow.
Through the blindfold, she saw the world dominated by men OR being submissive, preferred to be under Man’s rule. Either way, she was made to see the world through borrowed eyes. By necessity therefore, her feelings were not her own.
Any woman who wanted to escape this dependence has had to shed tears of blood in order to be that independent person. She had to try very hard to experience the world the way she wanted.
This struggle continues to this day, the struggle to pluck off this blindfold, the struggle to see the world through her eyes and to exorcise the ghosts of the past. She reaches out with her fingertips and tries to map her world.
She wants to be liberated and to release herself from the clutches of dependency from men and “Tradition” set by Society.
Woman until very recently was made to think she was meant to be within the four walls. Even history quoted that her individuality was restrained within four walls in general and inside the kitchen in particular. She until very recently was considered a Man’s property and this is true for many even now.
This dependence might be due to several reasons and I would like to highlight two of the most obvious:
1) Woman wanted herself to be under Man’s rule because it was her family Tradition OR
2) She was forced to be Man’s property by the Society, since it was called “Culture” >built< by the society.
Either way, she was seeing the world from behind a veil put on by men and society in the name of tradition and culture and also in the name of “religion” which they follow.
Through the blindfold, she saw the world dominated by men OR being submissive, preferred to be under Man’s rule. Either way, she was made to see the world through borrowed eyes. By necessity therefore, her feelings were not her own.
Any woman who wanted to escape this dependence has had to shed tears of blood in order to be that independent person. She had to try very hard to experience the world the way she wanted.
This struggle continues to this day, the struggle to pluck off this blindfold, the struggle to see the world through her eyes and to exorcise the ghosts of the past. She reaches out with her fingertips and tries to map her world.
She wants to be liberated and to release herself from the clutches of dependency from men and “Tradition” set by Society.
Nice one... Women of today are fighting back and its a hard fought battle. And with time, the divide can be bridged.. All we don't need is a new divide - the caste divide.
ReplyDeleteCheers Life..
JD
True Bhavana ! A women's place , especially of Indian origin , have always been the 'doormats' in world of men .. Its sad that we need to fight for the rights ,for which we are deserving !
ReplyDeleteThanks a lot for reading :) Cheers.
ReplyDeleteBhavana
very nice! and so true......even here, in Europe, where everybody is officially free and religion and traditions are not (fortunately) being any kind of life code, some people (and surprisingly mostly women themselves!!!) think like 100 years ago.... On the other side, i am observing another aspect of modern time - is true that women become more and more independent, strong and free.....but men are becoming more and more weak, unresponsible, lazy and unable to decide about important things, leaving the decisions on women. Not all, but many men in Europe (and i am sure that not only) prefer women to organize everything - making a first step to get closer, dating, family life, sex life, family budget.....i dont wanna be cruel but....they are passive ignorants! And it makes me so worried....because equality of women and men is not about just switching sides, is it?
ReplyDeleteMaria :)
Maria, I never thought in this angle at all..its good to know social issues from different perspective and through different opinions..
ReplyDeleteThanks for reading,
Cheers.
So true. Very well written.. Hatts off..
ReplyDeleteI wish you all the best for the contest, SSC - II
Do stop by Someone Is Special
--Someone Is Special--
Thanks for the read someone in special :)
ReplyDeleteWill read yours too
Cheers..
hey bhavna , well writen , its women description is sadly always a common topic for all , u have penned down the situation pretty nicely .
ReplyDeleteI happen to reach to ur blog from Rakha's . i too have , do stop by at http://mysticroads.blogspot.com
i meant rakhsha's phoenix :)
ReplyDeleteI guess this is something that we are still struggling to cope with in society... for all our civilized progress.
ReplyDeleteDo stop by http://virtue-of-ennui.blogspot.com/ too and all the best for ssc2
@ Saket, yes! it is always hard for the society to take in new things. They tend to be conservative most of the times. But its all about how a women can overcome such reactions and get what she wants.
ReplyDeleteI can write more and more about this, but I think I should stop now :)
Thanks for reading..
@ WR, thanks for your wishes , cheers, all the best for you too :)
Excellent post.. ATB for the contest..
ReplyDeletehttp://sunin-virgo.blogspot.com/2010/08/dharti.html
Hello Bhavana! That's a beautiful take on the topic. Agree 100%. It's a man's world out there,they say, but thankfully things are gradually changing.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely loved these two lines :
- Any woman who wanted to escape this dependence has had to shed tears of blood in order to be that independent person.
-She reaches out with her fingertips and tries to map her world.
Good stuff! ATB with SSC2 :)
Nice interpretation :) it connects well with the picture, and very true...
ReplyDeleteGood luck :)
Nice one. Though i didnt participate in the contest I made a post today. I just wanted to lighten up my mood by editing the photo. In my version the babe actually becomes rockstar :-)
ReplyDelete@Raksha, yes I wanted to highlight those 2 points.. :)
ReplyDelete@ Avinash, thanks for reading :)
@ Venky, very interesting :) taking your life in the right and optimistic stride :)Like it :)
Thanks for reading my post :)
Raksha and Avinash all the best for for SSCII.
Cheeers.
A completely different perspective. I doubt I could have thought of the picture at such an angle! Its so true how we women are (still) trying to break free from the clutches of patriarchal based Indian society. We have progressed alot in the last few decades. I am happy to read this post.
ReplyDeletePerception
Thanks 4 stopping by my blog. And ur welcome to visit again :)
Gkam, :) thanks for reading.
ReplyDeleteLike Raksha has said, the last few lines were touching.
ReplyDeleteIt s a struggle, I agree, in this man world
GOod one, Bhavana
thanks :-)
DeleteA thought worth pondering indeed, and especially if one is a woman. May we all break free of our confines of seeing the world in the vision that someone else has set for us!
ReplyDeletethank you Rickie :-)
DeleteNicely written Bhavana! It is so sad that often our destinies are dictated by others, more so for most women.
ReplyDeleteThank you Rachna, yes, it is very right time that woman will stand for what she wants and not for others to set rules for her. It wont be easy but it is better to live a life the way we want even if the society considers such women as 'selfish'.
DeleteThis topic is very near to my heart..