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Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14540/26

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Justice and Alternative Sexuality in Herman Melville‘s Billy Budd
(2025) Sharma, Prakash; Anirudra Thapa
This thesis explores the intersection between alternative sexuality and the negation of justice in Herman Melville's Billy Budd. The thesis ponders on why Billy, an innocent character, is idealized and immortalized after being executed for killing Claggart, a sexually and morally repressed officer. This study argues that Billy Budd demonstrates how legal and institutional systems employ justice as a tool to discipline what is other, even at the expense of morality and fairness. Billy's otherness—particularly within the arena of sexuality as perceived by both Claggart and Captain Vere—must be eliminated prior to being assimilated or accepted. Based on theoretical insights from Eve Kosofsky Sedgwick and Michel Foucault, the analysis of the text demonstrates that Billy's innocence, perceived femininity, and silence—markers of queerness— destabilizing the naval regime, and the regime responds with violence legitimized as justice. The study demonstrates that in Melville's novella, justice is performative and exclusionary, and thus it is designed to consolidate heteronormative power by suppressing difference. Keywords: Alternative Sexuality, Justice, Gender, Body, Performativity, Queer
Social Process of Cultural Trauma in Khalangama Hamala
(2025) Dulal, Sudip
Khalangama Hamala is a trauma narrative of a young girl, Radha Paudel. It is a live story of the day of the Maoist attack on Khalanga Bazaar and hardship of Jumli people from the prospective of a health worker. Paudel has presented detail on what had come about during the day of assault at Khalanga. She clears line between perpetrator and victims and becomes very objective in the representation of the events at the same time her protrusion is parted. Researcher claims such a projection of binary between two rebelling forces and finger-pointing at narratives do not lead society into reconciliation and ever lasting peace settlement rather it raises a sense of revenge among the conflicting groups and ultimately leads to never ending divergence. To analyze such a complicated composition of the society, I adopt the theoretical tool eni by Jeffrey C. Alexander: Cultural Trauma. This theory deals with how does identity of social group configure and refigure within their societies? How does a suffering of a certain member will be the suffering of the entire cultural group? Who and how victimized narrate their horrendous incidents? How can the war be end at reconciliation? At the same time, I seize some idea from Anker smith and Ronald Barthes who focus on dialogic nature of language and unpredictability respectively. I assume author as ethical and moral character of society they should focus on what is right instead what truth is. Key words: Key words: Cultural trauma, Nepali civil war, binary representation, reconciliation, middle voice, trauma writing
Making and Remaking of Self in Racial Landscape in Colson Whitehead‘s The Nickel Boys
(2025) Panday, Awadhesh Kumar; Laxman Bhatta
This thesis explores identity while making and remaking the self in the racial landscape in Colson Whitehead’s The Nickel Boys from a poststructuralist perspective. The novel encapsulates the story of Elwood Curtis, a black American individual, who stands in the fundamental grammar of ‘acting right.’ Despite his vehement effort in signifying his existence, he encounters brutality in American society in the beginning and at the Nickel Academy at the end. At last, he becomes the victim of white dominance and institutional brutality. In this connection, this research explores three distinct questions: What does the novel aspire to represent while showing the brutality of the Nickel Academy? Why does the protagonist change his philosophy in understanding his black identity? How does Elwood shape his identity amid such hardship, and how does he get involved in a perpetual process of ‘becoming’? To answer these questions, this research employs a post-structural perspective, primarily focusing on Foucault’s notion of dispositif (apparatus). It also incorporates Henry Louis Gates Jr.'s understanding of race and racism to scrutinize the racialized discourse. It claims that the identity is involved in a perpetual course of ‘becoming,’ though the discursive regime persistently universalizes one's identity coercively. The institutional forces impose authority in dictating the fate of the individual based on the prejudices they incorporate. The research concludes that The Nickel Boys depicts the racial discourse as an institutionalized system with coercive force, which problematizes the identity of Black Americans and demands their recognition. Keywords: Brutality, Discourse, Power, Recognition, and Resistance
Narrativization of African American Past ; Memory, Identity and Cultural Trauma in Mumbo Jumbo and Juneteenth
(2025) Gnawali, Keshab Raj; Bal Bahadur Thapa
The present study examines cultural trauma of the African American people by analyzing Ishmael Reed‘s novel Mumbo Jumbo and Ralph Ellison‘s novel Juneteenth. This qualitative study ponders over why these novels portray the disturbing images from the past of the African American people, ranging from slavery to Harlem jazz culture. Both novels, as per this dissertation, are the narrativizations of cultural trauma of the African American people. They display collective injury inflicted on the African American people by slavery, racism and systematic erasure that demand narrative and ritual healing through Hickman's sermonic mourning or LaBas's mystic detective work. These novels illustrate how cultural trauma is not merely inherited but actively resisted through storytelling, exposing the wounds while offering paths to reclamation. Drawing upon the theoretical insights of Ron Eyerman and Aili Aarelaid-Tart on cultural trauma, memory and identity, this research attempts to present these novels as significant creative voices weaving individual memories and identities which stand for collective communal memories representing black cultural and ethnic awareness. Key words: Cultural trauma, postmemory, narrativization, memory, diasporic identity
Fictionalization of History in Michael Ondaatie's Anil's Ghost
(2025) Sapkota, Nisha; Raj Kumar Baral
Fictionalization of History in Michael Ondaatje’s Anil’s Ghost The research explores the historical elements in Michael Ondaatje’s Anil’s Ghost. In the text, Ondaatje brings the historical war between the Sirlankan government and rebellion Tamil Tigers from mid 1980s to early 1990s. This research probes into the unreliable character Sarath, and his narration about Sirilanka. He narrates the incidents in broken English with several discontinuities. Sarath presents a dreary, hellish picture of Srilanka during the civil war. However, he withdraws his own narration in the course of novel. He even claims that he is not sure about the incidents happened in his life because he is suffering from mental illness. Throughout the unreliable narrative of Sarath, Ondaatje deconstructs the traditional notion of history as the matter of facts and he claims that history is the matter of fabricated power politics. Key Words: History, Discourse, Fictionalization, Truth
Cultural Transfer in Legal Translation ; Domestication of Legal practices in Nepali Laws and Legal Systems
(2026) Bhattarai, Achyutananda; Amma Raj Joshi
Foreign legal apparatuses and values have been appropriated in Nepali laws and the legal system through translation. As a set of skills that help a message travel from the source language (SL) to the target language (TL), translation involves language, values, and cultural perspectives that play a significant role in legal translation as well. Such a transfer involves word-for-word or sense-for-sense appropriation, and this research uses the second one to appropriate foreign legal culture into Nepali laws and legal systems. In the legal field, such an appropriation and transfer is evident. During this process, the SL culture is prominently transferred to the TL. In Nepali laws, foreign culture has been appropriated congruously and incongruously, and this study examines such appropriation through translation, the reasons, and produces textual and practical evidence. This qualitative research has collected primary data from the Constitution of Nepal 2015, the National Civil (Code) Act 2017, the National Penal (Code) Act 2017, the Evidence Act of 1974, and the Act Relating to Children 2018 using the SL and the authorized TL version and has compared and contrasted with the US Constitution, the Marriage Act 1949 of England, Matrimonial Causes Act, 1973 (divorce) of England and Wales, the International Convention on Civil and Political Rights, 1966 (ICCPR), the Convention on the Rights of the Child, 1989 (CRC), and the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, 1998 (ICC), the French Civil Code, the German Penal Code, and the Japanese Penal Code to explore the congruities and incongruities. This is descriptive analytical work that has interpreted data using the hermeneutic interpretative method. As a conceptual framework, this research has used Alex. Fraser Tytler's (1907) principles of translation, J. L. Austin's (1962) speech act theory, and H. Paul Grice's (1975) cooperative principles to explore the legislative intent of the source text. Hans J. Vermeer and Mary Snell-Hornby's (1980s) concepts of translation as a cross-cultural event, Lawrence Venuti's (1990s) domestication and foreignization strategies for cultural transfer, and Alan Watson's (2006) concept of legal transplant. This research finds that, due to the influence of globalization and the need for modernization of Nepali law, Nepal has adopted foreign legal culture congruously in principles and incongruously in practices. In the Constitution of Nepal and the national civil and penal codes, Nepal has appropriated foreign legal principles as a cultural compromise. The appropriation of human rights, corporate, and environmental laws is a need to modernize the Nepali legal system. Not only the laws, but also legal maxims and terminologies are appropriated. This research enriches the readers with new knowledge that legal translation has transferred foreign legal culture to the Nepali legal system, and based on this research, the prospective researcher can explore the cultural identity, policy implications in legislative drafts, future law reform plans, and translation practices in Nepal.
Political Symbolism in George Orwell’s Animal Farm
(2025) Wanem, Karishma; Jib Lal Sapkota
This study examines Animal Farm through the lens of semiotics, interpreting the novella as a political allegory that communicates complex ideological messages through signs and symbols. It takes theories from Roland Barthes, who writes symbols as ideologically created cultural signifiers shaped by codes, myths, and ideology that uncover hidden power relations. Charles Baudelaire, who believes symbolism to be a poetic device that causes moral, religious, and political truths that are impossible to state directly and Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, who perceive symbolism within cultural production as a symptom of material circumstance and class warfare. Within this framework, Orwell's text encodes political meaning into setting, object, and character to denounce totalitarian regimes and revolution ideal treachery, particularly in the Russian Revolution and Stalinism. Stalinist government is embodied in Napoleon, the Seven Commandments change as ideological tools, and the windmill symbolizes empty promises of progress. The farm itself is a mini-state ruled by propaganda and coercion. In reading the semiotic systems contained in these works, the study reveals how Orwell uncovers political deception structures and the erosion of justice and truth and ultimately establishes the continued timeliness of Animal Farm as a work commenting on authoritarianism and the semiotics of political oppression. Each element within the text, from the individual of Napoleon (as a signifier of Stalinism) to the evolving Seven Commandments and the symbolic windmill capabilities as a signal machine that constructs and conveys political meaning. Through this semiotic framework, the study reveals how Orwell’s use of allegorical signs and symbols exposes the mechanisms of political deception and the erosion of reality and justice. Ultimately, this semiotic analysing enhances know, how of Orwell’s narrative techniques and underscores the enduring relevance of Animal Farm as a complicated critique of authoritarianism and the semiotics of political control. Keywords: Semiotic, Allegory, Imagery, Symbolism, Satire, Paradox, Political Power Dynamics, Authoritarianism
Representation of Masculinity in Han Kang's The Vegetarian
(2025) Rai, Tilak
This thesis explores how The Vegetarian by Han Kang represents and critiques hegemonic masculinity in contemporary Korean society. While the novel is frequently interpreted through feminist, ecofeminist, or psychological lenses, this study shifts the focus toward the male characters Yeong-hye’s husband, father, and brother-in-law and examines how their identities are shaped, performed, and destabilized in response to Yeong-hye’s silent rebellion. The Vegetarian exposes the fragility, emotional repression, and performative nature of hegemonic masculinity. When Yeong-hye resists patriarchal control, the male characters react with coercion, violence, and detachment, revealing how masculinity relies on female subordination for its survival. The study is grounded in Raewyn Connell’s theory of hegemonic masculinity, which defines masculinity as a culturally dominant and socially constructed practice that sustains male power through everyday gendered performances. Han Kang presents masculinity as unstable and harmful both to women and the men who perform it. Mr. Cheong’s desire for a passive wife, the father’s violent assertion of control, and the brother-in-law’s objectification of Yeong-hye all demonstrate different but interconnected expressions of patriarchal masculinity. Their identities collapse when Yeong-hye withdraws from expected roles, suggesting that masculinity is not natural or fixed but a vulnerable performance dependent on power dynamics. This research is significant because it fills a gap in scholarship by offering a masculinity-centered reading of The Vegetarian. It contributes to a deeper understanding of gender power structures in Korean society and shows how literature can critique dominant ideologies. Keywords: Hegemonic Masculinity, Patriarchy, Resistance, Power Dynamics
Climate Change as Slow Violence in Barbara Kingsolver's Flight Behaviour
(2025) Bhusal, Ram Prasad; Jib Lal Sapkota
The present study explores the impact of climate change on displaced monarch butterflies and farming in Turnbow farming of Tennessee in Barbara Kingsolver‟s novel Flight Behaviour. DellarobiaTurnbow and Ovid Byron demonstrate a profound sense of connection to nature, and a strong protest against harmful human activity like logging. However, their differing views on the arrival of butterflies in Turnbow farming show a tension between those who romanticize natural things and those who are seriously worried about anti-nature activities. Nevertheless, their constant mutual understanding that appears as the novel progresses is their fascination towards nature and ecological system. Gradually, they share similar views in their attempt to resist patriarchal and capitalist systems that seek to exploit nature bringing climatic adverse situation. Following the qualitative research design, this study brings ideas from the works of Amitav Ghosh, Dipesh Chakrabarty, and Lawrence Buell to develop a theoretical framework for analyzing the primary text under scrutiny. Keywords: capitalism, flight, nature, ecological denial, slow violence, climate fiction
Ethics beyond the Human ; A post-humanist reading of lan McEwan's machines like me
(2025) Giri, Manisha; Laxman Bhatta
This research analyzes the ethical, societal, and relational consequences of artificial intelligence in Ian McEwan’s Machines Like Me through a post-humanist perspective. Utilizing Rosi Braidotti’s post-anthropocentric ethics, alongside insights from Donna Haraway, the study investigates how the novel questions conventional ideas of moral agency and human superiority. By employing textual analysis, it examines the moral capabilities of humanoid robots, focusing on their emotional intelligence and capacity for independent decision-making. The results indicate that McEwan regards AI as subjects of ethical importance, which aligns with Braidotti’s perspective on non-human agents as members of an extended moral community. The novel encourages a reevaluation of legal accountability, interpersonal relationships, and ethical standards in a society that is rapidly advancing technologically, providing important literary insights into modern debates surrounding AI. Key words: Ethics Dilemma, Humanoids, Post-Humanism, Artificial Intelligence, Identity, Morality
Representation of Maoist War in Wagle’s Palpasa Cafe
(2024) Pandey , Sangeeta; Anju Gupta
This thesis explores the representation of the Maoist war in Narayan Wagle's Palpasa Cafe from the perspective of trauma studies. The research studies the process and the effect of the trauma in different social/cultural groups caused by the Maoist insurgency and the subsequent death and terror. The research uses the notion of cultural trauma discussed by Jeffrey C. Alexander. This study points out that the novel depicts the consequences of the war without trying to dig out the reasons for the conflict itself. Drishya’s trauma is depicted through several layers of his experiences and reflections, which bring profound change regarding his survivors’ guilt. The loss of Palpasa and the constant threat of violence lead to a sense of disillusionment in Drishya. His trauma is a complex interplay of personal loss, survivor guilt, allied dreams, and the broader context of political and social turmoil. So, it has strategically employed resourceful characters as carrier groups to create a discourse about the victim and the perpetrators, but it fails to present a balanced portrayal of the armed conflict in Nepal. Keywords: Insurgency, Trauma, Representation, Maoists, War, Crisis
Between Apathy and Responsibility: Cinematic Representations of UN Peacekeeper’s Moral Dilemma in Hotel Rwanda and No Man's Land
(2025) Gurung, Anand; Dhruba Karki
This dissertation examines the moral dilemma faced by individuals and UN peacekeepers through an analysis of two films: Hotel Rwanda and No Man’s Land. Although the institutional failures of the UN--caused by limited mandates, geopolitical interests and bureaucratic failures--during the Rwandan and Bosnian wars have been widely examined in scholarly literature, cinematic depiction of individuals caught between institutional orders and moral convictions in these two conflicts remains relatively under explored. The analysis is carried out to do just that by using multidisciplinary theoretical lens such as Darley & Latane’s Bystander Apathy Theory, which helps explain the passivity and inaction of individuals and institutions (like the UN) in the face of violence. Similarly, the Responsibility to Protect (R2P) Doctrine, a global political commitment adopted by the United Nations in 2005 to prevent genocide, offers the critical tools for examining the bureaucratic complicity that gives the impression of apathy and failure in protecting vulnerable populations. The findings of this research reveal key similarities as well as differences in how the two films portray UN peacekeepers as both victims of and complicit in systemic failure and why the much vaunted UN neutrality, when devoid of moral courage, only contributes to the continuation of atrocity. Ultimately, by analyzing cinematic portrayals of peacekeepers caught in moral dilemmas, this study highlights the need for greater accountability and ethical responsibility within global institutions and calls for a renewed commitment to the humanitarian principle of protecting vulnerable populations. Keywords: bystander apathy, genocide, humanitarian interventions, peacekeeping, UN
Renegotiation of Narrative Space in Robyn Davidson’s Tracks and Sara Wheeler’s Terra Incognita: Travels In Antarctica
(2025) Timala, Raj Lakshmi; Anirudra Thapa
This thesis is founded on the premise that the genre of travel writing has historically been seen as a masculine genre closely bound to the ideals of mobility, conquest, and exploration that marginalises and excludes women from participation due to socially imposed expectations of domesticity and immobility. Thus, this androcentric framing or a genre based on a masculine ideology generates anxiety for women travel writers, as travel writing produced by women has often been and continues to be sidelined in travel writing scholarship. Struggling with such anxieties and insecurities, women travel writers have constantly been on the lookout for strategies and unique narrative techniques to combat the established societal norms. This study explores two late twentieth-century women travel writers and their navigation of genre and gender expectations: Robyn Davidson's Tracks (1980) and Sara Wheeler's Terra Incognita: Travels in Antarctica (1996). The study thus argues that both writers through their travel narrative engage in a renegotiation of narrative space that exhibits how gendered anxieties complicate the boundaries of the travel writing genre. Both authors enter territories—the Australian desert and Antarctica— traditionally constructed as masculine domains of conquest within travel writing. Drawing on theoretical insights from Mary Gerhart, Jacques Derrida, and Judith Butler, I analyse how Davidson and Wheeler employ personal narrative, self- reflexivity, and genre hybridity to establish authority within a tradition emphasising male-coded values of objectivity and detachment. This thesis thus through Tracks and Terra Incognita, explores the complexities that female travel writers like Davidson and Wheeler face, and reveals how their work destabilises the traditional tropes of exploration and redefines the boundaries of the genre of travel writing.
Echoes of Silence: Role of Cultural Attitudes in Adolescent Trauma in Jay Asher’s 13 Reasons Why and Naoko Yamada’s A Silent Voice
(2025) Limbu, Yzunchho; Bal Bahadur Thapa
This dissertation investigates the interplay between adolescent trauma and cultural frameworks by examining the Western paradigm of individualism and the Eastern paradigm of collectivism through a comparative analysis of Jay Asher’s novel 13 Reasons Why and Naoko Yamada’s animated movie A Silent Voice. The adolescents depicted in 13 Reasons Why and A Silent Voice come from a culturally distinct backgrounds, one rooted in individualism and the other in collectivism. However, their voices are similarly silenced by social structures, cultural expectations, and institutional failures, raising critical questions about how adolescent trauma is shaped and suppressed across different cultural contexts. Centering on Cathy Caruth’s trauma theory, particularly focusing her emphasis on belatedness and the necessity of acknowledgement, the study interrogates how trauma is voiced and silenced in narratives about adolescents. The research further draws on the theories of Jeffrey C. Alexander and Ron Eyerman to contextualize adolescent psychological responses and social roles within their respective cultural frameworks. The study reveals how the Western narrative privileges self-expression and vocal autonomy, as seen through Hannah Baker’s posthumous tapes, whereas the Eastern narrative prioritizes group harmony and silent endurance as illustrated by Shoya and Shoko’s reticence. By analyzing the motif of silence versus voice, the research highlights how cultural norms either inhibit or enable trauma expression and recovery. This qualitative study incorporates close analysis, with attention to guilt, shame, institutional complicity, and the redemptive potential of listening and acknowledgement. This research contributes to trauma studies by foregrounding adolescence as a culturally sensitive and under-theorized site of trauma articulation. Keywords: Adolescence, trauma, culture, silence, voice, individualism, collectivism
Irony of Colonialism in Herbert George Wells' The War of the World
(2025) Mukhiya, Pradeep; Maheshwor Paudel
This research analyses the forces of conflict, violence, destruction, technology as domination, vulnerability, moral contradiction of empire, and psychology of colonized people in H.G. Well’ The War of the Worlds. Wells echoes Martians as all dark and savage replications of brutal European colonizers and chaotic narratives related to cultural hegemony and domination over and subjugation of indigenous populations. So the study engages with the issues around irony of colonialism such as alien(Martians) invasion on Earth, reverse colonization, dominant imperial power and politics, use of advance technology, and dehumanization of that contemporary time and Wells stands as a witness of these all issues in his novel. This research also examines power dynamics, ecological aspects, apocalyptic scenario, hypocrisy of colonialism and existence of alien. The study employs theoretical insights related to post-colonialism particularly discussed by Frantz Fanon and Edward Said. The main aim of this research is to seek the issues of irony in the novel, applying the post- colonial lens. This research finally concludes that Wells’ novel uncovers the moral and symbolic ironies within the text, challenging the justification of colonial violence, depicting the psychological state of colonized population, showing the rise and fall of power, moral failures of empire and exposing the fragility of imperial power when roles are reversed. Keywords: Martians, irony, conflict, violence, destruction, technology, imperialism, power, alien
Coping with Transgenerational Trauma in Tommy Orange‘s There There
(2025) Pithakote, Garima; Anju Gupta
This thesis explores the enduring impact of transgenerational trauma on Native Americans as portrayed in Tommy Orange’s novel There There, with a focus on the coping strategies characters employ to confront and heal from inherited grief. The study problematizes the long-term psychological and cultural consequences of colonial violence and displacement, particularly how trauma is transmitted across generations and manifests in urban Indigenous life. The central argument of this research is that storytelling, cultural gatherings such as the Big Oakland Powwow, and acts of personal resilience serve not only as coping mechanisms but also as tools for reclaiming identity and resisting cultural erasure. This paper employs a qualitative approach based primarily on textual analysis of Orange’s There There. For this work, different scholars’ insights and views are discussed. The informations are collected from secondary sources like books, journals, articles and electronic resources. The theoretical parameters used in this analysis are grounded in Dominik Lacapra’s concept of ‗Acting Out‘ and ‗Working Through‘ and Jeffrey C Alaxender’s concept of ‗Cultural Trauma‘. This paper demonstrates that while trauma persists across generations, healing is possible through acts of resilience, resistance, and the reclamation of identity. This study contributes to broader discussions on the intersections of trauma, identity, and resistance, offering valuable insights into the role of cultural practices in coping mechanisms with historical and inherited grief. Keywords: transgenerational trauma, coping mechanism, cultural trauma, cultural dislocation, resilience, post-traumatic stress disorder
Critique of American Multiculturalism in Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie‘s Americanah
(2025) Acharya, Marshal; Laxman Bhatta
This thesis examines the limitations and contradictions of American multiculturalism as portrayed in Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s Americana by interrogating the gap between the ideals of multiculturalism and its practical implications. The analysis examines how Americana challenges the superficial nature of multiculturalism, which often emphasizes performative displays of diversity rather than addressing deeper issues of equity. It delves into themes such as the commodification of culture, the silencing of immigrant perspectives, and the racialized dynamics of identity and belonging. Central to this exploration are Ifemelu’s experiences in America, her reflections on race, and her critiques of societal norms, which highlight how multiculturalism frequently upholds existing hierarchies, pretending to promote inclusivity. The theoretical framework for this analysis is rooted in Charles Taylor’s The Politics of Recognition, Derrick Bell’s Critical Race Theory (CRT) and Afef Benessaieh’s Multiculturalism. Taylor’s concept of recognition provides a foundation for examining how multicultural practices in Americanah either uphold or fail to provide genuine cultural recognition. Meanwhile, CRT focuses on systemic racism and helps show how multiculturalism can uphold racial inequalities while pretending to promote inclusion. Benessaieh’s concept of multiculturalism describes multiculturalism as too static and superficial which enshrines difference without enabling transformative cultural encounters or the fluid blending of identities. This study highlights the shallow nature of American multicultural practices, challenging their effectiveness in addressing systemic inequalities. It encourages a critical re-evaluation of multicultural ideals and emphasizes the need for authentic recognition and structural transformation to build a genuinely inclusive society. Keywords: multiculturalism, politics of recognition, systemic racism, cultural exclusion, recognition, alienation
Rebuilding Identities amidst Women Acid Attack Survivors in Nepal
(2025) Chhetry, Tek Bahadur; Bal Bahadur Thapa
This study explores the narratives of the women acid victims of Nepal from the pluralist views in light of trauma literature. Although the classic model of trauma claims that truth cannot be attained due to the distortion of the traumatic experience, hence ‘unknowable’ and ‘unspeakable’, the revisionist model argues that trauma ruptures the order of life and can also reorient lives, when dealt with, from the standpoint of its variability in literature and society. Acid attacks have devastating psychological effects on survivors, leading to issues such as anxiety, depression, social isolation, and even suicidal ideations. However, the four testimonies of Nepalese acid survivors in this study reveal that psychological trauma is not an individual affliction but a socio-cultural wound, wherein identities are not only shattered but also contested. Drawing upon Cheryl Glenn’s ‘rhetorical feminism’ as a major insight from her work, Rhetorical Feminism and This Thing Called Hope, the study analyzes survivors’ narratives to address the feminist agency aligning with the revisionist model of Michelle Baelev’s ‘reorientation of consciousness.’ The researcher argues that oppressed gender norms can be challenged through the acknowledgement of traumatic events, rhetorical listening, and spatial rhetoric in rebuilding victims’ identities. The survivors fought an ordeal to remake identities in the new normal by ways of developing resilience, rhetorical resistance, activism, and advocacy. It is significant for social workers and policymakers to tailor effective interventions for trauma evacuation and social healing. Further, it is expected to open a discourse on burn violence, a pressing issue for future research in the Nepalese context. Keywords: agency, psychological trauma, reorientation of consciousness, rhetorical feminism, spatial rhetoric, rebuilding identities, trauma evacuation
A Resistance to Patriarchy in Han Kang’s The Vegetarian
(2024) Lama, Sunmita; Dinesh Bhandari
his paper explores resistance to patriarchy in Han Kang’s The Vegetarian from a feminist perspective. A woman making a choice on her own in a patriarchal society is largely a matter of suspicion and more importantly a rejection of male chauvinism. Women’s choices are based on the patriarchal doctrine and if they trespass the boundary, either they are considered as a ‘mad-woman’ or they are discarded from their iconic position as ‘good-woman.’ Han Kang’s The Vegetarian articulates a similar issue, portraying Yeong-hey, the protagonist who becomes vegetarian after seeing a brutal and bloody dream. Her choice is never considered to be valid nor is she treated humanely. When she gradually loses her mental control, she rejects the patriarchal values by disobeying her husband and father and also engulfs herself in social taboo. With this in mind, this paper investigates the woman’s action or the performative resistance against male chauvinism in light of Judith Butler’s notion of performativity and Rosi Braidotti’s concept of becoming a woman. Focusing on the protagonist—Yeong-hye, the study inspects women’s choices to overcome the patriarchal notion of women’s subjectivity. In doing so, it claims that locating women in societal discourse demands a restless stand on their choice which gives pace to their retaliation and consolidates the process of becoming a woman. This study discloses the construction of gender as a matter of choice that continuously wrestles against patriarchal forces. Moreover, it unpacks that women achieve alternative positions in human society that defy the patriarchal regulation by embodying self- reflexivity, if they are not considered as the subject themselves. Keywords: patriarchy, conventions, dominance, subjectivity, self-reflexivity, and embodiment
Transcendentalism and self- Realization in Siddhartha and The Razor's Edge
(2025) Dhungana, Ishwar Prasad; Ramchandra Paudel
This research examines the spiritual journeys portrayed in Hermann Hesse's Siddhartha and W. Somerset Maugham's The Razor's Edge, focusing on how both protagonists reject conventional paths to enlightenment in favor of self- determined quests for meaning. Both novels present striking parallels in their critique of materialism and religious dogma. Siddhartha abandons traditional Buddhist teachings to forge his path through worldly experience and ascetic transformation, while Larry Darrell rejects post-war American materialism to pursue spiritual awakening across cultural boundaries. Again, two different cultural and religious aspects have fusion for the similar purpose which becomes a unique and worth mentioning finding in the spiritual and transcendental arena. This kind of phenomenon is quite interesting and fruitful for the sake of humankind irrespective of dissimilar background like consciousness, education, culture and thoughts. The researcher interprets their journey through ‘liminality’ and ‘transcendentalism ‘in order to explore the deep psychological plight and innovation these two protagonists - Siddhartha and Larry from Siddhartha and The Razor’s Edge go through respectively. This comparative analysis explores how both works navigate the tension between societal expectations and individual spiritual authenticity. Through close textual examination, I demonstrate how both protagonists undergo transformative cycles of immersion in and withdrawal from society, suggesting that genuine enlightenment emerges from integrating rather than escaping worldly experience. Beyond their individual literary merits, these novels collectively illuminate universal aspects of the human search for transcendence and meaning. This research contributes to scholarly discourse on comparative spirituality in literature by examining how these narratives, despite their distinct cultural origins, converge in their representation of spiritual awakening as a personally determined journey that transcends cultural and religious boundaries while still being shaped by them.

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