Absence of Dalit Women's Agency in Rajan Mukarung’s Damini Bhir

Abstract

This research paper aims to examine the absence of Dalitfemale characters' agency in RajanMukarung’sDaminiBhir. The investigation of the absence of agency of Dalit female characters is important in order to understand the clear difference between the socio-cultural and economic status of women in general and Dalit women in the text.Fundamentally, the novel depicts the circumstances, psychology and practices of Nepali society during the ten years long Maoist insurgency in Nepal.The paper mainly analyses the social status, living condition, roles, and attitude that the author has assigned to the characters to understand the effect of lack of agency of Dalit female characters.Due to the lack of agency, Dalit women are unable to express their opinion and feelings.They are unable to act against the injustice they encounter.However, the ten years long maoist insurgency contributedto the empowerment of Dalit women to some extent. Also, it played a significant role inreducing untouchability to a very little extent.In comparison to non-Dalit women, Dalit women are doubly marginalized:on the basis of their caste and patriarchy.