Giving Voice to the Voiceless: Analysing the Transgender Characters in Select Indian English Novels

Authors

  • Paridhi Chaudhary
  • Shuchi Agrawal

Abstract

The presence of third-gender or gender ambiguities have been a part and parcel of Indian society. With each passing yuga, the presence changed its form but has openly accepted the different variants of genders. But in the present times, the third-gendered people face problems of all sorts including social-exclusion, harassment, less or no familial and political support, etc. Authors time and again have worked on uplifting the status of transgenders in India by depicting the harrowing conditions and tragic lifestyle they uptake because of social repercussions. One such attempt has been made by Khushwant Singh who is a pioneer in showing the realities of different strata in India. Similarly, Arundhati Roy, pioneer in modern novel writing has brought up to life, the problems of Indian transgenders and the only profession they are allowed – prostitution or begging. In this paper, the analysis of various transgendered characters has been done to show their status in Indian society from old age, Mughal period and the present times.
Keywords: Ambiguities, Gender, social-exclusion, harassment, realities

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Published

2020-02-17

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Articles