Blasphemy: Subverting the Colonial Legacy of Domesticated Patriarchy, Hegemonic Masculinity and Religious Politics

Abstract

Aim of the Study: This study examines how Durrani portrays the subjugation of women and the imposition of patriarchal dictates in the name of religion.

Methodology: The study is qualitative in nature and based on “Tehmina Durrani’s novel Blasphemy (1991)”. The study examined the data under the light of “Hegemney Theory”. The theory of hegemony developed by Antonio Gramsci is used to study Tehmina Durrani’s novel, Blasphemy (1991). This theory explains how a dominant class can maintain its power and control over a subordinate class through the use of cultural tactics. Hegemony, according to Gramsci, is a process of domination and subordination that does not necessarily involve physical force. Rather, it involves the social and cultural domination of one group by another.

Findings: Tehmina Durrani’s Blasphemy is an excellent example of how Gramsci’s theory of hegemony works in practice. The novel has highlighted the religious hegemony of the colonial master in the subcontinent and its effects on the Muslim community. Durrani has not only exposed the hegemonic schemes of the British colonial masters, but she has also delineated the repercussions of such hegemonic colonial legacy on the society in general, and on women in particular. Furthermore, this paper investigates how Durrani’s critique of patriarchy and hegemonic can be used to inform contemporary feminist critiques of gender inequality and patriarchy. Durrani has used her writing to criticize the oppressive force of male domination and the use of traditional religious beliefs to justify it. She questions the inequalities and injustices that women face, and the ways in which religious teachings are manipulated to uphold this system.

Conclusion: Her work provides an insight into the damaging effects that this type of oppression can have on society, and encourages readers to think critically about the ways in which religion is exploited to perpetuate gender inequality.