Women in the Rmkaths : Silent Voices and Untold Stories

ABOUT THE BOOK:- Women in the Ramakathas attempts to focus on the unfavourable conditions of women in the various renderings of the Rama legends, originating from Valmiki Ramayana. Through 2000 years of Indian literary tradition and folklore, these have been moulded and reshaped, according to the beliefs and understanding of later composers. The basic concept of the role of women remains, however, more-or-less unaltered. Atreyi Biswas evaluates the status of women in the Ramakatha traditions through a historical perspective. No sacrilege or dishonour is intended in criticizing the main character Rama; the focus is exclusively on its socio-historical context, completely leaving aside religious sentiments as commonly reflected in popular literary texts. Biswas analyses the mythological stories relating to Sita's birth, including some of the Ramakathas composed outside the Brahminical-dominant Northern India, consider her to be a child of Ravana; the role of women in marriages; their subjugation, and their 'work' in society; and the exploitation of women as 'workers'. ABOUT THE AUTHOR:- Dr Atreyi Biswas (b. 1941) did her post-graduation from Agra University in 1961 followed by Ph.D (1965) from London University. She was a Post Doctorate Fellow at School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) from 1966-68. She served as a senior faculty member in the Department of History, Satyawati College, University of Delhi, from 1970 till her retirement in 2003. Her published works include: History of the Hunas in India (1973); Prachin Bharat ka Rajnaitik, Samajik aur Sanskritik Itihas (Political, Social and Cultural History of Ancient India),1982, and Famines in Ancient India (2000) and several research papers in Indian and foreign academic journals. CONTENTS:- Acknowledgements 7 Preface 9 1. Introduction 41 2. Birth of Sita – A Myth 63 3. Gender Dynamics in the Ramkatha’s Patriarchal Institutions of Marriage 95 4. Humiliation, Abuse and Discrimination of Women in the Ramkathas 149 Bibliography 181 Index 209 The Title 'Women in the Ràmkathàs : Silent Voices and Untold Stories written/authored/edited by Atreyi Biswas', published in the year 2016. The ISBN 9788121213127 is assigned to the Hardcover version of this title. This book has total of pp. 219 (Pages). The publisher of this title is Gyan Publishing House. This Book is in English. The subject of this book is Women Studies / History. Size of the book is 14.34 x 22.59 cms Vol:-