Abstract
In this article, an attempt has been made to know about the plight of Afghan women and how they try to come out from the clutches of male dominated society, but failed in attaining it. This paper will take Nadia Hashimi’s The Pearl that Broke its Shell and unveil the trauma, struggle, and buoyancy of women through her novel. Attaining equal rights between the sexes – man and woman, has become a global phenomenon. Women across the world are chained under the patriarchal society and are still treated as the “weaker sex”. They struggle to accomplish their target of achieving women’s rights, respect and proper recognition. This is because women’s identity has been exploited and abused, which made them initiate and involve in a movement calling for women’s liberation. The life of women in Afghanistan is filled with battles, restrictions, and social discrimination. Their struggles are comparatively different from struggles endured by women in other parts of the world. They are compelled to accept everything in the name of religion and they are even denied from receiving the fundamental rights from their society. This is because Afghan society has been controlled by men. She is the object in the hands of men and therefore she cannot visualize her identity without the help of a man. Due to this, women had to battle each day for their very existence. Islamic Government imposed brutal laws against women and they are restricted even to laugh or talk loudly. Even though women in the twenty first century started celebrating their freedom and empowerment, women in afghan society are still fighting to attain their basic freedom, name, education. They were neither treated as humans nor as living beings. This agony brought Afghan women to join together to fight for their liberation.
Keywords
liberation, afghan women, empowerment, patriarchy.
