International Journal of English Literature and Social Sciences

Vol-7, Issue-4; Jul-Aug, 2022

Journal Home Page Available: https://ijels.com/

Journal DOI: 10.22161/ijels

Eco- Feminism in Arundathi Roy’s the Ministry of Utmost

Happiness: A Critique
Bandisula Dasthagiri1, Dr. Ankanna2

1Research Scholar, Dept. of English, Yogi Vemana University, Kadapa, Andhra Pradesh, India
2Associate Professor, Dept. of English, Yogi Vemana University, Kadapa, Andhra Pradesh, India

Received: 23 Jul 2022; Received in revised form: 09 Aug 2022; Accepted: 15 Aug 2022; Available online: 19 Aug 2022
©2022 The Author(s). Published by Infogain Publication. This is an open access article under the CC BY license
(https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

Abstract— Eco-feminists believe strongly that nature and women have a bond as they share patriarchal
oppression. Social-feminists differ from Eco-feminists in that Eco-feminism focuses on the role of gender in
political economy. Eco-feminism emerged during the second wave of feminism in the United States between
the 1970s and 1980s. Women perceive an interrelationship between classism, sexism, racism and
environmental damage. Just as feminists struggled to eradicate gender discrimination, there is a need to
overcome the challenges that climatic change has on humanity.
Human oppression is linked with the exploitation of nature, hence it is considered a feminist issue. Eco-
feminism uses the basic tenets of feminism to achieve equality between genders. Eco-feminists are of the
idea that nature has to be maintained with mutual care and co-operation. Eco-feminism is an academic
and activist movement which tries to eliminate exploitation of nature by human beings and any kind of
exploitation of any kind.
Some contemporary Indian novelists not only investigate female oppression, but also the biological,
psychological, and social environment. Arundathi Roy is a contemporary Indian English writer who is
acclaimed as a political activist and eco-feminist writer. In this paper, an attempt is made to unravel the
demise of some birds and animals due to unethical modernization through scientific technology and also
through re-habitation in Roy’s second novel, The Ministry of Utmost Happiness. This paper also traces
how embracing nature can change the issues of gender as well.
Keywords— Eco-feminism, Patriarchy, Environmental, Gender issues, Indian Novelists.

I. INTRODUCTION II. ECO-FEMINISM IN INDIA

Arundhati Roy is a social and political activist, Even before eco-criticism emerged in the academic
along with being a writer par excellence. In 2002, she won spheres of the west, activism to safeguard the environment
the Lanner Cultural Freedom Award; the Sydney Peace and movements connected to the environment were in
Prize in 2004; and the Sahithya Akademi Award in 2006. vogue in India, South Africa, and many other countries in
She has serious concern over the environmental or South Asia to protect the environment. Some noted eco-
ecological crises that are happening in society. In 1997, feminist movements in India emerged as early as the
she received The Booker Prize for fiction for her debut eighteenth century. "The Movement of Bishnois" took
novel, "The God of Small Things." Twenty years later, in place in the year 1731 and The Chipko Movement in the
2017, she has written "The Ministry of Utmost Happiness," year 1973. Women here created awareness to improve
which portrays eco-feminism. nature and considered it as a fundamental duty of human
beings who survive on the Earth. Women also fought
against environmental exploitation.

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Mapari et al. Performative Aspects of Mahesh Dattani’s Plays

III. EMERGENCE OF ECO-FEMINISM V. ECO- FEMINISM EXPLORE

Academic and professional women conducted many There are multiple issues connecting the self with society.
workshops and conferences on the modern eco-feminist There is a flashback mode of narration in which the
movement in the late 1970s and early 1980s in the United condition of women is explored in which women are
States of America. Eco-feminist theories assert a feminist denied freedom and rights. There are transgender people
perspective. There is no dominant group, it is only a like Anjuman whose behaviour is different from the formal
collaborative and egalitarian society. As a result, green gender norms. Roy traces their complex history. Anjum
politics emerged. Eco-feminism grew from cultured and has both female sex organs and a male. Hence, self-
radical feminism in the background of the dominance of discovery as opposed to the structure of normality
men in feminism. Twenty years later, in the year 2017, she becomes important. Her mother, Jahanera Begam,
has written "The Ministry of Utmost Happiness." To expected a son. Her father, Mulaqat Ali, tries to change
maintain peace and harmony in society, women and nature Anjum’s sex organ into a male one. He came to her to
are equally required and this finds its expression in accept her merphodite and felt that it was a black mark on
Arundhati Roy's novels. The feared novel, The Ministry of their family. All these are against the law of nature; they
Utmost Happiness, is explored here to observe the seize to hire in the normal way. He is close to severing all
relationship between women and the natural world. ties with his son. He never met Anjum's... Occasionally
they would pass each other on the street and would
exchange glances, but never greetings.
IV. EMERGENCE OF ECO-FEMINISM IN THE
WEST In the prologue of the novel, Anjum is turned into pieces
by social forces, and hostility is expressed to Imam: "You
The term Eco-feminism was coined by a French writer
tell me where old birds go to die?" Do they fall on us like
named Francoise d'Eaubonne in the year 1974 in her book
stones from the sky? Do we stumble on their bodies in the
Le Feminisme Ou la Mort. In the late 1970s and early
street? Do you not think that the all-seeing, almighty one
1980s, some ecology movements emerged in the west to
who put us on this earth has made proper arrangements to
establish peace and peace and to fight against exploitation
take us away? Old people are rejected just as old birds are
of women and nature. This situation emerged during the
in society. Anjum, the transgender, is rejected by society.
second wave of feminism and was against the anti-war and
She shows great concern for the demise of Delhi vultures.
anti-nuclear war stances. Ecofeminism is both an apolitical
Roy expresses ironically in terms of birds, "Not many
activism and an intellectual critique. Thus, bringing
noticed the passing of the friendly old birds [Roy] white
together environmentalism and feminism, eco feminism
people in the pleasure of eating ice cream. She also is
fights against the oppression of women and the
against the contamination of milk and the chemical—
exploitation of the environment, which are looked upon as
diclofenac. Anjum cannot find paradise in the ordinary life
the consequences of capitalism and patriarchy.
of society. She finds solace in The Ministry of Utmost
Eco-feminism theories urge human beings to examine the Happiness in the graveyard.
world's degradation and react constructively to it. Eco-
Humanity has historically been considered a masculine
feminism argues that women have to be understood in
activity. In science, the killing of animals for God Roy is
connection with nature, that they are related to each other.
sensitive towards the animals on whom the experiments
Their boundaries are feminism and have become a subfield
are conducted. Roy described A beagle who had either
of the western literary world and its cultural shades. In the
escaped from or outlived his purpose in a phaema-ceutical
year 1980, scholars worked to establish it as a genre. The
testing lab He looked worn and rubbed out, like a drawing
western literary association tried to relate to the nature of
someone had tried to erase... The drugs were tested on
writing and develop it as a fictional literary genre. In the
him. Anjum chemise watches the wandering dog. Anjum
USA, especially coloured women, are affected by global
poured some tea... He slurped it up noisily. He drank
problems such as climate change, ecological degradation,
everything.
and contertion. It's not just seen as an environmental
problem that has to do with science and scientists. Instead,
it's seen as something that affects institutions. People of VI. CONCLUSION
color, white people, and both men and women are put in a After investigating certain things about nature and females,
position of oppression by their race, class, and gender. the researcher came to know and reveal a great conclusion.
There are subbranches of eco-feminism such as vegetarian Thus, the female contemporary writer Arundhati Roy's
feminism, material eco-feminism, and spiritual feminism.

IJELS-2022, 7(4), (ISSN: 2456-7620)

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Mapari et al. Performative Aspects of Mahesh Dattani’s Plays

novel The Ministry of Utmost Happiness finds the

interconnectedness of nature and women. Using eco-
feminist views, she has searched for how nature can be
welcomed to modify gendered problems; they are
established to mute women and other non-human life. The
female writer, Roy, has tried to uncover the cruel fact that
nature and women are taken as resources to fulfil men's
needs as is usual in the existing society. Both have suffered
a lot and have been brutally raped in their own ways.
Therefore, both have to be eliminated to end the suffering.
Eco-feminism treats women as having the potential to
create sustainable modification. It can be seen as alluring
women by stressing their close association with nature.
The female writer, Arundathi Roy, through her literary
work, was able to uplift and make women become the
typical modification. She has enclosed all the issues
beautifully in her current literary work and skillfully
enlightens the unsure of the great and wonderful mutuality
between nature and women in contemporary society. In
this article, the differences are openly mentioned by the
realistic manner of implementation that was done by the
researcher with his great analysis.

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[3] Merchant, Carolyn. The Death of Nature: Women, Ecology,
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[4] Fransisco, Harper Row, 1980.
[5] Roy, Arubndathi. The Ministry of Utmost Happiness. India:
Penguine Random House, 2017, Print.
[6] Warren, Karren, Ecofeminism: Women, Culture, Nature,
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[7] Yuval-Davis, Nira “Women Citizenship and Difference.”
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[8] 27. JSTOR. www.jstro.org/stable/139799.

IJELS-2022, 7(4), (ISSN: 2456-7620)

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