A Feminist Reading of Panthoipi Khongkul

Introduction

Feminism is a common goal to describe a political, social, cultural or economic equality of sexes. Feminism is defined by Brunell and Burkett in Britannica as the belief of equality of sexes in terms of economic, social and political affairs. Though originated in the West, feminism is evidently present in every corner of the world. As a literary movement, feminism seeks to rebel against the patriarchal society where the term ‘masculine’ is associated with superiority, domination, action and strength, conversely, ‘feminine’ or the ‘other’ is associated with inferiority, passivity, weakness and obedience (Bhat, 2017). Feminist writers highlight the predicament of women in a patriarchal society and look at how a sense of self-identity, rebellion and self-assertion will liberate women from the deeply rooted patriarchal societal constraints. Various institutions and organisations represent feminism to cater to activities pertaining to women’s rights and interests. Furthermore, Nahal (1991) defined feminism as a form of existence where the woman gets rid of the dependence syndrome. A dependence syndrome exists whether in the form of the father, the husband, the community, the religious group or the ethnic group (Nahal, 1991). Nahal (1991) emphasizes that his idea of feminism materialises when women are completely free of the dependence syndrome and starts leading a normal life. Conversely, Beauvoir (1997) posits: “One is not born, but rather becomes a woman” (p. 301). She further asserts that psychological, biological or economic fate does not establish the presence of human female in society, however, civilization produces this human female which is somewhere, in the transitional phase between male and eunuch, described as feminine (Beauvoir, 1997). From the preceding discussions, it is apparent that feminism is a common goal to describe a political, social, cultural or economic equality of sexes. Feminism as a movement is greatly influenced by philosophers, thinkers and authors like Mary Wollstonecraft, Elaine Showalter, Simone de Beauvoir, Kate Millett, Judith Butler, Helene Cixous, Julia Kristeva and others. The movement strongly advocate protesting against male domination. Its main aim is to understand women’s oppression pertaining to gender, class, race and sexual orientations and devise ways to uplift this oppression. Panthoipi Khongkul is a myth narrative of Manipur, in northeast India detailing the rebel of a legendary woman Panthoipi against the patriarchal society of the early Manipuri society. The paper seeks to explore the feminist perspective of the use of the term ‘patriarchy’ in the myth narratives of Panthoipi Khongkul.