Feminism promised the emancipation of women from structures that marginalized them and made them invisible in society and international relations. However, for a theory that promises women's empowerment, it overgeneralizes women's experiences around the world by applying the Western concept to third world countries, and feminism tends to overlook the cultural, historical, traditional, and religious structures that shape women's roles and identities. in different societies. Feminist scholars have argued that gender evolves historically and culturally, and would be very different from country to country (True, 2001). Therefore, feminism has not fulfilled its promises if it is undermining the experiences of third world societies by simply portraying third world women as victims who simply needed liberation. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get Original Essay Liberal and reformist Indian women have often refused to use feminist to refer to themselves because they see that feminist ideas are too Western and cannot be applied to explain the plight of Hindu women since its ideas cannot be translated into their religious-cultural context. Furthermore, they do not see men as oppressors but as partners who often push Indian women into leadership roles; they saw that their caste system is the cause of the subordination and submission of men and women (Basharat, 2009). The daughters of India are not simply shackled by their patriarchal society but are also oppressed by their social system which is the caste system which has been legally abolished but still persists in the rural communities of India and their culture, religion and tradition. In the sacred texts of Hinduism, the Vedas, it is stated that women are inferior to men, which is quite ironic since these texts contain hymns to praise and exalt the powerful warrior goddesses who slay demons. A Hindu woman is nothing but property. It is often said that Islam has treated its women better by allowing them to inherit and own property and giving them the right to divorce their husbands. Hindu women cannot own any property and this makes her financially dependent on her husband. Girls are also considered an economic burden to her family because they have to pay her dowry when she gets married (Komath, 2013). She can only be considered human once she has a husband. Her husband also gives her his caste and she cannot maintain her caste if she decides to marry someone from the lower caste. However, once widowed, she is reduced to nothing more than a creature whose very shadow is considered offensive and impure. Her presence is considered a bad omen and this stigma prevents her from joining and participating in religious rites and festivities. She has to give up all worldly pleasures, such as wearing brightly colored sarees and jewellery. If he is an orthodox Hindu he will also have to shave his hair. Aside from this, she also has to abide by strict dietary restrictions (RNW,2009) A widow is financially dependent on her family and if they decide that they no longer want or can support her financially, she is on her own. If a widow is still young, as is often the case in Hindu societies due to the prevalent practice of child marriage, then she may still perform low-paid jobs such as cleaning houses because being a child does not exclude her from the harsh treatment and ostracization of widows in their society. Elderly women are forced to beg to survive in widow towns like Vrindivan and Varanasi. Many Indian widows await death, whichthey see it as the end of their misery; their only hope is that their circumstances will change in the next life by being born into a higher caste (Damon, 2007). Ancient Hinduism prevented women from achieving education because enlightened women are seen as undignified. However, this is now changing as women are clamoring to have the same rights as men in terms of education. India has seen the rise of women into high positions of power, such as Indira and Sonia Gandhi. India's economic rise has had repercussions throughout society, causing it to review and rethink its social vision of the role and identity of women. As India continues its slow journey towards modernity, there are people who want to thwart its efforts to improve the situation. life of his daughters. Hindu fundamentalists are calling for a return to their old culture and tradition as they seek to protect the idea of the traditional "Hindu family" by challenging women's right to education. In the eyes of fundamentalists, a woman in a traditional Hindu family should always be quiet and subordinate to her husband (Basharat, 2009). According to Vaishna Roy, there is a growing indigenous Indian feminism supported by Hindu nationalists who wanted a return of their traditions by distorting feminist ideas and using these ideas to oppress rather than emancipate women. In Indigenous feminism, women are also presented with a “choice,” however, these choices return them to their traditional gender roles. Women have to pay more attention to family rather than work and cannot raise serious young men if they do not behave in a sanskari manner (typical expectation of Hindu women's behavior as polite, meek and quiet) so that they do not deserve freedom. but have a "significant" role in their society through channeling. According to Bithika Misha Rahman, Indian feminists tend to neglect Dalit (untouchable caste) women and instead of achieving emancipation for all Indian women, they only provide freedom for a privileged few. To work, feminism in India must be intersectional; it must take into account the social hierarchies that give privileges and at the same time oppress people. An Indian feminist should not only focus on fighting patriarchy but must also wage war on the social system that perpetrates oppression in India. it also hurt them by confirming the ideals of a patriarchal society. Men are forced to conform to the idea of “toxic masculinity”; they have repressed their emotions because they are forbidden to express them and they also have to present themselves before the world in a strong and rational way. Being emotional, nurturing and caring are seen as feminine traits and a man is not allowed to display these traits because it is highly frowned upon in a patriarchal society. Indian men suffer from a dissonance from what they have been taught and the interdependence they have with their mothers; dissonance causes chauvinism because they must see women as inferior to them while being groomed to become the next patriarchal head of their family (Amarnathan, 2018). Apart from this, there is widespread social acceptance of violence among Indian men; these perpetuate harmful gender stereotypes and these men will grow up believing that they are excused for certain behaviors just because of their gender (Vijayann, 2015). In the Indian state of Haryana, rape is considered part of their society. Men are taught to blame women simply because of their smile and clothes that appeal to them, which is why women get raped. When a woman has reached a certain age (e.g. 14-15 years old) it is no longer considered rape since she has reached it.
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