THIRD WORLD FEMINISM AND CHE HUSNA AZHARI'S THE RAMBUTAN ORCHARD AND

MELOR IN PERSPECTIVE

BY

NORZIE DIANA BINTI BAHARUM

INTERNATIONAL ISLAMIC UNIVERSITY MALAYSIA

2007

THIRD WORLD FEMINISM AND CHE HUSNA AZHARI'S THE RAMBUTAN ORCHARD AND

MELOR IN PERSPECTIVE

BY

NORZIE DIANA BINTI BAHARUM

A dissertation submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Human

Sciences (English Literary Studies)

Kulliyyah of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and Human Sciences

International Islamic University Malaysia

JUNE 2007

A B S T R A C T

The emergence of Third World feminist criticism witnesses active roles played by its key figures: Rosario Castellanos, Gloria Anzaldua, Chandra Talpade Mohanty, Rey Chow, Trin Minh-ha and others. It creates a new way of looking at, assessing and representing the Third World peoples, particularly its women and culture that have been scorned, misunderstood and unfairly portrayed for centuries by the Western world. "Traditional," "underdeveloped," "uneducated" and "badly oppressed" are some Western connotations of the Third World, which erroneously judge these peoples as homogeneous and worthy of the same perception and treatment. As Malaysia is included in this Third World, there can be seen an increasing awareness of the Third World feminist criticism among Malaysian female writers and the chosen writer for this dissertation, Che Husna Azhari is no exception. The study intends to trace the elements of Third World feminist criticism in two of Che Husna Azhari's collections of short stories: The Rambutan Orchard (1993) and Melor in Perspective (1993). The study shows how certain elements of the Third World feminist criticism shape the tales of this writer, thus making her literary works distinctive from those of others. This research also deals with some issues pertaining to the Malay society and culture, particularly on the Malays in Kelantan, the state where the author was born and spent most of her childhood. By discussing the unique features of the Third World feminist criticism in Che Husna Azhari's creative works, this study, above all, hopes to build better appreciation of one's roots, identity and culture. It hopes to prove the distinctiveness and uniqueness of Third World literature, thus ensuring a diverse and multilateral world.

11

i i i

APPROVAL PAGE

I certify that I have supervised and read this study and that in my opinion, it conforms to acceptable standards of scholarly presentation and is fully adequate, in scope and quality, as a dissertation for the degree of Master of Human Sciences (English Literary Studies).

Mohammad A. Quayum Supervisor

I certify that I have read this study and that in my opinion it conforms to acceptable standards of scholarly presentation and is fully adequate, in scope and quality, as a dissertation for the degree of Master in Human Sciences (English Literary Studies).

Juliana Othman Examiner

This dissertation was submitted to the Department of English Language and Literature and is accepted as a partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Human Sciences (English Literary Studies).

Mohammad A. Quayum Head, Department of English Language and Literature

This dissertation was submitted to the Kulliyyah of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and Human Sciences and is accepted as a partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master in Human Sciences (English Literary Studies).

Hazizan Md. Noon Dean, Kulliyyah of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and Human Sciences

iv

DECLARATION

I hereby declare that this dissertation is the result of my own investigations, except

where otherwise stated. I also declare that it has not been previously or concurrently

submitted as a whole for any other degrees at IIUM or other institutions.

Norzie Diana Binti Baharum

Signature Date

v

INTERNATIONAL ISLAMIC UNIVERSITY MALAYSIA

DECLARATION OF COPYRIGHT AND AFFIRMATION OF FAIR USE OF UNPUBLISHED RESEARCH

Copyright © 2007 by Norzie Diana Binti Baharum. All rights reserved.

THIRD WORLD FEMINISM AND CHE HUSNA AZHARPS THE RAMBUTAN ORCHARD AND MELOR IN PERSPECTIVE

No part of this unpublished research may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without prior written permission of the copyright holder except as provided below.

1. Any material contained in or derived from this unpublished research may only be used by others in their writing with due acknowledgment.

2. IIUM or its library will have the right to make and transmit copies (print or electronic) for institutional and academic purposes.

3. The HUM library will have the right to make, store in a retrieval system and supply copies of this unpublished research if requested by other universities and research libraries.

Affirmed by Norzie Diana Binti Baharum.

Signature Date

TO MY:

AYAH, BAHARUM BIN MOHAMED

EMAK, MARIAH BINTI MUHMMAD

&

BROTHERS,

BADRUL HISHAM BIN BAHARUM

MOHAMAD HAFIZI BIN BAHARUM

MOHAMAD HAFIZAN BIN BAHARUM

LUQMAN AFIQ BIN BAHARUM

THIS DISSERTATION IS AFFECTIONATELY DEDICATED

vn

ACKNOWLED GMENTS

All praise be to Allah S.W.T. for blessing and guiding me throughout the completion of this dissertation. It is Him who shows me the beauty of Ilm, the knowledge that would never be enough for me to treasure. I would like to express my utmost and sincerest gratitude to all those who were involved and had assisted, either directly or indirectly, in making this study possible. First and foremost, the highest gratitude to Prof. Dr. Mohammad Abdul Quayum for his great supervision, wisdom, patience, and dedication. I thank him too, for inspiring me to be a good academician through his ideas of "true academia" and "good academic standard". To my second examiner, Dr. Juliana Othman, for her vigilant observation and useful comments. To all the lecturers and staff of the DELL and the Kulliyyah, for their assistance and advice. To the staff of the CPS for their kind cooperation. To IIUM, for all the opportunities poured on me as well as for being my lovely "Garden of Knowledge and Virtue". To my family and friends for their endless support and prayers and last, but certainly not least, to all of my teachers wherever they are. My appreciation goes to each and every one of you.

vm

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Abstract ii Abstract (in Arabic) iii Approval Page iv Declaration Page v Copyright Page vi Dedication vii Acknowledgements viii

CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION 1.0 Background ofthe Study 1 1.1. Statement of Problem 3 1.2. Objectives ofthe Study 5 1.3. Significance ofthe Study 6 1.4. Scope ofthe Study 7 1.5. Literature Review 7

1.5.1 Criticism on Che Husna Azhari 7 1.5.2 Third World Feminism 10

1.6. Theoretical Framework 14 1.7. Methodology 15 1.8. Limitations ofthe Study 16 1.10 Islamic Point of View 17 1.11 Organization of Chapters 19

CHAPTER TWO: FEMINISM AND WOMEN'S MOVEMENT 2.0. Introduction 21 2.1. First Wave Feminism (17th Century-l^ Century) 22 2.2. Second Wave Feminism (1960s) 27

2.2.1 Existentialist Feminism 29 2.2.2 Liberal Feminism 30 2.2.3 Marxist Feminism 31 2.2.4 Radical Feminism 33 2.2.5 Psychoanalytical Feminism 35

2.3. Third Wave Feminism and Third World Feminism 36 2.3.1 Difference in Opposition to Equality and Sameness 39 2.3.2 Biological Difference: The Concept of Mothering and

Motherhood 40 2.3.3 Differences and Identities in Opposition to Universality 40 2.3.4 Third World Feminism and "Mestiza Consciousness" 44

2.4. First, Second and Third Wave Feminisms: An Overview 47

IX

CHAPTER THREE: THERAMBUTAN ORCHARD 3.0 Introduction 51 3.1 On Memory and Memory-Based Writing 52 3.2 On Matriarchy and Motherhood 56 3.3 Identity: Islam and the Formation of Muslim Identity 60 3.4 The Malay Patriarchy and the Construction of Femininity 64 3.5 Women-Related Issues: The Social Stigma and Stereotype

of Women 67 3.6 Conclusion 71

CHAPTER FOUR: MELOR IN PERSPECTIVE 4.0 Introduction 73 4.1 Consciousness, Identity and Politics 76

4.1.1 Distinctive Setting and Characters 78 4.1.2 Deterritorialization through Language: The Use of Kelantanese

Dialect 79 4.2 Women at the Centre: Malay Muslim Women's Experiences and

Perspectives 85 4.2.1 "Mariah": Women and Polygamy 86 4.2.2 "Ustazah Inayah": Women and Politics in Kelantan 91

4.3 Multiple Forms of Narrative 100 4.4 Conclusion 103

CHAPTER FIVE: CONCLUSION 105

BIBLIOGRAPHY 115

GLOSSARY 124

x

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.0 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

In 1983 a leading feminist publisher told us (with kindly [sic] condescension) that there was no such field as "third world feminisms." In 1990 feminists of color are transforming the contours of the academy and the polity.

(Mohanty, Russo and Torres, 1991: x)

"Third World", which is often connoted by the West as "traditional", "poor",

and "underdeveloped", has been seen as inferior for centuries, thus demeaning its non-

homogenous peoples and different cultures. The Third World peoples, men and

women, are often disfavoured, neglected, misunderstood and misrepresented; these

unfair treatments often result from strong Western ethnocentrism. A call to truly

represent these victimized peoples is inarguably needed, and this is where the female

critics and writers of this "other" world can play their role in resisting Western

feminism.

It is important to note that the term "Third World feminism" is interchangeable

with "Postcolonial feminism". These two traits of feminism share a lot of things in

common where, as suggested by the writer of the Wikipedia, "much postcolonial

feminist writing overlaps with transnational feminism and Third-world feminism"

(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Postcolonial_feminism). Third World feminism or Post-

colonial feminism was initiated by Rosario Castellanos - a Mexican feminist critic,

novelist, playwright, and poet - in her 1973 essay "Mujer que sabe latin" (Woman who

Knows Latin) (Humm, 1994). This strand of feminism has been paving a new path and

creating a better understanding among the women of different colours and cultures in

1

the hands of its more contemporary critics and writers of colour such as Gayatri Spivak,

Chandra Talpade Mohanty, Rey Chow, Gloria Anzaldua, Chela Sandoval and Trinh T.

Minh-ha. According to Humm (1994: 252), these female critics and writers are the ones

who have set "an agenda for feminist literary criticism for the 1990s and beyond". In

her essay "Cartographies of Struggle: Third World Women and the Politics of

Feminism", Chandra Talpade Mohanty suggests that Asia is geographically included in

the Third World (Mohanty, Russo and Torres, 1991). Needless to say, therefore,

Malaysia, being part of Asia, also comes under this broad category.

With a pride of difference from the dominant European cultures, Third World

female writers often work dedicatedly on the preservation of their roots and traditions.

In their respective works, for example, Gloria .Anzaldua chooses to talk about her

Chicana culture and Rey Chow comes with a strong defence of China and Chinese

women (Humm, 1994). In relation to this progressive feminism, this study will focus

on a Malaysian writer, Che Husna Azhari and her two fictional works, The Rambutan

Orchard (1993) and Melor in Perspective (1993). In line with the spirit of Third

World feminism, Che Husna .Azhari is comfortable with the tales of her own: of the

Malay people, particularly the Malays in Kelantan, the state where she was bom and

spent most of her childhood. The Rambutan Orchard, which comprises six

interconnected narratives, entitled "The Rambutan Orchard: The Garden Green",

"Mamuk The Rolling Ghost", "The Village Wall (an ascetic)", "The Mascot", "The

Boy Who Spoke Sparingly", and "The Rambutan Orchard: Epilogue", is a collection

of tales that are based on her childhood memories. Che Husna (1993a: 5), makes a

note of her semi-autobiographical narrative in the following words:

Hence I began the novella with The Garden Green, an allegory of the other Garden. The ensuing stories then annotate my process of growing, of losing innocence until the Epilogue, which by then has progressed

2

into an 'adult's story.'

We follow a child's growing-up from a child of six's viewpoint (Mamuk The Rolling Ghost), then one of eight (The Village Wali, The Mascot), then one often (The Boy Who Spoke Sparingly) till adulthood (Epilogue).

The second collection, Melor in Perspective, is filled with stories of the Malay

community in Kelantan. There are all together eight short stories in the book:

"Mariah", "The Country Doctor", "Of Bunga Telur (a wedding gift) and Bally Shoes",

"Pak De Samad's Cinema", "Mek Teh, Mother Andam (a traditional beautician)",

"The Happiest Man in Molo", "He Who Fell From Grace", and "Ustazah Inayah". In

both the books, Che Husna Azhari depicts the life and culture of her people through

the voices of her local characters such as Inayah, a promising young female politician;

Pak De Samad, the hit man; Ing, the insane; Adnan, the devastated politician (Tok

Wakil), and Mek Teh, the blasphemous traditional beautician. The author beautifully

interweaves various subjects on identity, differences, religion, politics, Malay

patriarchy, motherhood and some others, which are among the distinctive features of

the writing, produced by Third World female writers.

1.1 STATEMENT OF PROBLEM

Being the "other" in the Western eye, Third World peoples are often neglected and

seen as of no importance. In her book, A Reader's Guide to Contemporary Feminist

Literary Criticism, Maggie Humm (1994: 252), acknowledges this by saying that,

until the 1980s, the West:

First...excluded most Asian and Black theory, criticism and creative writing. Second, the issues raised by the Third World critics often simplified; and finally, a very few Third World critics appropriated into a largely unchanged literary agenda.

3

The rejection of Third World writings for its "otherness" should not continue as it

totally silences the Third World voices and depreciates the writers. Western

ethnocentrism, which views cultural differences as exotic and absurd, should be

dismantled since the only way to better appreciate the Third World is to understand its

distinctiveness, an idea which is central to Third World feminism itself. Conway and

Cherrin (1998: 8) point out, "Waldman and Waldman (1992) ask whether it is ever

ethical to pass judgments (about local customs) without understanding their meaning

within the cultural context."

When the established literary canon fails to understand the differences of the

Third World and its peoples, injustice is done to their different cultures. It not only

results in the rejection of Third World literature but also in the degradation,

misinterpretation and misrepresentation of their religious practices, social customs,

gender perceptions as well as the other living aspects of their societies. This is where

the Third World feminist writers begin their step: to correct such Western

misunderstandings, misrepresentations, and biased conceptions through the portrayal

of their cultures, the truth of their women, and some other collective issues known

best to them, in their literary pieces.

Being a Third World female writer, Che Husna Azhari seems to pursue a

similar objective in The Rambutan Orchard and Melor in Perspective. Interweaving

the issues of polygamous marriage, politics, religion, and conflicting lives of Malays,

this Malaysian author uses her fiction to creatively explain the Malay way of life in

Malaysia. As she chooses to picture the "rural Malay people, places and customs

especially of Kelantan" (Nor Faridah and Mohammad A. Quayum, 2003: 343), she

purposefully delineates a specific society and culture (Nor Faridah, 1995). This study,

therefore, aims at tracing the elements of Third World feminism in the two mentioned

4

works. These distinctive elements depicted through the characters, setting and

cultural issues in Che Husna's books certainly show the uniqueness of the Malay

people and their culture, which is intended as the primary focus of this dissertation.

1.2 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

This study has several objectives. Firstly, it aims to discuss the principle elements of

Third World feminism. Key ideas of Third World feminism as asserted by its major

critics such as Rosario Castellanos, Chandra Talpade Mohanty, Gloria Anzaldua, Rey

Chow and others as well as their parallels in the works of Che Husna Azhari, who

comes from a Third World country, will be analyzed.

Secondly, the research hopes to show how these elements feature in the works

of Che Husna Azhari. It is important to see the author's portrayal of the Malays'

differences, as to prove the distinctive features of the criticism which focuses on the

differences of Third World peoples.

Thirdly, this study seeks to deal particularly between the aspects of Third

World feminism and Islamic perspective in certain ways. Some collective issues such

as marriage, polygamy, religion, politics, and motherhood are among important issues

to be highlighted and discussed from the views of Third World feminism as well as

the teaching of Islam. This is to show that this strand of feminism is not far fetched

from the Islamic teaching itself.

Finally, the objective of this research is to raise 'awareness' of Che Husna as a

writer of Malaysian English writing generally. Despite her use of English, the

author's writings on the Malay cultures, roots and traditions should be given

considerable attention and appreciated.

5

1.3 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

The study is significant as it discusses the elements of Third World feminism within

the Malaysian context, in which the distinctiveness of the Malays, particularly the

Malay populace in Kelantan, remains the central focus. Since the key figures of this

movement come from other parts of the Third World, such as Mexico, India, and

China, the discussion of Che Husna Azhari's books, The Rambutan Orchard and

Melor in Perspective, is important as it would add a new cultural dimension to the

Third World feminist discourse. In representing her Latin American writing and

culture, Rosario Castellanos, chooses to portray the three classic personas of La

Malinche, the Virgin of Guadalupe, and Sor Juana Ines de la Cruz (Humm, 1994).

More recent critics such as Gloria Anzaldua and Rey Chow used their own stories to

develop and enunciate their views. The former focuses on her Chicana culture, while

the latter firmly protects and defends her 'China' and 'Chinese-ness' in response to

Western assaults of her land and tradition (Humm: 1994).

As the Third World seems mostly to be known through the works and discourses of

these critics, the study feels the need to examine the people and culture of the other Third

World country, such as Malaysia Examining Che Husna .Azhari's short stories may show

some uniqueness of Third World feminism: the uniqueness coming specially from the

Malay viewpoint. The study will explain how a different representative of the Third World

perceives the ideas of marriage, religious belief and motherhood. The study is crucial as it

points out some local issues as witnessed and experienced by the writer.

In addition, the research on Che Husna Azhari as a Malaysian writer is vital to

enrich the studies done on an Asian woman writer, whose works are not widely read

by even local readers. Except for her tale "OfBunga Telur and Bally Shoes", which is

included in the Malaysian secondary school English syllabus, her other narratives

6

seem to be largely unknown to Malaysian readers. It is believed that an in-depth

analysis of The Rambutan Orchard and Melor in Perspective will create a better

understanding and higher appreciation of Third World woman's writing in general and

Che Husna Azhari's works in particular.

1.4 SCOPE OF THE STUDY

This research will examine the elements of Third World feminist criticism in Che

Husna Azhari's semi-autobiographical narratives, The Rambutan Orchard (1993) and

collection of short stories, Melor in Perspective (1993). As the criticism itself

promotes the importance of memory, the use of different languages, elementary

concern with politics and some other communal socio-religious issues, this research

will look at the application of this criticism in these works, with special reference to

the Malay distinctive ideas of marriage, motherhood, religion, politics and other

aspects of life. This analysis hopes to highlight the uniqueness of the Third World

writing in general and of the Malaysian writing in particular.

1.5 LITERATURE REVIEW

This study examines Che Husna's collections of short stories, The Rambutan Orchard

and Melor in Perspective as well as the elements of Third World feminism.

Therefore, materials discussing the author, her works and Third World feminist ideas

are used for this study.

1.5.1 Criticism on Che Husna Azhari

As one of Malaysia's contemporary female writers writing in English, Che Husna

.Azhari's works, unfortunately, are not vastly read and studied, especially by

7

Malaysians, who, according to the author, "are not a reading society" (Nor Faridah,

1995: 18). Although the published materials on this writer are limited in number, they

are inarguably helpful for this research. One of them is the book by Nor Faridah

Abdul Manaf and Mohammad A. Quayum, entitled Colonial to Global: Malaysian

Women's Writing in English 1940s-1990s (2003), which includes a brief discussion of

Che Husna Azhari's style of writing. Categorized under "Cultural and Traditional

Fiction" (Nor Faridah and Mohammad A. Quayum: 342), the works written by Che

Husna are comparatively the same with those written by the writers of the 1960s,

portraying "a wide range of women characters and depict [sic] various women's

strength [sic] and limitation [sic] in their coping with oppressive cultural and

traditional demands" (p.343). In this book, Che Husna .Azhari's short story "Mariah"

is briefly discussed, limited only to the issue of polygamy, involving the main

characters of the tale, the imam, his first wife Che Yam, and Mariah, the second wife.

In spite of its brevity, the discussion of Che Husna Azhari and "Mariah" in the book is

undoubtedly valuable, especially on the question of polygamy, as polygamy is one of

the major issues to be highlighted in this study.

An article by Wong Soak Koon, "Intervening into the Narrative of 'Nation':

Che Husna Azhari's Kelantan Tales" (2003), is a good analysis focusing on the

history of Kelantan, a central setting of the author's two collections, The Rambutan

Orchard and Melor in Perspective. Wong (2003: 49) says that in the first section of

Melor in Perspective, entitled "Melor in Perspective I: A Brief History", Che Husna

Azhari "presents a history of Kelantan that breaks down the stereotype of Kelantanese

insularity." The analysis on the socio-political history of the state, particularly of the

town of Melor, the more specific setting of the writer's works, looks at the idea of

Malay nationality and identity; of how the Malays in Kelantan are historically closely

8

connected to the Malays of Southern Thailand, of Pattani and Chempa, resulting in

what Wong (2003: 50) terms as "hybrid identity" of the Malays in Kelantan. Besides,

the article also looks at Che Husna Azhari's discussion of some leaders of "Melor",

such as Wan Mahmud and Azhari, and her semi-mythical figures of Cik Siti Wan

Kembang and Puteri Saadong. This analysis is useful in tracing some connections

between the socio-political history of Kelantan and "Melor" and the sociology of the

author's prose fiction, of how such a historical background may have its influence on

her The Rambutan Orchard and Melor in Perspective.

Furthermore, Wong analyzes the author's four short stories collected in Melor

in Perspective - "Mek Teh, Mother Andam", "Pak De Samad's Cinema", "He Who

Fell From Grace", and "Ustazah Inayah". In her discussion, Wong (2003: 53) focuses

on the "representation of the complexity of Malay-Muslim identity for men and

women alike". Analyzing "Mek Teh", Wong sees submissiveness, loyalty, passivity

and, above all, sexuality and "magic" as among the "tools" used by this protagonist to

"bind her own husband as well as the many male members in the audience who are

intoxicated by her bangsawan dancing" (p. 54). Furthering her investigation of the

characters, Wong focuses on Pak De Samad as a hit man and the magical power

associated with Pak De Samad's particular midi-axe, used in his hitting job. As Wong

calls it "a hybrid allegiance of animism and Islam" (p. 5 5), the portrayal of the magical

powers in both short stories proves the complexity of the Malay-Muslim identity in

Che Husna Azhari's characterization. In her analysis of "He Who Fell From Grace"

and "Ustazah Inayah", Wong examines Adnan, the protagonist of the first story and

Inayah of the second story as young political figures who have to face numerous

political challenges. In contrasting the characters of Adnan and Inayah, Wong

suggests that Adnan is a "self-serving" politician, while Inayah is a "constituents-

9

concerned" female politician. She also sees gender as one of the challenges Inayah

has to face when she chooses to enter the long male-dominated political milieu.

1.5.2 Third World Feminism

Since the focus of this study is the elements of Third World feminism in Che Husna

Azhari's fiction, a balanced analysis of both the author's own literary works and Third

World feminism is needed. In her book, A Reader's Guide to Contemporary Feminist

Literary Criticism (1994), Maggie Humm begins with a discussion of Third World

feminism in the chapter, "Third World Feminist Criticism: Third Wave and Fifth

Gear". Humm suggests that Third World feminist criticism has evolved through the

years, mainly in the hands of critics such as Rosario Castellanos, Gloria Anzaldua,

Chandra Talpade Mohanty, Chela Sandoval, Gayatri Spivak, Rey Chow and others.

She also explains that the movement:

focuses on three major issues: on the politics of universalism; on cultural controls and misrepresentations; and on the homogeneity of the canon. A central concern is to create a feminist criticism which is neither universalist nor written from the margins and which can attend to writing [sic] ignored by the canon (1994: 252-253).

Working on the basis of the Third World differences and distinctiveness,

Humm (1994: 253) elaborates that Third World feminist writings present "particular

forms of ethnic difference, genres and languages". According to her, what makes

Third World feminist writing different from Western feminist writing is the use of

multiple forms of narrative such as the combination of poetry, fiction, historical

stories, fables and others. Besides that, the writing of autobiography is also central to

Third World feminism. Humm believes that the Third World writing of life histories

is "less retrospective and more focused on a future, non-ethnocentric culture", and in

which the discussion of the past is "seen through a clear political sense" (p.266). In

10

addition, Third World life narratives invite reader's response to create shared

experience between them and the authors. Besides stressing the importance of

writing, Third World feminism, in contrast to Western radical feminism, values

motherhood which is seen as a strength, rather than a weakness, of women.

Matriarchal system is really significant in the writings of the Third World women,

making their works women-centred. Furthermore, explaining the essentials of this

feminism, Humm also points out the significance of collective consciousness, formed

by storytelling and criticism that might possibly be created from such Third World

women's realization. Another vital argument in Maggie Humm's article is the three

key features of minor literature discussed by Gilles Deleuze and Felix Guattari (1983),

which according to her are visible in Third World feminist writing: "Its subversion of

the territory of the majority through language; its fundamental concern with politics;

and its urge to represent collective issues" (pp.265-266).

Third World Women and the Politics of Feminism (1991), a book edited by

Chandra Talpade Mohanty, Ann Russo and Lourdes Torres, contains some essential

and resourceful articles written by Third World women critics. Mohanty, in her essay

entitled "Cartographies of Struggle: Third World Women and the Politics of

Feminism", begins her discussion by defining the terms "Third World" and "Third

World peoples" in the following book:

Geographically, the nation-states of Latin America, the Caribbean, Sub-Saharan Africa, South and Southeast Asia, China, South Africa and Oceania constitute the parameters of the non-European third world. In addition, black, Latino, Asian, and indigenous peoples in the U.S., Europe, and Australia, some of whom have historic links with the geographically defined world, also refer to themselves as third world peoples (as cited in Mohanty et al., 1991: 5).

Mohanty attacks Western feminism for limiting its struggle only to the issues

of gender as she sees race, class, nation, and sexuality being equally responsible for

11

women's oppression all around the world. Third World women, according to her, are

not oppressed merely for being women but also for being non-white, non-western and

lower class citizen. Stressing strongly that Third World women are non-

homogeneous, she lays down some focal elements of the Third World women's

writing on feminism:

(1) the idea of simultaneity of oppressions as fundamental to the experience of social and political marginality and the grounding of feminist politics in the histories of racism and imperialism; (2) the crucial role of a hegemonic state in circumscribing their/our daily lives and survival struggles; (3) the significance of memory and writing in the creation of oppositional agency; and (4) the differences, conflicts, and contradictions internal to third world women's organization and communities (as cited in Mohanty et al., 1991: 10).

In discussing the significance of memory and writing, Mohanty (1991: 33)

highlights on the distinctiveness of Third World "life-story oriented written

narratives" which, as she points out, is an important "mode of remembering and

recording experience and struggles". Writing, according to Mohanty, leads Third

World female writers to "self- and collective consciousness" (p.33), and "often

becomes the context through which new political identities are forged" (p.34).

Mohanty further stresses the significance of Third World life narratives in

understanding the connection between Third World women and feminism as well as

the realities of these women of colours.

In another article, "Under Western Eyes: Feminist Scholarship and Colonial

Discourse" (1991), Mohanty analyzes Western feminists' projection of the Third

World women as "a singular monolithic subject" (as cited in Mohanty et al., 1991:

51). In her article, she does not only limit her attack on Western feminists but extends

it to "anyone who uses these methods, whether Third World women in the West or

Third World women in the Third World writing on these issues and publishing in the

12

West"(p.21).

Moreover, Mohanty tries to show how, what she terms as "ethnocentric

universalism", exists in the discourses of these feminists. In showing the existence of

universal ethnocentrism, Mohanty focuses her analyses on the works of the Zed Press

Women in the Third World series, the works in which the feminist writers tend to

simply generalize Third World women's issues. Mohanty (as cited in Mohanty et al.,

1991: 21) also argues that, Western feminist writing comes with its own political

effects, as she says, "one of such significant effect [sic] of the dominant

'representations' of Western feminism is its conflation with imperialism in the eyes of

particular Third World women". Western feminists' cultural discourse on the Third

World, according to Mohanty, is a kind of non-physical colonization, where the

hegemonic West suppresses the Third World subjects and erroneously classifies the

latter as identical and homogeneous. She totally rejects "Western feminist re­

presentation of women in the third world" as "ignorant, poor, uneducated, tradition-

bound, domestic, family-oriented, victimized etc" and Western feminists' self-

presentation as "educated, modern, having control over their own bodies and

sexualities, and the freedom to make their own decisions" (p.56). Stressing the need

to understand the Third World women's issues from within the society, Mohanty

argues that women in the Third World countries cannot be generally seen as sexually

oppressed, dependent, or politically, economically, and religiously victimized. This

important Third World feminist critic also points out the fact that "women's

oppression is a global phenomenon" (p.66), and that the Third World women cannot

be analyzed based on "universalistic, ahistorical categories" (p.69).

Trinh T. Minh-ha, in her book Women, Native, Other: Writing Postcoloniality

and Feminism (1989), highlights the Western negative and biased conceptions of the

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