Abstract

This Women have always been subjected to discrimination and patriarchal subordination. The study is carried out on "Nobody killed her'' (2017), written by Pakistani author Sabyn Javeri Jillani. This study investigates the major constraints faced by Eastern women within political systems and the conspiracy theories they are being subjected to. The study is analyzed qualitatively from a political perspective. Paul Ricoeur's theory of "Feminist Political Philosophy has been investigated for further research. The findings reveal if society is very stiff in terms of norms and culture, then even if the women might be trying their level best to come and yet are driven by the patriarchy. This leads to the belief that despite efforts, patriarchy tends to be a dominant hurdle which multiplies the patriarchal influence on women’s lives, according to the picture painted within the novel which leads to the loss of self-confidence and a psychological fear of dependence within women.

Key Words

Political Feminism, Patriarchy, Identity Crisis, Postcolonial

Introduction

The novel under study is written by Sabyn Javeri Jillani, who is an eminent short story writer and is currently a professor of Literature and Creative Writing at Habib University, Pakistan. She is a graduate of the University of Oxford and later on, did her PhD from Leicester University. Sabeen is famous for her short story collection called "Hijabistan" (2019), which was published by Harper Collins Publications. The collection brought her huge acclaim. Besides, she has also grabbed The Oxonian Review short story award. In addition to that Sabyn was shortlisted for Tibor Jones South Asia Prize. Her writings are primarily focused on the discrimination made against women (The News, 2017). She narrates the issues of the underprivileged as well as the privileged women of Pakistani society. Her writings are known for depicting the gender gap and dilemma of oppression faced by women. Her style is peculiar because of its experimental nature.

"Nobody Killed Her" (2017) by Javeri is known for the sensational pattern in which the novel is written. The novel is published by Harper Collins Publishers and the title page illustration indicates something mysterious. The plot of the novel is truly a political thriller. Javeri has impressively composed it as a "courtroom trial" as stated by Nusrat Khawja in her book review for News line magazine (2017.) The plot is complex and follows the interconnection of personal emotions and reflects the response of the main characters under the influence of emotional complexity. The protagonist of the novel is a woman who is a political immigrant and wants to pursue a life as she has dreamed. In this journey, she, later on, meets an influential woman with a strong political background who is apparently the only heir to the falling political dynasty. The story then winds again into a loop of misunderstandings, conflicts, power games and failures. Lamat.R.Hasan (2017) describes that "The story of love, loyalty, obsession and deception – the machinations of human nature - spill out, page after page, climaxing at page 430. 

The plot comprises an assassination which seems mysterious to the reader throughout. It revolves around two women who are poles opposite to each other. Nazneen or Nazo is the voice of the lower class women and Madam Rani Shah belongs to an influential political background. Over the course of time, both these women develop a strong bonding and become a single unit to work for mutual goals. There comes a time when the effort of Nazo, the woman from a low background becomes the reason for the success of Madam Rani Shah who only enjoys this success without giving any due credit to her helping hand. The story follows Rani'Shah's struggles to prove herself capable enough to beat the political patriarchy. Nazo serves as her aide de camp and her devotion towards her mistress is exemplary. Followed by the military conspiracies, these women keep on continuing their doctrine. Nazo serves as the player and Rani Shah acts as her checkmate in this political chess. Things get interesting when both these women come into the competition of each other and the spark of jealousy ignites the fire of hatred, and mistrust and eventually leads to a murder. The wickedness of women followed by hatred turns into a devastation from which no one gets saved. The courtroom drama keeps on taking sharp turns at every single moment and the characters seem to keep on playing their tricks upon one another. The climax is intense followed by the emotional burden of guilt and jealousy, the story wraps into an unexpected end where the guilty finds espionage and the innocent one suffers the consequences of being a puppet, voluntarily being in the hands of the controlling political masters. 

The plot is riveting in itself, but it is the manner in which the story has been told makes it even more luminous. "It is only so rare that a writer has a sparkling story to tell, and the fact that she manages to tell that story exceptionally well makes this debut novel one-of-a-kind. This novel is very well our subcontinent's version of Gone Girl, and is most assuredly not going to fade away from readers' minds or from bestseller lists anytime soon." (Women's Web, 2013). It is worth noticing that the plot strangely resembles the life and death of Pakistan's first female Prime Minister, Mrs Benazir Bhutto. Many of the critics have also noted this striking resemblance between fiction and reality. They also pinpoint that in some way much of her plot is inspired by Benazir's life journey followed by her assassination. In Lamat's words, "I find the comparisons between Javeri's protagonist Rani Shah and her servant-cum-private secretary Nazo difficult to shun out of the brain. Even Shah's husband's character seems modelled on "Mr. 10 per cent" - an uncanny resemblance to Asif Ali Zardari, the man Bhutto married in real life" (Hindustan Times, 2017).

The novel's prime focus is on finding women's place within politics. As the two major characters of the novel are women, including the protagonist herself. This is very unique when from the Pakistani perspective because in Pakistani society, males enjoy the ultimate authority therefore, a strong woman protagonist seems a bit unusual. In an interview given to India Today, Javeri states, "My main protagonist or rather antagonist, Nazo Khan, is being called the bad girl of Pakistani English literature and I take it as a compliment. There have been a few female-centric novels but mostly from the view of victims of abuse or arranged marriage or religious minority. I want to see novels about strong Pakistani women who are celebrated for their heroics, not empathized for their plight."(Javeri, Sabyn, 2017).




Significance & Rationale of Research

The study focuses on finding the representation of women in politics which is considered an unlikeable act in the patriarchal society. In the presence of stiff patriarchal norms, it becomes a challenge for a woman stepping into politics because of the limitations attached to it. In a society where women are given the right to vote based upon the likeness of their patriarchs and her personal choices are not even paid heed, this novel is of critical importance. According to the critic Meher Suri, "Sabyn shuns the idea of playing the victim and offers a refreshing take on how a woman doesn't assume the status of a human rights crusader because she was wronged by society or because she longs to see a world free of hyper-masculine scum that has hijacked the public and private spheres alike (Firstpost, 2017).

The study will further help to find out the hurdles a woman faces when she enters politics. The novel gives an insight into the conspiracies which are specific to this world and the mode of coping with them from a woman's perspective. It will reveal the socio-political constraints experienced by women who choose to be a leader. It will also disclose the gender-based issues that are existent within a patriarchal society and a writer's take on it.

The author herself added in this regard, "There are a number of invisible barricades closing in on you with the expectations that come along with being an upper-class woman. The occurrence of rape and divorce is unflinchingly silenced owing to the 'shame' it brings to the family in question" (Firstpost, 2017).




Research Statement

Pakistani society is a patriarchal society, where the authority rests in the hands of the men. This control makes it difficult for women to prove themselves capable in fields which are entirely male-dominated. 

Since politics for many appears as a dirty game of power, therefore, masses are against women's participation in it. In this situation, women who step into politics are highly subjected to discrimination and hatred.




Aims and Objectives

The study has the following aims and objectives:

a. To find out the potential constraints faced by women who are part of political systems. 

b. To interpret the gender discrimination occurring due to patriarchy.

c. To explore a woman’s journey from being a homemaker to a leader.

d. To understand the significance of political activism as a feminist agenda.




Research Questions

1. What are the major barriers women face being politicians?

2. What is patriarchy’s stance towards politically active women?

3. How the tier-system is portrayed within the novel?




Delimitation

Feminism is a very broad term and has multiple approaches. All the approaches though correlate with each other, but somehow they all are distinct depending upon the context and scenario. The study in focus deals with “Political Feminism” which is an ideology obtained from Liberalism. Liberalism is one of the three basic theories of feminism. Its roots are deep in the feminist theory, but, “Liberal feminism conceives of freedom as personal autonomy—living a life of one's own choosing—and political autonomy—being co-author of the conditions under which one lives.”(Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, “Liberal Feminism”. 2013). The study here only enforces that “feminist political philosophy aims to show how traditional political philosophy is implicated in that discrimination and how the resources of political philosophy may nevertheless be employed in the service of women.” (Mendus, Susan, 2000).

Javeri through her writing hints at the political scenario of Pakistan. The study which is carried out on her writing will analyze and derive conclusions on the basis of the particular context which is being provided by her. The study discusses the role of women in societies where women are restrained from being political activists and are subjected to male subordination. This hindrance prevails in third-world countries more prominently than in European ones. Kishwar Naheed depicts the hindrance as, "Even after you have tied the chains of domesticity, shame and modesty around my feet even after you have paralyzed me this fear will not leave you that even though I cannot walk I can still think." (Qtd. in Mansoor, A, 2016).

Literature Review

The term “Political Philosophy” itself originated from the ideology of Liberal feminism which “conceives of freedom as personal autonomy—living a life of one's own choosing—and political autonomy—being the co-author of the conditions under which one lives. Liberal feminists hold that the exercise of personal autonomy depends on certain enabling conditions that are insufficiently present in women's lives, or that social arrangements often fail to respect women's personal autonomy and other elements of women's flourishing” (Baehr, Amy R., 2018). In the words of Erica Tucker (2014), “Feminist political theory is a field within both feminist theory and within the political theory that takes a feminist approach to traditional questions within political philosophy, contemporary and historical.” Political feminist philosophy witnesses a history of changes which were being implemented and modulated just like feminism. In other words, “the history of feminism is a gendered narrative of political history that goes well beyond the adding and stirring in of an occasional queen, a comment on "new woman" fashion, or a photograph of a demonstration for the right to vote. It necessarily expands the very meaning of "political" and of what constitutes "politics"(Ofen, Karen, 2011). There has been a long ladder of development which followed all along to nourish the political philosophy.

Current feminist political philosophy is indebted to the work of earlier generations of feminist scholarship and activism, including the first wave of feminism in the English-speaking world, which took place from the 1840s to the 1920s and focused on improving the political, educational, and economic system primarily for middle-class women. Its greatest achievements were to develop a language of equal rights for women and to garner women the right to vote. It is also indebted to the second wave of feminism, which, beginning in the 1960s, drew on the language of the civil rights movements (e.g., the language of liberation) and on a new feminist consciousness that emerged through women’s solidarity movements and new forms of reflection that uncovered sexist attitudes and impediments throughout the whole of society.”(McAfee, Noelle and Katie B. Howard, 2018).

Political feminism remained a part of literature long before this philosophy itself was curated. Mary Wollstonecraft initially discussed the idea of women's representation within socio-political affairs in her book "A Vindication of the Rights of the Women" (1792). In her book, she pinpointed the prevalent issues present and how women were being exploited and deprived of their active representation in life. She states, "I do not wish them [women] to have power over men; but over themselves.” (1792) ch.4. At many points, she discusses women's autonomy in terms of power and provides a narrative to support her argument. “If we revert to history, we shall find that the women who have distinguished themselves have neither been the most beautiful nor the gentlest of their sex.”(1792) ch.7. Her stress upon giving women the acclaim they deserve and quoting history is an indirect depiction of the origin of the political and philosophy of power. 

Vivien Jones points out that Wollstonecraft’s opinion on John Gregory’s Legacy to his Daughters changed considerably between the time she (Wollstonecraft) wrote her anthology, The Female Reader, in 1789 as a struggling freelance writer and the time she wrote A Vindication of the Rights of Woman, as a “newly politicized” writer in 1792. (Qtd in Ann Sofia, 2009). Much of the development within the political philosophy owes to John Stuart Mill (1806-1873). In his essay entitled “The Subjection of Women” (1869) co-written by him and his wife Harriet Taylor Will (1807-1858), he discusses the political and social segregation of both the sexes by stating, “It is useless for me to say that those who maintain the doctrine that men have a right to command and women are under an obligation to obey, or that men are fit for government and women unfit, are on the affirmative side of the question, and that they are bound to show positive evidence for the assertions, or submit to their rejection."(P.4) He goes on to claim that, "The principle which regulates the existing social relations between the two sexes—the legal subordination of one sex to the other—is wrong in itself, and now one of the chief hindrances to human improvement; and that it ought to be replaced by a principle of perfect equality, admitting no power or privilege on the one side, nor disability on the other."(p.58). This forms the basis of the origin of political philosophy in the form in which it is interpreted by the world today.

The first-ever female Prime Minister of Pakistan Benazir Bhutto's memoir "Benazir Bhutto-Daughter of Destiny, An Autobiography" (1998) highlights the struggle of a woman against patriarchy in order to claim her desired place within the political system. She understands the social barriers obstructing a woman's path within an Eastern society. "Clearly it's not easy for women in modern society, no matter where they live. We still have to go the extra mile to prove that we are equal to men. We have to work longer hours and make more sacrifices. And we must emotionally protect ourselves from unfair, often vicious attacks made on us via the male members of our family.”(Bhutto. Benazir, 1998). On her political stance, Niveditha (2019) remarks, “Benazir with her diplomacy and democratic vision for modern Pakistan, raises her voice against Zia and his administration which had demolished all structures constituted by Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. Her mission was to transform Pakistani society from Dystopia to Democracy. Through her autobiography, she displays her ideological sophistication and discipline. (p.78). Thus, Benazir serves as an example of a feminist clashing with the stiff norms of patriarchy.

The participation of South-East Asian women in mainstream politics and coping with the barriers within their political journey became a theme for movies. Rajneeti (2010), and "Gulaab Gang" (2014), these Bollywood movies depicted women taking authority into their own hands and becoming the torchbearers of South-East Asian women's representation in politics. The political situation within the subcontinent, Pakistan in particular witnessed changes throughout the course of Independence. After the democratic law, women here have witnessed dictatorship regimes of dictators. In Pakistan, the political ideology came into prominence "as early as 2001, Musharraf stressed the need for the political empowerment of women" (Sheherbano, Zia Afia. 2009) this led to the development of works that promoted women’s freedom and political autonomy. Dr. Amina Saigol (2016) in explaining the feminist political agenda points out that, "The interpenetration of the public and private is much greater in Pakistan than in other countries where the two are kept relatively, though not completely, separate. In fact, Amina Jamal argues that the modernizing state and secular nationalism have strengthened patriarchal control over women by recreating the private and public domains, with the former representing culture and tradition, and the latter the legal-political arena.”(Qtd. in Saigol, p.43, 2006). So, within the post-partitioned subcontinent, especially Pakistan, political feminist ideology is continuously challenged by the patriarchs making their space at the top ladder of the political hierarchy. It makes it an exasperating task to survive in the political environment.

Theoretical Framework and Research Methodology

Analysis

The novel is written in a very realistic pattern by incorporating the technique of imagery. The imagery takes the lead at every single point throughout the novel and we get to find a courtroom melodrama happening over here. The very beginning hints at a very complex plot line. The courtroom scenes begin to initiate the storyline where we get to find the protagonist " Nazo" trapped within the trial. The flashback technique incorporates the plot line continuously. The protagonist takes the readers to the main storyline recollecting her memories of interaction with the protagonist. Nazo's character is very much influenced by "Rani Shah's" identity as a whole. Throughout, the course of the entire novel she begins to act as the mimesis of the political personality and eventually, this gets to her doom because she forgets her own desires and goals. Acting as a puppet of Rani Shah makes her personality weaker and weaker as the story meets its end. At one point in the play, she states that "something inside her crumbled" at the indifferent attitude of Rani Shah towards her (11, 2017). She is the character who appears as the actual trump card of Rani Shah depicting success. This gets repeated on several occasions in how she uses her in the way of her victory. Her exploitation rangers from the abusive attitude towards her to disrespecting her and her cause in front of her elite circle. 

The abuse beginning with the word "secretary" to calling her a "maid" takes a sharp turn in building Nazo's confidence as a person who thinks of himself as a nobody to a person who believes that power rests in her hands entirely and starts taking the actions necessary in order to get identified by the upper tier of the society. She, being a narrator, remains simple in her approach and explores the difficulties faced by the immigrants having no name or identity of their own. She explains her struggle for the cause of Rani Shah by becoming a continuous resistance for her enemies in both physical and emotional ways. She becomes the refuge of Rani Shah in her time of need. Another interesting thing which is evident right after going through the novel is Nazo's outlook towards male relationships or the patriarchal forces present within the society. She strongly opposes the relationship between Rani Madam and the "moustached man” (53, 2017). She thinks it’s more because of the financial causes attached to her rather than being in its truest form. This assumption of her later leads her to make sacrifices on her part. The sacrifices include giving her own virginity for the sake of saving her mistress. In her character, we get to find a person who becomes politically active the time she gets aware of the situation being faced by her mistress. She explains her political journey as a continuous "struggle" by asserting that, "I wasn’t the only one. Throngs of people came. Every day, the apartment grew, its walls stretched, and sometimes I thought its square shape would bend with the number of people who squeezed inside, each offering whatever service they could. We grew rich in people's power. Students pledged support. Immigrants rallied outside the home embassy. Housewives sent us parcels of food, children came with little posters. The pressure in the house spilt out across the seas and into the country, we had left behind. Our day grew to eighteen hours as we worked non-stop. And then one day, the Big Brother stepped in.” (45, 2017). Her own political strength becomes demanding enough when she puts everything else for the sake of it and begins working efficiently for a cause regarded as holy according to her perception. This perception of her takes everything from her. Firstly, she loses her personal freedom, then her honour and in the end, she becomes a person devoid of emotions with respect to familial bliss. This is the major turning point of the novel where we find out that her character is shaping into a new individual, an individual who is totally different from her previous life. She becomes a person who is unaffected by the causes and effects of her actions. Her loyalty towards the political heroine Rani Shah is unconditional which gets justified in all various places. She uses herself as the face of the political identity of her mistress and keeps on resolving all her conflicts very conveniently. In one incident, when she goes to the military-influenced character of the novel who is called "General". She is continuously tormented by the kind of attitude her mistress possesses towards her but still, she poses no complaints even though she calls that attitude an "attack on her pride" (80, 2017). Her inner agony is one main reason behind her fall as she ultimately gets trapped into a series of unfortunate events which eventually lead her to jail as she is abducted with the accusation of her own mistress, and she negates every single point. This continues throughout until the unexpected end of the plot comes in front of the reader. Her loyalty forms the core of the novella which is at times used as a negative point against her in order to defeat her cause.

The second major character of the novel which actually represents the political doctrine in the patriarchal society is Madam Rani Shah. She is “well educated and resilient in her mind when it comes to her final goals” (15, 2017). According to her own perception, sacrifice doesn’t cost a bit, that is one reason that despite accumulating sacrifices in social circles, she becomes able to become the only standing-in prime minister of the state. Her personality appears a bit confused between her desires and demands. She believes in taking everything which is owned by her or is the due right of her. Her personality gets reflected within the phrases where she calls Nazo an "illiterate" on the basis of her lack of knowledge of world politics. As a woman, she tends to achieve the highest position within the tier system and wants to abolish the patriarchal hierarchy. She promises this whenever she appears to contest the election from her father's constituency. Throughout the play, her character also passes by a major nature shift right after her father’s death. She politicizes death in order to get into the elections successfully. Throughout, she supports the cause and thinks that it's nothing wrong with declaring herself as the official and sole heir of the political dynasty. She begins her career as an amateur leader who is considered useless by the political forces existing within the society. As she says, "No one can silence us now. No one can take our voice away, now that our words have become the voice of so many.” (60, 2017). This shows that she is very active regarding the voice of women against suppression in political agendas. At the beginning of her journey, she acts like a young excited girl who is new to this field and thinks of herself as the sole voice for all those who suffer. She begins the journey by creating awareness within the women in the Western scenario possessing an Eastern mindset. This gives her instant popularity within the media and in social circles too where she presents herself as the person who is going to make things right for the general public. But, the kind of reception which she obtains from the patriarchs of her society influences the effects of women's participation in an area which is already dominated enough by the male members of the society. One watches her as highly prone to criticism and assault of all kinds. This lets the emerging leader within her down and she starts thinking about life in a very typical manner just like every other girl. Her marriage to the landlord is just for this cause because she in some part of her mind believes that despite trying to get the power by trying, she cannot achieve the due power, until and unless she needs a man’s support in her life. Her marriage with the landlord though initially out of necessity where she has little say in the demand of the existing situation. The situation however gets worse right after her marriage when she starts holding the mindset that her only success is familial love and prosperity and she should not be the one hurdling this. In that attempt, we find her becoming considerate towards her unborn baby for whom she gives up all sorts of politics and secludes herself from any kind of negative activity thinking only about the upcoming baby and doing things of trivial nature all day. This gets stopped right when she loses her child and according to the narrator, Nazo, she loses “more than a child”, as the narrator talks about her that “I had never seen you crying ever but you cried for him, for that unborn child of yours” ( 112, 217). This represents the mentality of a typical woman who is much conscious about the well-being of her child and loses her control no matter how strong she is the moment she finds that her own child is no longer in the world. This incident “changes her a lot”, as she keeps on staying in the room, allowing no one to come in, eating almost nothing and reading books and the "essential party documents all day long" (113, 217). Her personality alters from that very moment as she gives up the emotional attachment and a rational approach is adopted by her in order to deal with life and also to become successful within the political world with the same men present in her society. She once again becomes active in politics and this time a renewed spirit invokes her to find the right way to make things work. From becoming the person who is a newer version of herself to murder and trickery, she tends to adopt the ways just like that of the men. Her contribution to politics becomes very significant as she keeps on spending more and more time on the betterment of the policies which she has delivered and declares herself the "voice of the destitute”. This certainly creates a magic impact with the assistance of a few external forces. With the death of the brutal dictator, the general blesses her with a golden offer and once again democracy becomes the strongest entity existing within the country. With her enjoying the ultimate power, things become more complex than ever as the reader finds that she is practically unable to take any single decision on her own and has to abide by the rules and regulations which are implanted in her by the other members of the assembly. 

We get to find through the narrator that much of her meetings at the house “were nothing more but a show where she used to do nothing except listening to the others” (170, 2017). This presents the entire scenario before the reader in a very crystal clear manner. We get to find that she is a person who is not even allowed to take her own decisions and she becomes the puppet of her husband who persuades her to do things which were once declared bad by her. As Nazo says madam was doing things "which were once criticized by her and it appeared as if there was nothing different between a dictator and her government" (175, 2017). Her husband's influence upon her gets so strong that she finally becomes corrupted like most of the other politicians and keeps on doing illegal things at the stake of her government. Her sense of guidance is lost and even when she is called off by Nazo, she rejects her badly by telling her to leave her house immediately. This depicts that despite becoming the most powerful person, she is still vulnerable and feels afraid of losing her position early if she agrees to the general demands so she acts upon the regulations maintained as a whole by other members of distinctive parties which are also a big name of her party or the other famous names.

Her life gets changed once again with the arrival of Omer, her friend and a lawyer who is there to ignite the sparkle of love in her loveless life and she fully responds to it. It appears as if the author has tried to highlight all the major weaknesses present within a woman despite her power. This new relationship affects her relationship badly and she once again becomes negligent towards politics. Her poor policies became the reason for the fall of the government. We get to find a strange spectacle within the play that she ultimately becomes more inclined towards her personal life the most without getting interested any further in politics. This take of the author within writing the plot is a bit strange because igniting the idea of political feminism and ending it in an abrupt pattern doesn’t fulfil the true cause of feminism which again is a bitter reality of the society. Followed by the course of these events, she eventually gets killed and everyone suspects Nazo. In the end, however, it is revealed that it was never Rani Shah who got killed in the first place but that was just a tactic of hers in order to get out of the country where women are "degraded and strangled at the cause of their political activeness" (289, 2017). The ending reveals that she escapes with Omer in order to start her new life and claims that Nazo always wanted to be like her so here she is getting “what she actually deserved” (322, 2017) as Nazo gets punished by the courts in the false accusation. The end seems a bit troubling because of nature, where we get to find a totally different kind of approach of the author towards the subject matter.

Findings

Conclusion

The study clears out the cloud over the reality behind stepping into mainstream politics. It discusses all the major constraints and the notion of politics within a society which is not open enough to allow participation on a large scale. The analysis of the study reveals that despite women tending to be active in politics as per the novel, still, the class system continues to exploit women coming from the lower tier because of their effort. This equally impacts the women of the upper tier who despite enjoying the status still remain subservient to the patriarchy where they need the control of the male members which is clearly depicted within the piece of literature which is taken as the sample. This leads to the belief that despite efforts, patriarchy tends to be a dominant hurdle and the other thing which multiplies the patriarchal influence on women’s lives, according to the picture painted within the novel which leads to the loss of self-confidence and a psychological fear of dependence within women.

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