Escaping from Rama: portraits of Indian women
This study examines visual, post-colonial portraits of the Indian women of the Sanskrit epics, in order to show the sociocultural, historical-ideological roots of this aesthetic. After independence, Hindu movements found in the epics a female archetype, who stands for the Hindu community. Post-colon...
Main Author: | |
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Format: | Electronic/Print Article |
Language: | English |
Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
Journals Online & Print: | |
Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
Published: |
Taylor & Francis
[2014]
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In: |
Culture and religion
Year: 2014, Volume: 15, Issue: 3, Pages: 354-372 |
Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains: | B
India
/ Hinduism
/ Sanskrit language
/ Epic
/ Woman
/ Postcolonialism
/ Bollywood
/ Amar Chitra Katha
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RelBib Classification: | AA Study of religion AD Sociology of religion; religious policy BK Hinduism, Jainism, Sikhism KBM Asia NCC Social ethics TK Recent history |
Online Access: |
Volltext (doi) |
Summary: | This study examines visual, post-colonial portraits of the Indian women of the Sanskrit epics, in order to show the sociocultural, historical-ideological roots of this aesthetic. After independence, Hindu movements found in the epics a female archetype, who stands for the Hindu community. Post-colonial visual representations maintained this idealistic characterisation within a binary system, according to which women can be angelic guarantors of the social order or devilish, sexually uncontrolled creatures. This ambiguity derives from the double nature of the female principle of the world, shakti, and the visual storytelling tradition or chitrakatha. Using the same Indian storytelling tradition, female points of view have begun to criticise this nationalistic, 'male gaze'. In the graphic novel Sita's Ramayana, Rama and male activities, particularly war, are secularised and criticised as selfish by female characters, foremost of whom is Sita, a model of the devoted and pure bride or pativrata. |
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ISSN: | 1475-5610 |
Contains: | Enthalten in: Culture and religion
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Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1080/14755610.2014.945469 |