Patriarchy and Female Silencing in the God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy

The dissertation titled, "Patriarchy and Female Silencing in the God of Small Things", is a humble attempt to explore the deeply moving narrative crafted by Arundhati Roy. The novel depicts a deeply entrenched patriarchal society in Kerala where women are subjected to severe silencing, oppression, and marginalization. Through characters like Ammu and Mamma chi, the novel highlights how male dominated social norms, violence, and rigid hierarchies stifled female autonomy, forcing them into tragic, silenced existences. In choosing this topic, I was driven by a desire to examine how the novel functions as a critique of these “misogynistic gender roles “, demonstrating how patriarchy in Aye Menem is a systemic force that causes the “marginalization of women “, denying them both agency and voice. Through the characters' experience, the novel reveals how love, even in its quietest form, becomes an act of resistance and how sacrifice can transform a life from invisibility to purpose. This study draws upon feminist and postcolonial literary framework to analysis the way in which domestic violence and subjugation, control over sexuality, and agency, generational silence and the love laws as a tool of control used as a reference in this work. For the completion of this dissertation, I am sincerely grateful to Dr.Pratyush Chandra sir, Department of English, V.S.S.D.College, Kanpur, for his kind guidance.