The select works of Taslima Nasrin a feminist study

Abstract

The Select Works of Taslima Nasrin: A Feminist Study is an attempt at making an in-depth study of the select works of Taslima Nasrin - poetry, fiction and non-fiction - through the feminist lens. One of the most significant global female figures in the early twenty-first century, Taslima Nasrin is an eminent writer and secular humanist. She is known for her powerful writings on women s rights and unflinching criticism of religious fundamentalism. For her bold voice, she has been subjected to forced banishment from her motherland, Bangladesh along with multiple fatwas calling for her death. A writer in exile for three decades now, Nasrin s voice continues to figure in the global discourse on women s oppression and human rights. newlineTaslima has written forty books in Bengali, which include poetry, essays, novels and autobiography series. Her works have been translated into thirty languages. Throughout her prolific career, she has gained international attention for her critical examination of religious and societal issues, particularly in relation to the oppression of women in her native Bangladesh. In recognition of her extraordinary merit, Penguin Random House, a globally leading publishing house has made an announcement in 2019 about undertaking publishing Taslima Nasrin s 12 new titles in English. Her writings - poetry, fiction and non-fiction - are propelled by her activistic urge more than her artistic ambitions. She writes not because she can but because she must. Nasrin says in her memoir, Exile that she cannot write just for the sake of good literature. newlineNasrin is a poet, a novelist and an essayist. However, it is very difficult to judge in which genre, she excels the most. Quite uniquely with her, it is her message that excels. Central to all her writing is a female self who is otherised and subalternised by patriarchy yet struggling her hardest for agency, identity and independence. She is among the most prominent feminist writers of the world today but probably the simplest of all to understand. This thesis