VEDA’S JOURNAL OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE (JOELL)

                        An International Peer Reviewed Journal            ISSN:2349-9753

http://www.joell.in

LITERARY ACTIVISM: A TOOL TO EXPLORE BODILY NORMS IN ARUNDHATI ROY’S THE MINISTRY OF UTMOST HAPPINESS

Jini Varghese¹ , Dr. K T Pius²

¹(Research Scholar, Bharathiar University, Coimbatore.)

²(Associate Professor and Research Guide, St. Aloysius College, Elthuruth, Thrissur, Kerala.)

Email: Jjini_2@rediffmail.com

doi: https://doi.org/10.33329/joell.61.13

ABSTRACT

Literary activism basically combines political, social and cultural ideas with moral beliefs and present it in the form of writing. The writer here plays the role of the activist who voices his/ her opinion to endorse equality and social justice. A major issue dealt by literary writers at present is the issues faced by the Trans genders or the ‘third gender’. ‘The famous social activist and writer Arundhati Roy has portrayed the problems of trans genders in her novel The Ministry of Utmost Happiness, especially the prominent issue of how society looks at the body of such people. The human body now becomes a part of society and culture. The characteristic features for the acceptance of a human body in specific society are regulated and controlled in the interests of the population. Rather than being something personal, the body is now becoming more and more socially constructed. This paper attempts to examine how the Trans gender character named Aftab is alienated in society as he fails to follow the norms of body constructed by the society around.

Keywords:  Body, Society, Equality, Activism.