Social Power and Subaltern Resistance in the Select Novels of Perumal Murugan

Abstract

Perumal Murugan is an Indian author, literary chronicler, scholar who primarily writes in tamil and many of his novels have been translated into English. This Paper examines the themes of social power and subaltern resistance in the select novels of Perumal Murugan. Social power is a Vital Part in the novels of Perumal Murugan. Murugan’s fiction examines how power operates through patriarchy, land ownership, caste, family structures, religion, social customs, and community authority. Caste is one of the strongest mechanisms of social power in Murugan’s fiction. In the novel Pyre, the inter-caste marriage of Kumaresan and Saroja challenges the caste boundaries maintained by the village. In Seasons of the Palm, exploitation and dehumanization of marginalized agricultural labourers are vividly explained. In One Part Woman, social power operates through marriage, fertility and expectations concerning motherhood. Kali and Ponna’s childlessness become a matter of community concern rather than a personal issue. In particular, Ponna, experiences pressure from society because women’s social status is connected to reproduction and family honour.

Keywords

• social power
• subaltern resistance
• community authority
• caste boundaries
• dehumanization