Breaking the Long Silence: Feminist Self-Assertion in Shashi Deshpande's That Long Silence

Author(s)	Dr. Neelam Devi
Country	India
Abstract	Shashi Deshpande, one of India's foremost English-language women writers, articulates a moderate yet powerful feminist vision that exposes the patriarchal constraints shaping middle-class Indian women's lives. This paper examines Deshpande's feminist perspectives through her award-winning novel That Long Silence (1989), analyzing how the protagonist Jaya's journey from self-negation to self-assertion critiques entrenched gender norms. Deshpande describes herself as "a feminist rather than a feminist writer," refusing to propagate an "ism" while realistically portraying women's oppression. Through Jaya's introspection during her husband's crisis, the novel reveals how silence functions as both a mechanism of patriarchal control and a space for emerging consciousness.
Field	Sociology
Published In	Volume 7, Issue 1, January-February 2026
Published On	2026-02-12

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