Was Tagore a Feminist? Re‐evaluating Selected Fiction and Their Film Adaptations. Issue 5 (May 2015)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Mandal, Somdatta
• Is Part Of: Literature compass. Volume 12:Issue 5(2015)
• Page Start: 227
• Page End: 237
• Publication Date: 2015-05
• Subjects: English literature -- History and criticism -- Periodicals; American literature -- History and criticism -- Periodicals; Literature -- History and criticism -- Periodicals; Littérature -- Périodiques; Arts and Humanities -- Literature; Electronic reference sources; 805
• DOI: 10.1111/lic3.12227
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1741-4113

Abstract

<abstract abstract-type="main" id="lic312227-abs-0001"> <title>Abstract</title> <p id="lic312227-para-0003">This paper focuses on the stories of Tagore that profess strong feminist values and also their representations in certain cinematic adaptations of the same. Although Tagore was a visionary and believed in many ideas that were much ahead of his time, the paper discusses how Tagore's feminist beliefs and his treatment of women characters were not consistent throughout his writing career. As far as the point of view of women was concerned, it moved between conservatism and radicalism, and so, in some stories, the marginalized woman finds a voice and challenges her position, while in others, she is compelled to conform to patriarchal boundaries. As this study shows, the film adaptations in Bengali cinema that continue to be inspired by Tagore's fiction illustrate the modern day relevance of Tagore's concerns and ideas in relation to a woman's position in society and the challenges she offers to social expectations of her gendered role and at the same time also embodies the ambivalent attitude to women that is evident in society today.</p> </abstract>