PATRIARCHY AS A SOCIAL TRIBAL VALUE: FEMINIST ANALYSIS OF JAMIL AHMAD’S THE WANDERING FALCON

Abstract

The present study is aimed to investigate the status of women in the novel The Wandering Falcon by Jamil Ahmed originally published in 2011. The Wandering Falcon is a collection of nine short stories. All the stories are interlinked with one another. The novel shows life in the tribal areas situated at the borders of Pakistan, Iran and Afghanistan. In the present study, the researcher has examined the impacts of tribal traditions and rules on the lives of the people of these region. The research deals with the cruel and brutal laws of Federally Administrative Tribal Areas (FATA) and the miserable life style of these tribal people, especially the women of the region, as depicted in the novel. The tribal people have to face the indifference of nature as well as the supremacy of society. The rules and regulations of society have a deep impact on the social, mental and psychological development of its members.  The present study deals with the social status of women in these tribal areas. It describes the attitude of tribal customs and traditions toward women and reflects the impact of these brutal laws on the lives of women as well as the poor and suppressed class of the society. This article aims to highlight the tribal customs which, commodify the women of FATA. Qualitative research paradigm has been selected for the novel as it tends to be exploratory and interpretative and feminist perspective have been applied on the sample.