Samma Ishaq Humanities and Social Science
History of Female Subjectivity in Kashmir: From 1947-Present
My particular interest for this summer is to explore whether the ongoing violence in Kashmir have inspired women to lead movements or organize petitions against the government in the last decade. I wish to study specific examples of resistance that have been attempted in the past, and to analyze the types of initiatives organized particularly by females, who seldom receive any acknowledgement for their efforts. Women in Kashmir are generally written into history as submissive and marginalized figures, who due to their social suffering, cannot bring themselves to oppose either patriarchal attitudes or domestic abuse. I intend to analyze to what extent women internalize instances of rape, fear, displacement, and the loss of their husbands or children. I hope that this analysis will provide me with a strong background to understand when, if, and how women release their anger, and whether this is ever done through the medium of resistance, discourse, or civil participation.