Historical Constraints on Women: Representation of Ammu in Arundhati Roy’s The God of Small Things

Abstract

Arundhati Roy’s The God of Small Things is an emotional attack on the systems that have always made life hard for Indian women. The main focus of this study is Ammu's character and her life, which shows how gender, race, and class can all be used to oppress people. This novel puts Ammu in a very male-centered and traditional social setting where her attempts to be independent are met with anger, punishment, and isolation. She lost her marriage, her fortune, and her shameful relationship with Velutha, a lower-caste man. These things show how society’s strict rules limit women’s freedom and keep things the same. The focus of this paper is on Ammu as a figure who stands up against the normalised relegation of women. It talks about how her choices, even though they are very personal, are politicised by a world that wants to stay powerful by controlling women’s bodies and wants. Roy shows how women lie and carry a heavy burden through the story of Ammu, especially when they try to go against set rules. The study looks at Ammu’s situation in the context of postcolonial Kerala’s social and political background. It shows that Roy targets not only family and cultural traditions, but also postcolonial modernity, which often upheld patriarchal values. Ammu is not only a victim; her fight makes us think about how we need to rethink what it means to be a woman while breaking the usual rules of what is good and bad. Her representation is a plot device that challenges the prevailing ideas and brings to the fore, the silent words of many women who have been lost in history.