Abstract
This trans-cultural study aims to examine two specific texts to crystallize the suppression and marginalization of women in societies and cultures where patriarchy subordinates’ women so much so that even their sexuality is defined and controlled by it. The researcher selected two writings from two different writers and diverse cultures i.e. Thomas Hardy’s Tess of the D’Urbervilles, which portrays the plight of women in Victorian England and Qaisra Shahraz's The Holy Woman which shows the subjugation of women in twenty-first century Pakistan. This qualitative study makes a comparative analysis of the female protagonists whose sexuality is controlled by the patriarch through rape and forced marriage respectively. The study also throws light on how female sexual charms, an important aspect of female sexuality, are defined and highlighted in the discourses of patriarchal cultures viewing them with only male gaze and depriving them of an identity of their own. The theoretical insight of feminism is used as a tool to analyze data. Through the discussion of these sexually exploited characters, the study concludes that the female sexuality is the site where male hegemony reigns supreme.

Romana Jabeen Bukhari, Dr. Tahira Asgher. (2018) A Trans-Cultural Feministic Study Of Tess Of The D’urbervilles And The Holy Woman, Karoonjhar Research Journal, Volume 18-19, Issue-1.
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