Browsing by Author "Zaira Azhar"

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    Carnivalization and The Female Grotesque in Jean Genet’s The Balcony: A Textual Analysis
    (UMT Lahore, 2021) Zaira Azhar
    This study aims to analyze Jean Genet’s play ‘The Balcony’ from the lens of Mikhail Bakhtin’s theory of Carnivalesque and Mary Russo’s idea of The Female Grotesque. Jean Genet’s play ‘The Balcony’ is one of the well-known masterpiece in the Theatre of the Absurd which represents the theme of illusionary life verses realistic life. This research explores Genet’s play ‘The Balcony’ from a Carnivalesque and feministic perspective. The study aims to investigate that how Genet’s play is a representation of Bakhtinian Carnival and how the idea of ‘The Female Grotesque’ can be related to the female characters in the play. The study is based on a qualitative approach method and the model used for the research is textual analysis. Textual analysis is a methodology that requires the understanding of language and the symbols in a text. The data is collected from the play ‘The Balcony’ and is analyzed from two different lenses. The first part covers the analysis of Bakhtinian Carnival and its major aspects. ‘The Balcony’ represents a carnivalized world where the roles and powers are subverted. It represents the brothel as a place of illusions and fantasies where everyone is free from the harsh reality of the outside world and the official system is mocked. The second part covers the idea of ‘The Female Grotesque’. It covers the analysis of the female characters in the play to present them as grotesque feminine bodies. The study contributes to the fact that Bakhtin’s carnival theory holds a great importance in Genet’s absurd play ‘The Balcony’. The research discovers that these illusions of power exists in every individual, hence a person can create a carnival world in his illusions to escape the class system of the society. The study contributes to explore Jean Genet’s other works from Bakhtin’s Carnivalesque framework and highlights the importance of the grotesque in the field of feminism.
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    From mourning to melancholia: a Freudian analysis of loss in Kanza Javed’s ashes, wine and dust
    (UMT, Lahore, 2019) Zaira Azhar
    This research focuses on the concept of loss which is highlighted through the character of Mariam Ameen the protagonist of novel Ashes, Wine and Dust by Kanza Javed. This novel will be analyzed through Freudian lens of Loss which mainly deals with the idea of mourning and grieving for the loved ones. Freud in his famous essay in “Mourning and Melancholia” points out that these two major processes involves detachment from the loved one and he stresses on the point that the individuals who are suffering from grieving phase are in search for an attachment that has been lost. By following the concept of grief and mourning this paper contends that Mariam is a victim of grief and bereavement who after losing her beloved relations falls into a state of melancholy. Although this process of mourning and feeling pain for the loved one’s who are lost is a natural feeling, Freud argues that one should also focus on letting go of the things which is essential for moving on with life to recover from the state of depression and to return to normal life. Mariam who suffers from mourning state is struck hard by another loss which turns her into a melancholic person and this loss eventually causes her own death.