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Re: Is Sita an Ideal Wife?
In article <44qkko$ff0@babbage.ece.uc.edu>, dchakrav@netserv.unmc.edu
(Dhruba Chakravarti) wrote:
> Megumi Hayashi (mhayashi@abo.fi) wrote:
>
> : I am doing a reserch on position of women in Hinduism. In Hindu
> : mythology, Sita is described as an ideal wife. And in a book I read, the
> : auther wrote, "In Hindu tradition, a woman is taught to understand
> : herself in relation to others. She id taught to emphasize in the
> : development of her character what others expect of her. A central demand
> : placed on a woman is that she subordinate her welfare to welfare of
> : others, especially her husband and children." Is this value commonly
> : accepted? I´m waiting for reply especially from women. please send an
> : answer.
I think one has to be careful when thinking about classic literature as a
blueprint for society. Certainly Sita is an amazingly popular figure among
Indian women; but I don't think it necessarily means they would emulate
her or that the values expressed in the classic Ramayana are commonly
accepted.
For me her salient characteristic is serenity and a purity that allows her
to survive all hardship. It's easy to see how this moves people but I
doubt they would live their lives like her. (I don't know ONE Indian woman
who is particularly deferential and serene. Usually quite the opposite. :)
Besides, even Sita does not completely conform to these values. The
'classic' Ramayanas have the stamp of approval by generations of male
scholars. And the moral of the Ramayana for women in that story is 'don't
step outside the circle your husband draws for you.'
But at the level of popular storytelling, it isn't just one story but
literally thousands of variations on a theme. In these stories, which more
people have probably heard than the classic versions, sometimes her
capture is not the same. In others she particpates more in her rescue. In
a surprising number, she turns her back on Rama after he questions her
virtue following her rescue. So I don't think Sita *has* to represent
self-sacrifice.
--
Neil Kandalgaonkar Mediatribe, ugrad communications jnl
neil@domingo.concordia.ca http://cug.concordia.ca/~mtribe
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