The Discourse of Silence as a Testimony of Resistance: A Study with Reference to Select Poems by Imtiaz Dharker

Abstract

The present paper aims to inquire the synthesis of resistance in Imtiaz Dharker’s poetry and how she invokes the concept by using silence as a core element to convey it. Through the select poems, the question of whether resistance in her poems is recognized and intentional shall be addressed. It also intends to move beyond the definitional spectrum of resistance and analytically find the lines of dissent which Dharker incorporates. This endeavor shall resolve the conceptual parameter of resistance and how silence can also be a crucial part of it. There shall also be an attempt to find how silence is entrapped and plays an important role in the formulation of active protest against oppressive regimes. The poems represent both intentional and unintentional silence, and through the lens of resistance, the paper facilitates a critical introspection of the same to find if it originates from long term acculturation of methodologies of rebellion or simply embodies an innovative inquiry.