LANGUAGE AS LIBERATION: A FEMINIST STYLISTIC EXPLORATION OF GENDER SUBVERSION IN UMAIRA AHMAD'S PEER-E-KAMIL

Abstract

Women continue to endure systemic discrimination and stereotyping within patriarchal societies, realities that are frequently mirrored in literary representations of female characters as passive, naive, and subordinate to male authority. This study examines the linguistic construction of gender in Peer-e-Kamil, a seminal Urdu novel by Pakistani female author Umaira Ahmad. Employing Sara Mills' feminist stylistics as its analytical framework, the research critically analyzes selected passages at the word, phrase, and discourse levels to investigate how language mediates gender ideology within the text. The study adopts a qualitative approach and argues that Ahmad strategically subverts conventional gender roles, deploying language as a site of resistance against patriarchal norms and expectations. The findings reveal that far from reproducing hegemonic constructions of femininity, Ahmad's narrative challenges male-centric power structures and dismantles entrenched gender assumptions. This research contributes to the broader scholarly conversation on feminist literary criticism in Pakistani fiction and underscores the role of women's writing as a vehicle for ideological resistance and social critique.