Published Paper Details:

From the mythical age to the post-modern era, from rural culture to urban elitism, rape has been used as a deadly weapon by the society to dominate women. After establishment of the myth of 'pure' and 'impure' body in our patriarchal society, rape has become a very useful tool to marginalize them. Sometimes even social hegemony uses this heinous act to control, subjugate, punish and marginalize the 'second sex', or in turn, the forces of anti-state rebellion. Because it not only affects the body and soul of the victims, but also of the female sex in general and even the sensible men as well. In Mahasweta Devi's short story 'Draupadi', the protagonist, Dopdi Mejhen, is brutally subjected to gang-rape through the whole night by a number of policemen. The narrative proceeds to portray how she retaliates against her perpetrators in her unique way. The present paper concentrates on how the process of marginalization of the rape victims is countered by the so called 'shamelessness' of the victim herself; how the social matrix is being subverted by the transformation of the response register, where defence is transformed into offence; and also the new language of resistance and the new diction of protest, that are flourished in Mahasweta Devi's short story, 'Draupadi'.