Double Otherness in Alice Walker’s Possessing The Secret Of Joy (2011)

Abstract

This study attempts to explore the status of African-American women, their experiences of oppression, and their endurance of cultural bigotry. Relatively, minor literature is used to investigate issues related to the Black woman through conceptions such as: racism, white supremacy, sexism and patriarchal dominance. The study examines the theme of ‘Double Otherness’ in Alice Walker’s novel Possessing the Secret of Joy (2011). The analysis focuses on the intersection between gender and race, and their role in shaping the African-American woman’s identity. A Remarkable attention is devoted to examine racial discrimination and gender oppression. The oppression of the female body is highlighted through the demonstration of the cruelty of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM). The central aim of the study is to spread awareness about Black women’s oppression and the impacts of Female Genital Mutilation. The importance of using ‘Double Otherness’ lies in the link it establishes between both race and gender, which is the fundamental base of any research on minority women.