Hegemony and Resistance: A Foucauldian Discourse Analysis of Daniyal Mueenuddin’s Selected Short Stories In Other Rooms, Other Wonders

Abstract

This study examines the dynamics of power, hegemony, and resistance in the context of a few short stories from Daniyal Mueenuddin's collection In Other Rooms, Other Wonders by using the framework of discourse analysis developed by Michel Foucault. Characters like K.K. Harouni and his family, who stand for the institutional and symbolic facets of power and hegemony, are used to illustrate how the upper-class manifests power and regulates authority. The stories of disadvantaged individuals, on the other hand, such as male servants like Rezak and Nawabdin Electrician and lower-class women like Saleema and Husna, are examined in terms of how they respond to the authority that is placed upon them, whether via acceptance or resistance. The study explores the desire for dominance in humans, showing how people and organizations attempt to establish authority not to benefit humanity but rather to repress and control using a variety of strategies such as discourse, power, knowledge, and even the seductive attraction of love. Understanding the complicated interactions between people in positions of power and those who aim to subjugate requires an appreciation of Foucault's worldview, which holds that power is ubiquitous and normalizing within society. Mueenuddin's narratives reflect conventional power dynamics by emphasizing the experiences and responses of lower-class characters. This approach also highlights the complex nature of subjugation, encompassing the influence of male patriarchy and the complicity of affluent women in the continuation of oppression. The study contends that Mueenuddin subtly critiques power dynamics by emphasizing the complex ways in which people negotiate environments of resistance and power via the passive presence of K.K. Harouni. Hence, this research adds to the larger conversation on power dynamics in literature. Key Words: Power, Hegemony, Resistance, Discourse, Discursive Practices.