A Non-Western Representation of the Third World Women in Nadia Hashimi’s A House without Windows

Abstract

Third-world women in western literature have often been depicted as submissive, illiterate, vulnerable, and having no identity. They are cast from the outside discourses, always entangled in the gaze of the west as being primitive. Yet the world is open to change with viable feminist female practices to enhance the accurate and exact image oe third-world women. Nadia Hashimi’s A House Without Windows is a manifestation of deconstructing the false stereotyped image created by the West writers through skillfully presenting the real pressing contemporary issues of Afghan women in their society with diverse forms of ordeals. This paper aims to reflect upon the significant differences between stereotypical western depictions of third world women— are portrayed in mainstream western discourses as weak and in need of help— and their representation by Non-Western writers. It further explores how the female characters can cope with life hardships and pass the closures with no fear despite the difficulties of living within the nonwestern codes of patriarchy and culture. Investigating Hashmi’s novel is significant because it presents an accurate depiction of third-world women together with a variety of their inspirational tales, correcting and changing the stereotyped western representation. This study elucidates the Transnational Feminist Theory as a remarkable framework for comprehending the gap between the global north and south to address the representation of third-world women. Consequently, dismantling the stereotypical images of women in the third world and the phony universalization of global sisterhood is investigated by reflecting upon the vivid pictures of strong women.