QUEST FOR FREEDOM AND EMPOWERMENT: A STUDY OF THE FEMALE PROTAGONIST IN SHASHI DESHPANDE’S MOVING ON

The issue of empowerment of women, which is a central concern for feminism, is conceptually interconnected with the concepts of identity and freedom. Unless and until the possibility of having a stable identity and freedom is assumed, all deliberations regarding empowerment become redundant. The concept of identity is crucially important as it provides a locus for freedom and fulfils a precondition of empowerment.