An Exploration of Leisure Resistance by Female Protagonist in Mohsin Hamid’s Moth Smoke: A Post-Structural Feminist Perspective

Author(s) : Anila Afzal

Abstract:

Leisure practices serve a dual purpose- they allow people attain self-recovery and self-actualization; they can be adopted as covert means of resistance by the marginalized groups to record their protest against oppression. The present study attempts to explore the leisure-based practices and behaviour that the female protagonist of Hamid’s Moth Smoke adopts to subvert and undermine the oppressive circle of patriarchy. Adopting a poststructuralist perspective, this study draws insights from Wearing’s leisure resistance theory for the analysis of the data. Data have been analysed qualitatively using purposive sampling technique. The results indicate that the female protagonist, Mumtaz, finds herself confined in acting out the traditional gender roles and adopts many covert leisure-based practices to challenge the set social norms of womanhood. She shows resistance against the patriarchal authority that denies her the due right to have control over her body and mind by indulging in leisure-based smoking, drinking, and sex outside of the marriage and by leading the life of a secret investigative journalist. The study is significant as it highlights the effects covert means can have in the subversion of unjust authority.
Keywords: Leisure practices, self-actualization, resistance, oppression, patriarchy