War and Women

Author Mahadevi Verma

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By Mahadevi Verma - has seen world war i and ii and several other wars and riots.

perhaps one of the first texts in the tradition that later came to be termed as
ecofeminism

🌟 ecofeminism and famous ecofeminists: branch of feminism that examines

connections between women and nature. they draw on the concept of gender
to analyse the nature between humans and the world. connects exploitation
and domination of women w the environment and argues that there is a
connection between women and nature. famous ecofeminists are vandana
shiva, maria mies, Françoise d'Eaubonne (the one who coined the term
‘ecofeminism’).

this essay:

1. highlights the imp role of women in progression of society from barbarism to

civilization

2. highlights how feminity plays an important role in structuring of the family and
psyche of individuals

3. highlights how mahadevi verma thinks that war is antithetical to feminity and
women’s aversion to war and plea for peave has come to be interpreted as
weakness and cowardice becaus eof the patriarchal structure of the society,
whereas the society just wants to wage war for its narrow self interest

man welcomes his narrow self interest with war and is okay w offering his last
prayer to public service sonsciousness with it.

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 over time, swords have become of iron and steel fwhen they were pehle made of
wood, then came machine guns, humans nourish themselves with artificail food,
dwell in tall sky scrappers etc. but along w all this they have also learnt how to
poison anyone and anything that comes in the way of them. war is a result of all of
this and it was to ebe expected.

every nation is hell bent upon devouring another nation’s lifetime of accumuated
culture wealth, etc. all of this only to fulfil their whims. this makes is impossible to
not think about what the mothers who hold their children in a protective embrace,
offer their respects to elders and get scared and laguished in fear at the signs of
impending disaster, are thinking.

whether war is suited to disposition of women or it is a question that seems new, but
is as old as life itself.

a man’s life starts w struggle, and a woman’s life, w surrender. but the woman is
able to offer her affection submissiveness to the man who emerges victorious from
his struggles

a woman is able to awaken emotions in a man that are dormant within him.
emotions that defeat his barbarity. (fixing lol)

the foundation of sacred homes is female intellect and not male strength. bec of
their natural intellect, women dont allow their struggle to merge w that of men.

that example of if a man is a tree woman is a creeper

temperamental differences bw men and women made it possible for them to

become well acquainted w each other.

with the arrival of children, women realised that her submissiveness had become
stronger. she realised that she doesnt need to rule over a strong man, she just
needs to help the weak ones (children) becoe equally strong.

when she had this realisation, the foundation of a household was laid.

women then started keeping children before men, and told the man that in order
make it as strong as the man, she needed shelter from rain, sunshine, needed food,
etc. so man then built house arranged food etc. to protect her the man started to
feel the need to support her from the sam enemies he used to fearlessly clash with.

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 bec if enemies were now unsuccessful in defeating him, they could defeat the
beauty of his household.

the circle of warfare then started to widen.

warfare didnt stop, and man become more and more eager to protect his household
and women. women were engaged in war but it was never seen in them prima facie
directly. man now started kiling and dying to protect specific communities and not
just his pride and ego.

women, in reality, cannot perceive war from a male perspective. bec of war his
character became one of that which couldnt form an attachment with the household,
esp in compariosn to that of a woman. for man, destruction of home is disruption in
source of hapiness, but for woman, destructin of houssehold in destruction of life
itself.

for women, wars arent just physically and mentally unsuitable, but they also serve
as a major impediment to their growth and development: a man only has time to
cherish a woman and savour her for a mmoment, bec as a soldier he has no hope
for tomorrow and death dances in his eyes. the development of a woman’s values
of peace, meditation, compassion, etc. is only possible in companionship, but
woman doesnt have that companionship. ex- draupadi was never seen as a
glorious mother fully or fully a proud wife. she was divided among the pandavas as
if shes an object. so a womans quality can only be developed in the peaceful
society.

woman’s qualities have only been able to abstain men from going to war to some
extent, but not fully. because man now started becoming more selfish and started
associating his self worth hwith the protection of his race, community, country, etc.

the desire to increase scope of one’s authority for a man very drastically increased.
man considers woman and home to be necessities of life, but he cannot have a
women be a hurdle in his lust for authority. no limit for desire = no limit on wars,
injustice, atrocities, etc.

now, if a woman were to remind a man what duty and impropriety meant every
moment, it would be a challenge to his intellect and if she were to leave his life, his
life would become unbearbale. ultimately, to get rid of impediments that a woman
could pose, he came up with a solution in the form of an argument. the argument is
that “your aversion to war is rooted in your inherent weakness. bec you dont have

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 strength, your empty sentimentality derives shelter from that lack of strength. your
submisiveness reveals your need for protection and that is a cause for shame, not
pride.”

when a woman heard this, she thought omg that is me. shit, i am weak and
contemptible :(((

now she promised to be by the man and become another version of her man. the
same weapons she discarded as symbols of ruthless killings became ornaments. in
seconds, she forgot lessons of humanity and now a man’s path had no
impediments. woman was no more challening his intellect or leaving him.

women have also taken up weapons in the past and they take it up today also. but
the difference between the 2 is like the difference between attempt anf
accomplishment. earlier, women had to take up weapons to protect a noble truth.
out of fear and apprehension, not reasoning. in today’s time, however, today women
take up weapons because a bekief is taking shape that if they are unable to cut off
emotions that males are able to cut off, like compassion, mercy, affection, etc. then
their race does not deserve to live. and as a result of this, women are shaping the
swords to slay the children born of their fellow mothers.

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