See also
- Indian English literature
- Social reformers of India
- The Begum's Fortune , an 1879 utopian science fiction novel by Jules Verne
- Kithaab
| Author | Begum Rokeya |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Genre | Feminist, Utopian fiction |
| Publisher | The Indian Ladies Magazine |
Publication date | 1905 |
| Publication place | British India |
| Pages | 220 |
| Preceded by | Matichur 1st Vol. (1904) |
| Followed by | Matichur 2nd Vol. (1922) |
Sultana's Dream is a 1905 Bengali feminist utopian story in English, written by Begum Rokeya, also known as Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain, a Muslim feminist, writer and social reformer from Bengal. [1] [2] It was published in the same year in Madras-based English periodical The Indian Ladies Magazine. [3] [a]
It depicts a science fiction feminist utopia called Ladyland, in which women run everything and men are secluded, in a mirror-image of the traditional practice of purdah . The women are aided by technology which enables laborless farming and flying cars; the women scientists have discovered how to trap solar power and control the weather. This results in "a sort of gender-based Planet of the Apes where the roles are reversed and the men are locked away in a technologically advanced future." [4] [5]
There, traditional stereotypes such as “Men have bigger brains” and women are "naturally weak" are countered with logic such as "an elephant also has a bigger and heavier brain" and “a lion is stronger than a man” and yet neither of them dominates men. [3] In Ladyland crime is eliminated, since men were considered responsible for all of it. The workday is only two hours long, since men used to waste six hours of each day in smoking. The religion is one of love and truth. Purity is held above all, such that the list of "sacred relations" ( mahram ) is widely extended. [5]
According to Hossain, she wrote Sultana's Dream as a way to pass the time while her husband, Khan Bahadur Syed Sakhawat Hossain, a deputy magistrate, was away on a tour. Her husband was an appreciative audience and encouraged Hossain to read and write in English. Thus, writing Sultana's Dream in English was a way of demonstrating her proficiency in the language to her husband. Sakhawat was very impressed by the story and encouraged Hossain to submit the piece to The Indian Ladies Magazine, which published the story for the first time in 1905. The story was later published in book form in 1908. [6]
Hossain (1880-1932) was born into a rich family who owned land. Though she knew how to read and write in Urdu, she was prevented from learning Bangla and English. In those days, English was seen as a language that would expose girls to new ideas, which society thought unsuitable. Rokeya learned to read and write English and Bangla with the help of her elder sister and elder brother. She wrote Sultana's Dream when she was merely 25 years old. In 1910, she started a school for girls in Kolkata and to this day, the school is in operation.
In 2018, the Indian-American artist Chitra Ganesh created 27 linocuts to illustrate the story. [7] [8] [9]
In 2023, the Spanish artist and filmmaker Isabel Herguera released an animated movie inspired by Sultana's Dream and Begum Rokeya.
In 2024, the UNESCO's Memory of the World Regional Register inscribed Sultana's Dream. [10]
Sultana or Sultanah may refer to:
Pardah or purdah is a religious and social practice of gender partition prevalent among some Muslim and Hindu communities. It takes two forms: social partition of the sexes and the requirement that women cover their bodies so as to cover their skin and conceal their form. A woman who practices purdah can be referred to as pardanashin or purdahnishan. The term purdah is also used to describe related practices, such as the pre-election period of sensitivity occurring in the weeks leading up to a general election or referendum.
Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain, commonly known as Begum Rokeya, was a prominent Bengali feminist thinker, writer, educator and political activist from British India. She is widely regarded as a pioneer of women's liberation in Bangladesh and India.
Begum Sufia Kamal was a Bangladeshi poet, feminist leader, and political activist. She took part in the Bengali nationalist movement of the 1950s and civil society leader in independent Bangladesh. She led feminist activism and was a president of Bangladesh Mahila Parishad. She died in 1999 and was the first woman to be given a state funeral in Bangladesh.
The Begum's Fortune, also published as The Begum's Millions, is an 1879 novel by Jules Verne, with some utopian elements and other elements that seem clearly dystopian.
Barnita Bagchi is a Bengali-speaking Indian feminist advocate, historian, and literary scholar. She is a faculty member in literary studies at Utrecht University, and was previously at the Institute of Development Studies, Kolkata at the University of Calcutta. She was educated at Jadavpur University, in Kolkata, St Hilda's College, Oxford, and at Trinity College, Cambridge.
Chitra Ganesh is a visual artist based in Brooklyn, New York. Ganesh's work across media includes: charcoal drawings, digital collages, films, web projects, photographs, and wall murals. Ganesh draws from mythology, literature, and popular culture to reveal feminist and queer narratives from the past and to imagine new visions of the future.
Mohammad A. Quayum is an academic, writer, editor, critic and translator.
Nawab Begum Faizunnesa Choudhurani was Zamindar of Homnabad-Pashchimgaon Estate in present-day Comilla District, Bangladesh. She is most famous for her campaign for female education and other social issues. In appreciation of her social work, in 1889 Queen Victoria awarded Faizunnesa the title of "Nawab", making her the first female Nawab in South Asia.
Bangladeshi English literature (BEL) refers to the body of literary work written in the English language in Bangladesh and the Bangladeshi diaspora. In academia, it is also now referred to as Bangladeshi Writing in English (BWE). Early prominent Bengali writers in English include Ram Muhan Roy, Bankim Chandra Chatterjee, Begum Rokeya, and Rabindranath Tagore. In 1905, Begum Rokeya (1880–1932) wrote Sultana's Dream, one of the earliest examples of feminist science fiction. Modern writers of the Bangladeshi diaspora include Tahmima Anam, Neamat Imam, Monica Ali, and Zia Haider Rahman.
Aline Valek is a Brazilian writer, novelist, editor and illustrator. She is from Governador Valadares, Minas Gerais but moved to Brasilia early in her life. She graduated in Advertising and Propaganda at the Higher Education Institute of Brasilia, Brazil. She has published two books and currently works as a columnist for Carta Capital, a Brazilian weekly magazine.
Feminism in Bangladesh seeks equal rights of women in Bangladesh through social and political change. Article 28 of Bangladesh constitution states that "Women shall have equal rights with men in all spheres of the State and of public life".
Anwara Bahar Chowdhury was a Bangladeshi social activist and writer.
Husna Banu Khanam was a Bangladeshi educationist, writer and Nazrul singer. She was a pioneer of Bengali Muslim women journalism. In 1999, she received the Ekushey Padak Award for her contribution in music, and in 2004, she received the Begum Rokeya Medal for her contribution to the socio-economic development of women by the Government of Bangladesh.
Hasna Begum was a Bangladeshi philosopher and feminist, and a professor of philosophy at the University of Dhaka until her retirement in December 2000.
Masuda Khatun was a pioneering Bengali feminist and secularist. Her pen name was Mrs M Rahman.
Nabanoor was a monthly Bengali literary magazine published from Kolkata. It was a progressive magazine that encouraged contribution by both male and female authors.
Sultana's Dream is a 2023 animated film directed by Isabel Herguera based in part on the 1905 short story of the same name by Rokeya Hossain.
The full text of Sultana's Dream at Wikisource
