Rising Autonomy of Matriarch and Bargaining with Patriarchy: A Feminist Analysis of Haider’s How It Happened

Abstract

This article examines the shifting dynamics of female agency, domestic authority, and structural subversion in Shazaf Fatima Haider’s novel How It Happened (2012) through the theoretical lens of Deniz Kandiyoti’s seminal work, Bargaining with Patriarchy (1988). It argues that the absolute domestic autonomy of the matriarch, Dadi Gulbahar Begum is not an expression of authentic feminist empowerment, rather it is the fulfillment of a life- long classical patriarchal bargain. Women endure youth stage subjugation in exchange for late life authority. Using close textual analysis, this paper explores how macro-structural shifts i.e. modern education, urban mobility and companionate ideals of marriage disrupt this generational cycle. The counter strategies of the younger generations focus on radical resistance. Zeba’s active subversion of sectarian marriages and traditional vetting process directly attack Dadi’s authority. This study demonstrates that Haider’s novel reflects the inevitable breakdown of classical patriarchy in contemporary urban Pakistan. Younger characters in the novel do not bargain with patriarchy in a positive way rather they reject patriarchal notions and struggle for their position and autonomy. They force the re-evaluation of how females’ autonomy is negotiated, sustained and reclaimed within the contemporary South Asian literature.

Keywords: Autonomy, Matriarch, Bargain, Classic Patriarchy