A FEMINIST ANALYSIS OF THE CHARACTER WIFE IN THE SHORT STORY OF "ANOR" ("THE POMEGRANATE") BY ABDULLA QAHHOR

Abstract:

This paper presents a feminist literary analysis of the wife’s character in Abdulla Qahhor’s short story Anor (The Pomegranate). Many interpretations describe the story mainly as a picture of poverty and social hardship. This study challenges that view. Using materialist feminist theory, it argues that the wife’s suffering is gender-based, not only economic. The analysis uses close reading to examine characterization, the domestic setting, plot development, narrative point of view, and literary devices such as symbolism, metaphor, irony, and foreshadowing. These elements show that the wife is a marginalized and silenced figure. Special attention is given to her pregnancy, which makes her more vulnerable, and her desire for pomegranates becomes a symbol of denied bodily needs. The study shows that verbal, emotional, and physical violence work together as forms of patriarchal control. As a result, “provision” is presented ironically as something achieved through force. By focusing on the wife’s experience, this paper rereads Anor as a subtle critique of patriarchal marriage and adds to feminist readings of Uzbek realist literature.