De/Reconstruction of Marginal Self and Identity

Dalits, by and large, have succeeded in discovering the root causes of their exclusion, degradation, and backwardness. They have devised diverse strategies to extricate themselves from the stigmas and shackles of caste system. Through their literary effusions, especially self-narratives, they have found a voice which has won for them a definite agency and autonomy in their otherwise peripheral existence. With the newly-acquired power of speech, they have put across strong critiques of many social and religious institutions which treated them as subhuman beings. Identifying with people, across the globe, who share a similar destiny, they are emerging as a formidable force to be reckoned with.