عورت، فطرت اور قربانی: پہاڑی سفرناموں میں ماحولیاتی نسائی مطالعہ

Woman, Nature and Sacrifice: An Ecofeminist Study of Mountain Travelogues

Abstract

This paper examines the interrelationship between women, nature, and sacrifice in mountain travelogues from an ecofeminist perspective. It argues that in mountainous societies, women are not merely passive social actors but active, resilient, and indispensable figures who maintain a deep and continuous connection with their natural environment. Their everyday lives are marked by struggle, endurance, and sacrifice, shaped by difficult geographical conditions, limited resources, and demanding social responsibilities. Through close reading of travel writing, it becomes evident that women are often portrayed both as symbols of natural beauty and harmony and as individuals who negotiate physical hardship, economic burdens, and restrictive cultural traditions. The study further highlights that ecofeminist discourse helps in understanding how both women and nature are subjected to similar processes of marginalization, exploitation, and control. This shared experience establishes a symbolic as well as material connection between the two, where the oppression of nature parallels, the social constraints placed on women. In mountain communities, women play a crucial role in sustaining household economies, agricultural practices, and communal life. Their labor, patience, and resilience contribute not only to family survival but also to maintaining ecological balance and environmental sustainability. Thus, travel writers often construct women as powerful metaphors of endurance and ecological harmony. However, this representation also reveals the tension between romanticized portrayals of women as part of nature and their lived realities of hardship and constraint. Overall, the paper concludes that women in mountain travelogues embody both strength and vulnerability, and their representation contributes significantly to broader discussions on ecofeminism, cultural identity, and sustainable social order.