26 pages • 52 minutes read
Begum RokeyaSultana's Dream
Fiction | Short Story | Adult | Published in 1905A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Background
Authorial Context: Begum Rokeya
Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain was born in the Rangpur district (in Bengal Presidency, which was a part of the British Empire in India), present-day Bangladesh, in 1880. She was a writer, social worker, feminist, and academic. Rokeya was a pioneer of women’s education in Bengal. She critiqued customs that forcefully relegated women to the inner sanctums of their houses instead of allowing them to actively contribute to society.
In the early 20th century, Bengali Muslim women were allowed to learn only Arabic or Urdu to read the religious texts. Though she did not have her father’s permission, Rokeya learned Bangla and English from her eldest brother. After her marriage, her husband encouraged her to learn more and write in English. Rokeya wrote “Sultana’s Dream” (1905) when she was alone at home while her husband was away for work. This short story highlights the absurdity and unfairness of gender inequality. Rokeya strongly believed that education provided women with the means to liberate themselves from patriarchal oppression. In 1909, she established a school for girls in Bhagalpur in the memory of her late husband. In 1911, Sakhawat Memorial Girls’ High School moved to Calcutta and is now affiliated to the West Bengal Board of Secondary Education.
Rokeya wrote as a way to resist oppression and discrimination based on sex, especially within the Bengali Muslim community. She wrote mostly in Bangla, with the exception of a few stories in English. Her notable works include the novels Pipasa (1902), Padmarag (1924), and Abarodhbasini (1928), as well as Motichur, two collections of essays published in 1904 and 1922. In 1916, Rokeya founded Anjuman-e-Khawateen-e-Islam (the Islamic Women’s Association), which provided financial assistance and shelter to women from poor families. She died in 1932 at age 52. Since then, December 9, her birthday, is observed as Rokeya Day in Bangladesh.
Sociohistorical Context: Muslim Women in Colonial India
When Rokeya published “Sultana’s Dream” in 1905, India was still under the rule of British colonizers. The author was born in a conservative Bengali Muslim family. Women of her generation were confined to zenanas, allocated spaces within the home where they would reside and conduct their daily activities away from the presence of unrelated men. Interacting with men who were not within the circle of sacred relations (close family relatives) was taboo. Zenanas were part of Northern India’s purdah system, prevalent among Muslim communities. The purdah system was a set of practices that dictated strict gender segregation and the veiling of women in public spaces. The veil symbolized modesty and served as a marker of a woman’s respectability.
Under the purdah system, women were the responsibility of male guardians, typically fathers, husbands, or elder brothers. Women’s mobility was severely restricted, and they often required permission from male family members to leave the home for any reason. Male relatives also had significant control over women’s lives, including decisions related to marriage, education, and employment. The purdah system was reinforced by societal expectations that emphasized the importance of women’s modesty and chastity. Women were conditioned to be submissive and subordinate, and violations of these social norms could result in social stigma and ostracism. Through her story, Rokeya mocks and critiques the Indian patriarchal system. In the Introduction to “Sultana’s Dream,” Roushan Jahan asserts, “[T]hrough the dialogue of Sultana and Sister Sara […] Rokeya ridicules Indian stereotypes and customs” (3-4).
Rokeya lived in a society where formal education was accessible only to men. When her brothers attended English classes, Rokeya and her older sister, Karimunnisa, secretly learned English and Bangla from her brother Ibrahim. Karimunnisa was a talented poetess and an inspiration to young Rokeya. As marrying off teenage girls was a common practice at that time, Rokeya married when she was 18, and Karimunnisa became a wife when she was only 15. These life experiences strengthened her belief that education was the key to women’s empowerment and financial independence. In the feminist utopia of “Sultana’s Dream,” the Queen allocates government funds to make sure that all women in her country are educated. She prohibits early marriages in Ladyland and changes the legal age of marriage to 21.
