Performing Representation
Women Members in the Indian Parliament
Shirin M Rai author Carole Spary author
Format:Hardback
Publisher:OUP India
Published:17th Jan '19
Currently unavailable, and unfortunately no date known when it will be back
Breaking new ground in scholarship on gender and politics, Performing Representation is the first comprehensive analysis of women in the Indian parliament. It explores the possibilities and limits of parliamentary democracy and the participation of women in its institutional performances. Offering a new, multi-method analysis of the gendered nature of India's parliament through an examination of electoral data, media reports and life stories of women Members of Parliament it sheds light on the performance, aesthetics, and norms of parliamentary life. It explores how the gendered axis of power underpins the performance of parliament and its Members as well as the political economy in which they are embedded. The book makes a strong case for taking parliamentary politics seriously in these times of populism, without either a utopian framing of women MPs as challengers of masculinised institutional politics or seeing them simply as docile actors in a gendered institution. Performing Representation raises critical questions about the politics of difference, claim-making, representation and intersectionality. It addresses these questions as part of global feminist debates on the importance of the women's representation in political institutions.
India - the most populous democracy in the world - has just 64 women in the Lok Sabha (lower house of parliament), ranking 149th worldwide in this regard. Why? This terrific new study by Shirin Rai and Carole Spary provides fresh insights into issues of representation and representativeness, gender and power, and the role of women in parliament - both within India and more broadly. Drawing upon qualitative and quantitative evidence, this book provides an essential contribution towards the literature on women in politics. * Pippa Norris, Professor, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University *
This book certainly goes a long way in providing an insightful study of women who have successfully become Members of Parliament. It tells much that is of great interest about the ways in which they navigate their way to electoral success and also about their experiences in what is still a bastion of patriarchy - the party system. It is this important characteristic that is the main reason for the very limited numbers of women MPs that have never gone much beyond 12% of the total. * Subhashini Ali, Former Member, Indian Parliament; President, All India Democratic Women's Association; Member, Communist Party of India. *
This complete guide to women's presence and performance in India's Parliament is a must read for anyone interested in gender and politics. Fascinating stories and critical analysis illuminate the multiple challenges women face in every dimension of their parliamentary politics/life. * Niraja Gopal Jayal, professor, Centre for the Study of Law and Governance, Jawaharlal Nehru University, India *
ISBN: 9780199489053
Dimensions: 222mm x 148mm x 29mm
Weight: 598g
456 pages