Exploring Hegemonic Masculinity in Amandeep Sandhu’s Roll of Honour

Abstract

Masculinity often associated with being strong, aggressive, powerful. Masculinity, as a social construct, plays a significant role in shaping the public-private behavior of men. The emerging field of studies on men has extensively dealt with the question of construction, practice, and variations of masculinity. Amandeep Sandhu’s Roll of Honour (2012) underpins the constructed hegemonic masculinity through the resistance of subordinated masculinities. The text unravels the traumatic effects of the traditional notion of masculinity faced by the protagonist, Appu. The narrative contains implicit and explicit references to sexual abuse. Sexual abuse, especially targeting children, is not only physical and mental abuse but also a political act imposing masculinity. The present paper explores the recurrence of sexual abuse in the text as a method of constructing hegemonic masculinity and resistance to this abuse as the assertion and counter-hegemonic exercise of various kinds of subordinated masculinities. The paper focuses on unraveling the politics of domination and tracing the use of sexual abuse as a coercive political tool. Through the life of Appu, Sandhu delineates the various socio-political layers associated with sexual abuse, as well as the horrific trauma of victims and the aftermath of such  incidents. The present paper engages with various forms of resistance by the characters who were prone to or victimized by sexual abuse at the hands of abusers.