Exploring Intersectional Tyrannies: Battling Trauma through Empowerment in Ruchira Gupta’s I Kick and I Fly

Abstract

This article scrutinises Ruchira Gupta’s I Kick and I Fly through Kimberle Cranshaw’s theoretical framework of Intersectionality and Cathy Caruth’s Trauma theory to evaluate the intersecting tyrannies and the psychological distress of multidimensional stimuli shaping the protagonist’s journey of resistance and agency. The narrative revolves around the harrowing reality of sex trafficking in which people are suppressed, deployed and forced into performing non-consensual, derogatory sexual acts. In the narrative, the protagonist, Heera, is a young girl from a marginalised community in India whose weaknesses primarily stem from the oppressions of gender, poverty, caste and societal exclusion. These overlapping injustices render her vulnerable to the persuasive and gruesome phenomenon of sex trafficking and cause significant psychological suffering. The paper employs Cathy Caruth’s Trauma theory, which underscores trauma as a neglected and repetitive experience visible in Heera’s initial helplessness and tranquility imposed by her surroundings. The selected narrative explores her journey of regaining autonomy as a way to dismantle the trauma loop with her martial arts programme that symbolises empowerment and resilience. Therefore, this paper highlights Cranshaw’s concept of intersectionality by providing a voice to under-represented females and showing how people and groups can transform society in a better way, while Caruth’s Trauma theory focuses on the psychological wounds and illustrates how Heera’s emancipation functions as both testament and healing against societal abuse. As a whole, both these frameworks elucidate how Heera critiques systematic oppression that supports sex trafficking and challenges the hidden traumas it generates. The author’s narrative magnifies oppressed women's voices and stresses Heera’s path as a testimony to perseverance, liberation and solidarity.