Damned Nature, Silenced Women: An Ecofeminist Perspective on Kamala Markandaya’s The Coffer Dams

Abstract

Kamala Markanday’s The Coffer Dams offers an ecofeminist critique, exposing how patriarchal capitalism drives the parallel exploitation of women and the natural world..  The author juxtaposes the character of Helen Clinton and the symbolism of the hydroelectric dam project to reveal colonial-modern development as a system of patriarchal domination that renders nature “damned” and women “silenced.” Using the ecofeminist frameworks of Vandana Shiva, Karen J. Warren, and Maria Mies, this article argues that The Coffer Dams exposes the structural link between environmental degradation and gendered oppression. Ultimately, it highlights Helen as a primary figure of ecofeminist resistance.