User:Kshah786/Parveen Shakir

Orginal Organization:


 * Early career
 * 1.1Style of poetry
 * 1.1.1Ghazalyaat
 * 1.1.2Free verse
 * 1.2Legacy
 * 1.3Awards and recognition
 * 1.4Commemorative postage stamp
 * 1.5Tribute
 * 2Personal life
 * 2.1Birth
 * 2.2Education
 * 2.3Family and death

NEW ORGANIZATION


 * Early career
 * 1.1Style of poetry
 * 1.1.1Ghazalyaat
 * 1.1.2Free verse
 * Poetic Themes
 * 1.2Legacy
 * Parveen Shakir Urdu Literature Festival
 * 1.3Awards and recognition
 * 1.4Commemorative postage stamp
 * 1.5Tribute
 * 2Personal life
 * 2.1Birth
 * 2.2Education
 * 2.3Family and death

NEW LEAD:

Parveen Shakir or Parvin Shakir (Urdu: پروین شاکر‎) (24 November 1952 – 26 December 1995) was an Urdu poet, teacher, and civil servant of the Government of Pakistan. She is best known for her poems, which were one the first to bring a female voice to mainstream Urdu literature. In the years following her death, an organization called the Parveen Shakir Trust was founded and hosts the Parveen Shakir Urdu Literature Festival every year.

STYLE OF POETRY
The two main styles she wrote in were ghazal and free verse. Within both genres she utilized several literary techniques in addition to the delicate topics she examined to create a full image of the female experience.

FREE VERSE

Other than topics of femininity and female sexuality, Shakir also used free verse to write about topics related to economic disparities and the tendency of society to exploit on the weak and poor. Several of her poems lament the harsh reality that many low-income laborers around the world face. For example, her poem "Steel Mills Worker" speaks about the deplorable conditions and long hours workers find themselves doing every day. The poem also describes how these workers are taken for granted and used to fulfill often sinister goals by those who employ them, as described in the line "He is the fuel for this furnace". Another one of her poems, “We are all Dr Faustus,” delves deeper into this subject and directly addresses the prevalence of corruption in wealthy and powerful circles of people. She claimed that the rich achieve their goals, but at a grave price, and used these arguments to critique economic systems such as capitalism.

POETIC THEMES

Parveen Shakir's poems are known for their in-depth exploration of sensitive topics rarely talked about, especially for women. Her poems aimed to encompass all parts of being a woman, from the innocence to the start of being conscious of one's own sexuality, and more adult struggles as well. These include the hardships of love, the restrictions and social pressures faced uniquely by women, and the need for women to be more represented in all areas of society. One aspect of writing that Shakir is particularly known for is her introduction of female pronouns, both first person and third person, as a way to normalize femininity in poetry, specifically within the realm of Urdu poetry, a traditionally masculine field. Through her ghazals in particular, she continued to embody a feminine voice through grammatical choices, giving a voice to females and the female experience. Shakir's personal life was extremely influential in the choice of style and topic that she chose to pursue. An example of this would be the tumultuous divorce between her and her husband, which resulted in her losing custody of her son due to Pakistani law. This event was one of the reasons her writing focused heavily on women's issues in regards to their place in society. Many of her poems lament the discrimination women face, especially as a divorcee living in a more conservative country.

LEGACYHer poems were unique in the sense that they exposed and even encouraged freedom of expression among women. She did not shy away from taboo themes; instead, she claimed them and used them to create provocative poems that challenge the dependency of women on men. As influenced by her experience with Pakistani tradition, her poems served to offer a refuge for women fighting the deeply rooted misogyny in South Asian culture.

Her first and most well-known work, Khushbu, was specifically monumental in this regard. In Shakir's writing, she touched on the theme of separation. Shakir's book explored the theme not only in the sense of not only emotionally being alone, but also in regards to unjustly losing social capital as a woman in the absence of a man. Her poems allude to not only what a man provides of her emotionally and physically, but also financially and in terms of societal expectations.

Shakir's work in writing, teaching, and government service inspired many women to follow suit. After learning about Shakir's pioneering career, many women decided to join work sectors that seldom contained women before, such as journalism and public service.

PARVEEN SHAKIR URDU LITERATURE FESTIVAL

Due to Parveen Shakir's far-reaching impact in the poetry world, the Parveen Shakir Trust was established in 1994. The Trust now hosts the Parveen Shakir Urdu Literature Festival in Islamabad every year. During the festival, works from various poets, including Parveen Shakir, are displayed in an attempt to create awareness and interest in traditional Pakistani forms of writing and poetry. The festival particularly targets youth in order to increase the amount of younger individuals dedicated to this type of study, although it welcomes those of all ages who attend. According the organizers of the festival, the event serves as a way to honor past writers, continue the influence of their writing, and promote creativity among the general public.