GENDER CHARACTERISTICS OF UZBEK NOVEL WRITING

Аннотация

This article explores the narrative, socio-cultural, and linguistic representation of gender roles in early 20th-century Uzbek literature, focusing on the seminal novels of Abdulla Qodiriy and Choʻlpon. Utilizing a comparative-textual and socio-linguistic analysis within the IMRAD framework, the study examines how patriarchal constraints, female agency, and male identity are constructed in Qodiriy's Days Gone By (Oʻtkan kunlar) and Night and Day (Kecha va kunduz) by Choʻlpon. The analysis reveals that while Qodiriy portrays women's subjugation alongside their subtle moral resistance within traditional domestic spheres, Choʻlpon employs sharper social criticism, portraying female oppression as a systemic hurdle to national enlightenment. Furthermore, male roles are critically deconstructed, moving beyond traditional heroic archetypes to highlight internal moral conflicts shaped by societal expectations. The study concludes that gender representation in early Uzbek novels served not merely as a thematic layer, but as a core ideological mechanism reflecting the socio-political transitions of Turkestan during the early Jadid movement.