#MeToo as a Failed Movement of Women Empowerment in Pakistan: A Critical Discourse Analysis

Abstract

The current study aims to understand the narrative of #MeToo in Pakistan as formulated by Pakistani Twitter users. Although the #MeToo movement emerged as a movement of women empowerment against the issues of sexual harassment and domestic violence, however today in the 21st-century women are still struggling with longstanding abuses and sexual harassment. The current study has explored how in the patriarchal society of Pakistan, the narrative of #MeToo is not acceptable and manipulated by certain societal forces for personal gain. Similarly, this research has also understood the influence of dominant discourses on the narrative of #MeToo. Through the use of Van Dijk's (1998), Ideological square, as a theoretical lens, the results of the study argue that the narrative of #MeToo is badly exploited subjugated by patriarchal notions to manipulate women empowerment in Pakistan. Two domains of the #MeToo movement have been explored i.e. Sexual harassment and Domestic violence through the current study and the results have revealed that in the patriarchal society of Pakistan domestic violence is given weightage over sexual harassment. Furthermore, Patriarchy has argued that the #MeToo movement is a movement of fame, to which the proponents of the #MeToo movement referred as Fame: A Blame Game to the movement. Lastly, the recommendations are offered as well.