Introduction:
How does one get past the inhibitions of self-hatred? From a young age colonized populations, even in a postcolonial world, are taught that their cultures are inferior to their colonizer, they are unworthy of being loved because of the color of their skin and their subsequent cultural practices, The God of Small Things is a postcolonial semi-biographical Indian novel, and Arundhati Roy’s debut novel tackles several of these identity shaping struggles. It is astounding that The God of Small Things critical acclaim is still valid in regards to the cultural relevance and relation the novel has over modern Indian society and its corresponding diaspora, which is indicative of the almost positive feedback loop phenomena that place Western …show more content…
My thesis will be broken down into three parts a background in the political history of India, the privation of authentic culture and the how traumatic events in the novel result in an inability to form a linear structure. Thus, the cyclical nature and the content of the novel are directly linked by post-colonialism at large.
The God of Small Things provides an ideal example of the internalized struggle of Western superiority in postcolonial India, from the structure, to the content, that portrays normal characters struggle with their sense of identity and how their history has been locked away from them. In The God of Small Things, characters repeatedly undergo internal colonization in order to be accepted in society. Roy puts forward her set of ideas and beliefs about Indian society in her works and wishes to educate and even politicize her readers. Her writings are her tool of socio-political education (Chan 2007, p …show more content…
The caste system dates back to 1200 BCE and is founded in Hindu tradition. However, originally the caste system divided people into communities predicated upon their jobs similarly like the guilds in medieval Europe. At that point in time the castes were relatively fluid and there were no social hierarchy as Hindu texts mandated that all castes were equal because all tasks, jobs, and functions were necessary to maintain a productive and functioning society (Singh 2011). However, when the British occupancy of India began, the construction of a social panopticon began. A forced reduction of identity and self for the native populations alongside the subsequent propagation of western ideals. This is exemplified through 200 years of colonial law, beating down upon the backs of people telling them that they were not good enough. That they must renounce their barbarous ways in order to save their souls. From the attempted Christianization of the Indian Subcontinent to the outlawing of indigenous practices such as Sati. India bore the brunt of British taxation, pillaging, and plundering all the while being the largest source of income for the British Empire. Those that were already in the upper strata of society fought to be placed in the English’s good
How does one get past the inhibitions of self-hatred? From a young age colonized populations, even in a postcolonial world, are taught that their cultures are inferior to their colonizer, they are unworthy of being loved because of the color of their skin and their subsequent cultural practices, The God of Small Things is a postcolonial semi-biographical Indian novel, and Arundhati Roy’s debut novel tackles several of these identity shaping struggles. It is astounding that The God of Small Things critical acclaim is still valid in regards to the cultural relevance and relation the novel has over modern Indian society and its corresponding diaspora, which is indicative of the almost positive feedback loop phenomena that place Western …show more content…
My thesis will be broken down into three parts a background in the political history of India, the privation of authentic culture and the how traumatic events in the novel result in an inability to form a linear structure. Thus, the cyclical nature and the content of the novel are directly linked by post-colonialism at large.
The God of Small Things provides an ideal example of the internalized struggle of Western superiority in postcolonial India, from the structure, to the content, that portrays normal characters struggle with their sense of identity and how their history has been locked away from them. In The God of Small Things, characters repeatedly undergo internal colonization in order to be accepted in society. Roy puts forward her set of ideas and beliefs about Indian society in her works and wishes to educate and even politicize her readers. Her writings are her tool of socio-political education (Chan 2007, p …show more content…
The caste system dates back to 1200 BCE and is founded in Hindu tradition. However, originally the caste system divided people into communities predicated upon their jobs similarly like the guilds in medieval Europe. At that point in time the castes were relatively fluid and there were no social hierarchy as Hindu texts mandated that all castes were equal because all tasks, jobs, and functions were necessary to maintain a productive and functioning society (Singh 2011). However, when the British occupancy of India began, the construction of a social panopticon began. A forced reduction of identity and self for the native populations alongside the subsequent propagation of western ideals. This is exemplified through 200 years of colonial law, beating down upon the backs of people telling them that they were not good enough. That they must renounce their barbarous ways in order to save their souls. From the attempted Christianization of the Indian Subcontinent to the outlawing of indigenous practices such as Sati. India bore the brunt of British taxation, pillaging, and plundering all the while being the largest source of income for the British Empire. Those that were already in the upper strata of society fought to be placed in the English’s good