Major Trends In The Post Independence Indian English Fiction

This Book Presents A Reasonably Comprehensive Account Of The Development Of The Indian English Novel Since Independence. The Novel During The Colonial Period Has A Different Outlook And Was More Concerned With The Problems Of The Indian People Suffering Under The British Yoke. After Independence The Indian Writers Looked At The Indian Scene From The Postcolonial Point Of View. There Were New Hopes, No Doubt, But The Problems Social, Economic, Religious, Political And Familial That Were Submerged In The Flood Of The National Movement Emerged And Drew Attention Of The Creative Writers. The Partition, The Communal Riots After Partition, The Problem Of Casteism, The Subjugation Of Women, The Poverty Of The Illiterate Masses Became The Focal Points. Mulk Raj Anand, Raja Rao, R.K. Narayan, Nayantara Sahgal And Kamala Markandaya In The Beginning Wrote Novels Of Social Realism In The Fifties.But After The Sixties, New Trends Emerged. Writers Like Anita Desai, Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, Bhabani Bhattacharya, G.V. Desani, Chaman Nahal, Manohar Malgonkar And B. Rajan Portrayed The Picture Of The Post-Independence Indian Society. The Stream Of The Early Fifties Now Turned Into A Broad River With New Currents And Cross Currents. The Old Traditional Method Of Novel Writing Gave Way To Modern Techniques.The Indian English Novel Took Further Strides In The Eighties And The Decades That Followed It. Salman Rushdie Can Be Said To Be The Leader Of The New Trend. Shashi Deshpande And Arundhati Roy Followed Suit.This Book Divided Into Six Chapters Surveys And Discusses The Major Trends In The Post- Independence Indian English Novel. The Major Writers Discussed Apart From The Trio, R.K. Narayan, Raja Rao And Mulk Raj Anand Are Bhabani Bhattacharya, Nayantara Sahgal, Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, Anita Desai, Arundhati Roy And Kamala Markandaya.This Book Will Be Of Immense Help To The Students Of Indian English Fiction And The General Reader.

After The Pioneer Works By Scholars Such As Naik, Narasimhaiah And Mukherjee, And The Thirty Years Of Silence Which Followed Their Ground-Breaking Achievements, The Companion Appears On The Scene Striving To Reinvigorate The Tradition Of Panoramic Studies Of Indian Literature In English. In The Intervening Period, Indian Fiction In English Has Become Of Paramount Importance In The Wide Context Of Postcolonial Studies: An Emergent Crop Of Novelists Belonging To The So-Called New Generation Has Colourfully Paved The Way Towards New Artistic Horizons, Re-Interpreting Western-Derived Literary Models With Inventive Approaches. Complementary To Their Role There Is The Articulate Presence Of A Host Of Indian Scholars Who In Recent Years Have Significantly Influenced The Course Of This Analysis And Have Vitally Contributed To Enlarging Its Scope Well Beyond The Original Boundaries Of Studies In Literary Criticism.The Companion, Therefore, Addresses The Exigencies Of Critics, Teachers And Students Alike All Those Who Need To Find Quick Points Of Reference In This Wide Field Of Studies By Relying On A Team Of Authoritative Collaborators And Specialists From All Over The World. Great Care Was Taken Not Only In Selecting Collaborators On The Basis Of Their Specialisation But Also Taking Into Account Their Cultural Background In Relation To The Author They Were To Discuss. The Book In Fact Has Been Organised To Have What Have Been Deemed To Be The Most Representative Authors In Indian Fiction Discussed In An Essay-Long Chapter Each, Structured To Highlight Crucial Points Such As Biographical Details, Novels And Critical Reception. Each Chapter Includes A Final Bibliography Complete With Primary And Secondary Sources, Enabling The Scholar To Have Immediate Orientation On Various Specific Topics. Finally, The Book Has An Innovative Section, With Synopses Of Novels, Planned To Allow Our Readers To Immediately Place The Authors Analysed Within The Panorama Of Indian Fiction In English. The Over 400 Synopses Included Principally Introduce Works Written By The Novelists Discussed At Length In The Previous Chapters But, Along With Them, It Is Also Possible To Find Summaries Of Works By Authors Who, Although Contributing In A Significant Way To The Development Of Forms And Techniques, Do Not Feature In The First Part.

Indian Writing In English Has Undoubtedly Acquired Its Own Independent Identity; It No More Remains Mere Imitative And Derivative. Its Long Journey From Colonial To Post-Colonial, From Imperial To Democratic And From English To Hinglish Forms A Remarkable Chapter In The History Of World Literature. Tagore Earned The First Recognition And Naipaul Is The Recent Laureate. In Between These Nobel Laureates Came A Number Of Writers Whose Work Earned Worldwide Appreciation.The Present Book Is An Attempt To Present The Different Genres Of Indian Writing In English. It Aims At Tracing Its Distinctive Features, Such As Cultural Alienation, Romanticism, Realism, Naturalism, Modernism Etc. While Nehru Has Furnished The Best English To The Globe, Amitav Ghosh, Shashi Tharoor, Arundhati Roy, Shiv K. Kumar And Dattani Have Stirred The West With Their Great Works. The Works Of These Renowned Literary Figures Have Been Considered Thoroughly And Meticulously In The Present Book.It Is Hoped That While The Student Community Will Find It Easily Accessible, The Teachers Will Also Consider It Exciting Study Material.

The Book Presents A Collection Of Papers That Are Wide Ranging Not Only In The Choice Of Authors Two Of The Big Trio, R.K. Narayan And Raja Rao On The One Hand, And The Recent Ones Like Upamanyu Chatterjee And Manju Kapur On The Other, But Also In The Different Angles From Which These Novelists Have Been Discussed. It Includes A Much Talked About Author Like Arundhati Roy As Well As A Remarkable But Less Discussed Writer Like Ruskin Bond. It Consists Of Feminist Study As Well As Semiotic Study And Postmodern Reading.

This Anthology Puts Together Some Of The Finest Articles That Discuss Themes Which Frequently Figure In Current Literary Debates Centring Round Post-Independence Indian English Fiction: Reinterpretation Of Indian History In Artistic Terms, Re-Evaluation Of Indian Culture, Postcolonial Representation Of India In Fiction, Nation And National Identity, Diasporic Indian Experience And Intertextuality. It Thus Attempts A Critical Stock Taking Of The Indian English Fiction Of The Fifty Years Since Independence From These Fresh Perspectives.Almost All The Important Novelists Of The Three Generations Have Been Studied In This Anthology: Raja Rao, R.K. Narayan, Manohar Malgonkar, Anita Desai, Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, Arun Joshi, Kamala Markandaya, Shashi Deshpande, Khushwant Singh, Gita Mehta, Vikram Chandra, Mukul Kesavan, Arudhati Roy And Gita Hariharan.Contributing To This Volume Are Some Of The Best Scholars Like Ragini Ramachandra, Antony Johae, Rama Kundu, M. Mani Meitei, D. Maya, Corrado Micheli And Christopher Rollason.

Indian English Has Been Universally Accepted As A Unique Style Of Discourse With Its Own Nuances, Giving Expression To Indian Multiculturalism In The Works Of Writers In India Or Those Abroad. Not Only The New Indian Writers In The West, Expatriates, Second And Third Generation Writers, But Also The Classic Authors Like A.K. Ramanujan, Nissim Ezekiel, Mulk Raj Anand, R.K. Narayan, And Bhabani Bhattacharya Are Being Interpreted In The Old New Critical Mode As Well As The Current Critical Styles Of Multiculturalism, Postcoloniality And Diaspora. V.S. Naipaul Is Being Interpreted Not Only As A Caribbean Or British Author But Also A Diasporic Writer Engaged In A Quest For The Indianness Inherited By Him.The Twelve Essays In This Book Deal With The Various Aspects Of Indian English Writing In The Light Of The Current Critical Trends. The Essays, Originally Published In Reputed Research Journals Or Critical Anthologies Over The Years, Are: Contemporary Indian English Literary Scene, Multiculturalism And Indian (English) Literature, Indian English Prose Writing, A.K. Ramanujan S Credo, Nissim Ezekiel S Credo, Soul-Stuff And Vital Language: The Poetry Of P. Lal, Mulk Raj Anand On The Novel, Anand S Vision Of War And Death In Across The Black Waters, Bhabani Bhattacharya S A Dream In Hawaii: A Study In Postcolonial Spirituality, Philosophers And Lovers: Paradox Of Experience In Shiv K. Kumar S The Bone S Prayer, Technique In The Short Stories Of Tagore, And From Darkness To Light: V.S. Naipaul S Indian Odyssey. The Article On Naipaul Has Been Written Especially For This Book.

Contributed artices; covers the period 20th century.

Language Is A Powerful Means Of Decolonization And Self-Respect Building. Translation As A Potent Tool Of Language Works Wonders In The Process Of Resurrection Of Bruised National Pride. Indian Literature Written In So Many Colourful, Lovely Languages Of India Can Be Established With The Proper Use Of Translation. It Is With This Spirit The Present Anthology Indian Fiction In English Translation Has Been Prepared. An Attempt Has Been Made To Capture The Essence, The Smell, The Taste Of Indian Soil By Studying Various Important Authors And Their Texts In Detail. The Book Is Of Interest For All Those Who Believe In The Strength Of The Intellectual Traditions Of India.