Our next work shares many concerns with the novels we've read so far in class. Like The Woman Warrior, Arundhati Roy's The God of Small Things revolves around gender and the haunting of the present by the past. Like Saturday, The God of Small Things is a novel deeply concerned with questions of ethics and the global twentieth century. Arundhati Roy, its author, was born in India in 1961. Her father was a tea planter and her mother an activist, and much of Roy's career has concerned interrogating the links between commerce and colonialism, activism and art. Roy's early career was in writing for and performing in film. The God of Small Things, published in 1997, was her first novel. It won the prestigious Booker Prize, and became a commercial and critical success soon afterward. Since publishing this vaunted novel, Roy has mostly turned her attention to writing non-fiction and engaging in political action. She is a committed anti-globalization activist, and has used her prominent position as a writer to function as a critic of both Indian and American foreign policy. How do these later political preoccupations show up in Roy's text? Is The God of Small Things a political novel? If so, how?
Here is an excellent video of Roy speaking:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jFOuSoy5H-k
I definitely think the novel is political. Whether Roy's presenting the Communist Party or the way in which Britain's occupation has affected so many Indians and their way of life, the political undertones are very apparent throughout. What is interesting to me is that so far in my reading, I haven't really been able to distinguish what Roy's outlook on the politics is. She does a very good job of writing an unbiased novel and just telling the story, rather than leaning toward a particular side.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Andrew when he says this novel is very political. However I do not think it is completely unbiased. Like it says in the biography she is a strong anti-globalization activist.The way in which she presents the long-term effects in the post-colonial society is not equal with how the communist party is presented. Roy focuses on showing the long-term effects in a post-colonial society and how the communist party has had an effect on the characters and their lives, which is presented more negatively than positively.
ReplyDeleteThis is Elaine.
ReplyDeletePost Colonialism: Preceded by the act of colonialism; invading a country that isn't yours, shredding their identities (culture, religious practices, food, entertainment, etc.) down to a clean slate, presuming your way of life is better, and re-writing their history to make your culture theirs whether they want it or not. How benevolent a nation you come from to bestow your advanced wisdom and way of life on the 'lesser' parts of the world! Which comes to later post colonialism; a nation of robots bent to your will asserting their new identity as a badge of pride where a generation ago it was a violation.
ReplyDeleteGlobalization: In some ways just a mass form of colonialism, where the US would probably be leading the race. Our forms of media are prevalent throughout the world. How many Japanese movies, or British movies are opened in the US? Ours open worldwide. CNN is known everywhere. Tom Brokaws' name is known outside the US. Our political scandals are headline news in other countries. When do we get the chance to hear about the Premier of China's illicit activities? We media-bomb the world, who are at times, pleasantly waiting for it and are accustomed to it. We are Globalization.
Zachary
I definitely agree that Roy's novel is a political one. This is especially evident when we read about about "shit-wiping" anglophiles. I think that Roy is criticizing the way colonialism has affected people in India. Some cannot seem to get away from the idea that the only way to be seen as "respectable" is to be as anglo as possible. Others leave their home country for the wider "more civilized world" and suffer severe disillusionment when they cannot accept their home anymore. Roy is getting her political views across in this novel, often using humor to show how ridiculous people are behaving.
ReplyDeletePost colonialism happens after a country takes over another nation and develops trade and tradition for this nation that they are ruling.
ReplyDeleteglobalization is the process of making something international. This means a set of ideals, inventions or businesses adopted by two or more nations and their citizens.
Amanda M.
Post-colonialism and Globalization are related in some mannor. One comes after the other in either order. The elementary definition of post-colonialism is the effect that an overtaking country and culture has on the original set of ideas. There is definately an adjustment period. This could be the mos extreme examples of the European treatment of Native American lifestyle or the suttle overtaking of India by the British. Globalization does not involve culture change or physical placement. It's the movement of ideas oversees. Television, Internet, satelite conversations all contributed to the world becoming one culture.
ReplyDeletePost-Colonialism comes in two parts, a. in the effects of the culture that conquered and settled in the native one, and b. the new, resultant culture's structure. In other words, the colonizing culture and its hegemony advances upon the native and changes it. As a result, the original, native culture is effectively gone.
ReplyDeleteGlobalization, in light of the introduction, development and wide spread use of the internet is a globalization result. Certain cultures and their hegemony are not dominating the native in a comprehensive fashion. Only those features of culture that transmit quickly and easily through telecommunication advance their components upon the native culture.
But, it is a two way street; or, information highway as it were. More "primitive" cultures and their features relevant to digital transmission influence the other cultures they contact.
We needn't conquer other cultures physically to influence and effect their contents; we only need to be visible and appealing Then, the consumers of non-native culture decide what they want and don't want from it. Colonialism does not afford the same freedom of choice. It necessarily infringes without the need for consent or choice.