British Gods in an Indian World? : The portrayal of the legacy of British colonialism in Arundhati Roy's The God of Small Things

Abstract

This thesis investigates Arundhati Roy’s attitude towards the British colonial legacy in India. This will be examined in a close-reading of her novel The God of Small Things. Most of the novel’s plot occurs in the 1960s in the village of Ayemenem, which is located in the state of Kerala, South India. First, the thesis considers the effects of British assimilationist policies in colonial India in the nineteenth century. In connection to this, some characters will be analysed in the light of the postcolonial term ‘mimicry’ as it is viewed by Homi Bhabha. Second, there will be paid attention to the integration of Syrian Christianity in the society of Ayemenem, in which Hindu societal norms dictate social behaviour. This will be viewed in the context of British colonial interference with religious and societal traditions in Ayemenem. Third, some focus will be devoted to dam projects in India. Although India has a long history with dam building, such projects escalated during British rule. Following Independence, India faces unforeseen consequences of dam projects initiated by the British. Finally, the thesis investigates the treatment of the novel’s Indian-English ‘hybrid’ characters by the majority population. This will take the form of a character analysis, in which a selected number of characters will be analysed in the light of Homi Bhabha’s view on the postcolonial term ‘hybridity’.