A Glimpse Of Objectification Of Dalits And Its Impact On The Victimised In Pre – Independent India Through The Select Characters Of Select Novels Of Mulk Raj Anand

Abstract

The Novels Of Mulk Raj Anand Highly Deal With The Oppression And Sufferings Of The Dalit Community. They Also Throw Lime Light On The Social, Political And Religious Revolutions Happened During The British Rule, The Difference Created In The Indian Culture By The British Colonialization And Its Impact On The Indian People. The Select Novels For This Article Are Untouchable (1935), Coolie (1935) And Two Leaves And A Bud (1937). These Novels Are Considered To Be Protest Novels As They Protested Against The Social Hierarchy And The Ill Treatment Of The Out-Caste People By The Higher Caste. Some Scholars And Critics Claim Them To Be Social Novels Too As They Stand As A Voice To The Silenced Community, That Is, The Subaltern.Another Novel Which Is Notable For The Same Theme Which Is Not Discussed Widely In This Article Is The Road (1961). It Is Notable That The Novels To Be Discussed Extensively In The Article Were Written During The Pre-Independent Times Of India And The Novel The Road Was Written After The Independence Of The Country. It Took The Novelist Almost Two And A Half Decades To Write Another Novel On The Same Theme. This Also Highlights The Fact That Casteism, Oppression And Untouchability Are Prevalent Even In The Independent Modern World. The Select Novels Explore The Lives Of The Protagonists, Who Belong To The Outcaste By Birth And Emphasises On The Hardships They Undergo Both Physically And Mentally. This Article Intends To Express The Objectification Of The Outcaste By The Higher Caste And The Victimisation Of The Dalit Through The Protagonists Of The Select Novels – Bakha (Untouchable, 1935), Munoo (Coolie, 1936) And Gangu (Two Leaves And A Bud, 1937). On Speaking About Objectification, There Are Instances Where Women Are Sexually Objectified Too. Sexual Objectification Is Portrayed By The Characters Sohini, Sister Of Bakha And Leila, Daughter Of Gangu Who Are Sexually Harassed And Raped Respectively. The Road Is The Only Novel Of The Same Theme With A Different Ending In Contrast With The Other Three Novels. The Pride That The Upper Class Holds And The Trauma They Cause To The Out-Caste By Objectifying And Exploiting Them Which Results In Identity Crisis, Sense Of Alienation, Question Of Existentialism, Quest To Upgrade And Be Free, Death Of The Outcaste In Extreme Cases Are Deeply Discussed In This Article.