Social Criticism in the Novels of Aravind Adiga

A Synopsis

Submitted in

Partial fulfillment for the Degree

Of

Doctor of Philosophy

(English)

Supervised by Submitted by

Dr. Kalpna Rajput JV’n Pooja Midha

ENROLLEMENT NO. JVR-II/16/8002

Department of Humanities and Social Science

Faculty of Management and Humanities
Jayoti Vidyapeeth Women’s University
Jaipur (Rajasthan), India
 Contents
1. Introduction 3

2. Aim of the Research 4-5

3. Purpose of Study 6-7

4. Research Methodology 8

5. Review Literature 9-12

6. Plan of Work 13-15

7. Bibliography 16-22
 Social Criticism in the Novels of Aravind Adiga

Introduction
India is a vast country and many languages are spoken here by the people
of different religions. English is also spoken language in India. English is a
foreign language and has had an impact on many fields in education,
literary efforts and it has become a medium of communication. So, Indian
English literature refers to the work of Indian writers who write in English
language but their native or co –native language could be different one of
the numerous languages of India. English literature is also linked with the
writers who born in India but their living or residing elsewhere. The first
Indian novel was Rajmohan’s Wife written by Bankim Chandra
Chattopadhyay in 1864 in English language. R.K.Narayan , Mulk Raj Anand
and Raja Rao also known for their contribution in Indian fiction in 1930.
Anita Desai, Nayantra Sehgal ,Khushwant Singh, Salman Rushdie’s
Midnight ‘s Children ,winner of booker prize also well known Indian writers
who captured the spirit of Independent India and make their own identity
by using hybrid English language.

In the recent past, we have had a crop of fresh talent. In 1980’s and 1990’s
India had faced a lot of literary change. Shobha De , Arun Joshi, Shashi
Tharoor, Amitav Ghosh, Upamanyu Chatterjee etc. made their name as a
foremost modern novelists. Arundhati Roy’s The God of Small Things won
the Booker Prize in 1997 and became an international best seller overnight.
Kiran Desai’s Strange Happenings in the Guava Orchard, Jhumpa Lahiri’s
Interpreter of Maladies, Yogesh Chadha’s Rediscovering Gandhi, Prof.
Bipin Chandra’s India after Independence are some other renowned writers
of Indian origin and they all did notable works of recent times.

While these novelists have been making momentous and considerable

contribution to the world literature, so, one of the famous modern novelists
who has earn the immense critical fame in the world is Aravind Adiga. In
2008, Aravind Adiga received the Man Booker Prize for his debut novel
‘The White Tiger’. He is the fourth Indian –born author to win the prize, after
Salman Rushdie, Arundhati Roy, and Kiran Desai. Aravind Adiga wrote
four novels The White Tiger [2008], Between the Assassinations [2008-
2009], Last Man in Tower [2011] and Selection Day [2016]. His novels deal
with serious social issues like corruption, poverty, crime, prostitution,
illiteracy, unemployment, discrimination, terrorism etc. which are existed in
Indian society.
 Aim of the Research
Born in Madras, in 1974, Aravind Adiga completed his schooling in India
and Australia. He studied English literature at Columbia University, New
York, and Magdalen College, Oxford. He worked in India as a journalist
for TIME magazine from 2003 to 2005; his work has also appeared in
British newspapers like the Financial Times and the Independent. The
White Tiger is his first novel. He lives in Mumbai. His debut novel, The
White Tiger, won the 2008 Booker Prize. He is the fourth Indian-born
author to win the prize, after Salman Rushdie, Arundhati Roy and Kiran
Desai. Till date he has written four novels which centre round the theme of
changing India.

The White Tiger, it was first published in 2008 and won the Man Booker
Prize in the same year. This novel provides a darkly comical view of
modern day life in India through the narration of its protagonist Balram
Halwai. The main theme of the novel is the contrast between India's rise as
a modern global economy and its working class people who live in crushing
poverty. Rest of the themes include the corruption endemic to Indian
society and politics, familial loyalty versus independence, religious tensions
between Hindus and Muslims, the experience of returning to India after
living in America, globalization, and the rivalry between India and China as
superpower countries in Asia.

Between the Assassinations: This is the second book published

by Aravind Adiga though it was written before his first book The White
Tiger. The title refers to the period Between the Assassinations of Indira
Gandhi in 1984 and her son, Rajiv Gandhi, in 1991. Indira Gandhi was the
serving Prime Minister of India when she was assassinated; Rajiv Gandhi
became Prime Minister in 1984, and left office following his party's defeat in
the election. The stories take place in the fictitious town of Kittur in
Southwest India. It was originally modelled on Adiga's hometown
of Mangalore, but was substantially changed to make room for more
diverse plots and characters. The stories revolve around different classes,
castes and religions in India. In each story, another set of characters is
introduced, but places and names appear again in other stories.

Last Man in Tower: In his third novel, Aravind Adiga mirrors the
contradictions of the new India which are quite literally the building blocks
of his plot. It tells the story of a struggle for a slice of shining Mumbai real
estate, bringing all of Adiga’s gifts for sharp social observation and mordant
wit to the fore. The novel has a broader and more forgiving feel than The
White Tiger, incorporating a gentler comic tone that finds affection as well
as despair in poking fun at its characters' pretensions and frailties. But
Adiga's anger at the India he describes – cities in which rapid economic
expansion comes at an impossible price for a vast swath of their
inhabitants, and in which the slow fading of the caste system has not been
accompanied by a rise in social egalitarianism – remains undimmed. In this
multi-layered novel, he continues casting a light on the changing face of
India, bringing us a picture that is as compelling as it is complex to know.

Selection Day- This novel maintains the life of a cricketer. It is a book

about father that has few good things on display. This book is about religion
and its tribal cruelties and bad tidings. A cricket columnist in Mumbai, an
atheist fears that “the fecundity and the fundamentalism together were
going to bake a nice big Christmas cake for India in about 20 years. Burqa
here, fatma there, Shariah for all.” Adiga’s concern on the new world often
makes us consider what the disaster seems like the book also gives a real
picture of Mumbai slums and the people living abroad that makes us really
sad.

In this thesis, I will concentrate on India’s changing face in Aravind Adiga’s

novels and his vision of new India. No worn out ideas will be repeated here.
 Purpose of Study
The objective, for which the present research is being undertaken, is the
‘Social criticism in the novels of Aravind Adiga’ in the light of the study of
his fictions. Aravind Adiga’s major concern is to depict the anguish and
conflict of the modern educated Indian women caught between patriarchy
and tradition on the one hand, and self-expression, individuality and
independence on the other. Adiga’s concern and sympathy are primarily for
the downtrodden. While revealing the struggle of these people to secure
self-respect and self-identity for themselves, the author subtly bares the
multiple levels of oppression, including sexual oppression experienced by
women too in our society. In the changing scenario of post colonial Indian
society that observed crosscurrents of traditional ideals and newly imported
ones, Aravind Adiga’s was burdened with the task of giving his characters
the specific roles that would fit in the socio-cultural modes and values of the
changed society. A new generation of these people emerged, embracing
the changed values according to which each man has a voice of his own, a
voice that had been suppressed for centuries. These men, who have the
capacity to make free choice and need not therefore depend on the choice
of the male, are portrayed in the novels of the new generation women
novelists. These new women characters are not however the same
everywhere dilemmas are exposed accordingly.

In his novels, we get the theme of poverty stricken, hardworking, sincere

and silent men of India who live like animals, embrace intolerable sufferings
for survival, and yet hope for a better future for their issues only to be crest
fallen at the end. Nothing happens in their life but series of disappoints
along with humiliation, torture and repeated displacement. Besides the rural
mass, there are middle class men in the innumerable towns and cities of
India who are often unable to enjoy the legal status conferred on them.

In Aravind Adiga’s novels, we can find the variety of characters too. In

Aravind Adiga’s literary world there are characters taken from almost all the
sections of life. Besides poverty, bereavement and such other common
adversities, there are some causes of suffering exclusively for the
downtrodden section of society. Aravind Adiga renders with sympathetic
understanding the variety of suffering a poor man has to undergo.
Sometimes the suffering is attached to the social taboos, and sometimes
these men are silenced in the name of their honour if it is left a bit, and are
compelled to digest torture.

So keeping in view these factors I thought that a research must be done on

the novels of Aravind Adiga.
 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

I have planned to make research on the world of Aravind Adiga’s fiction. I

have taken recourse to the following methods:

1. Eliciting the literary material on the fiction of Aravind Adiga from the

study of Books and treatise of erudite scholars available for the study

of the researcher.

2. The study of various literary journals published in India and Abroad as

incorporated in the corpus of the bibliography.

3. Rummaging through the web pages from online.

4. The study of various News- Papers in English in India and Abroad.

5. By inviting valued opinions of critics and scholars at present living in

India and abroad to authenticate my research work.

6. By the analysis of his fiction after close scrutiny.

 Review of Literature

Aravind Adiga is a present- day Indian novelist, writing in English. He is a

Man-Booker Prize winner and since he has adopted very ironical
comments tone and style in his work, he has drawn attention of quite a few
scholars. They have studied The White Tiger, Between the Assassinations
and Last Man in Tower from various angles and view-points. I have
endeavoured to study, survey and analysis the books, articles and papers
of some Adiga scholars for my research project. This review of literature is
divided into two- parts. In the first part, I have briefly reversed those books
and articles that deal with history and survey of Indo- English literature. The
second part closely takes into account the comments, views, reviews,
interviews (of Adiga) and the various issues and points that Adiga has
raised in his The White Tiger, Between the Assassinations and Last Man in
Tower. A summary of the review of their literature is noted as below:
History of Indian English Literature(1998)- This book is written by
M.K.Naik. It gives basic information about the history of Indian English
literature. It is also helpful to know Indian socio- political scenario and
English literary changes during pre and after independence. New
Dimensions of Indian English Novel by M.Shyam Asnani(1987) explains the
significant role of fiction, novel or prose in the growth of global literature.
This book is also helpful to know about Indian authors, writers who play an
important role in writing literature through their ideas and experiences of
life.

Studies in Indo- Anglian Literature(2000)- It is a book by K.N.Joshi and

B.Shyamala Rao which narrates of the growth of Indo- Anglian literature. It
is helpful to gather the knowledge of all the poets, dramatists, novelists,
authors and writers of various periods. The Indo- Anglian Novel and the
changing Tradition(1972), a book by A.V.Krishna Rao(1972) describes the
Indo- Anglian literature and it’s process which move towards modern
novels. It also highlights the pattern of writing with an effect of Gandhian
consciousness.

Indian English Literature: A New Perspective (2001). This anthology of

critical papers concentrates on the Indo Anglian Novelists who paved a
path to the novelists of future generation. Critical Response to Indian
Fiction in English(2001),contains a series of critical articles, each devoted
to a description as simple and straightforward as possible. The volume is a
deep study into the works of Indian novelists in English and presents the
critical study of their respective works. Current Indian Creativity in
English(2003)- This book is authored by R.S.Tiwary. It gives an outlook
over current Indian creativity like Indian drama, Indian prose and Indian
fiction. It also includes feminist movement which effect Indian literature and
also includes current social affairs which are dealt with writers.

Singh Kumar Shaleen(2008) In his research paper Aravind Adiga’s The

White Tiger- A Mirror of Delhi Life represents how Aravind Adiga has
painted the dark image of metropolitian like Delhi. He attacks the busy life
of city, a city of possibilities and impossibilities. He hits out at corruption,
traffic jam, pollution, the gap between the rich and the poor, plight of
downtroddens and miserable lives of poor which represent the microcosm
of the whole India. Even, the researcher in his paper adds the comments of
various authors such as those Andrew Holgate, David Mattins, Lee
Thomas, Neel Mukarjee etc. on the narrative of The White Tiger.
Aravind Adiga:An Anthology of Critical Essay(2010)- The book’s
authors are P.D.Nimsarkar and Shubha Mishra. It concentrates on the role
of The White Tiger in changing the attitude of the world towards the
prevalent scenario of the modern India. The book contains the view points
of various authors on this novel. For example Asha Choubey and Tripti
Tripathi’s article Conflict Between Good and Evil in Aravind Adiga’s The
White Tiger explains that Balram has ‘Macbethian’ ambition to live like a
lord, and like a master which turns him into a cold blooded murderer. It
shows the journey of Balram’s darkness into the light of richness. Another
Article of Vandna Pathak’s The Marginalized psyche in The White Tiger
explains that poor people are victims of exploitation, how they are leaving
their homes and turn to cities for the betterment of his life. Further, the
article Contextual Antithesis in Aravind Adiga’s Between the Assassinations
by Sarita Singh describes the various political and social aspects which
effect the society. The researcher throws light on Corruption, Bribery,
Class- system all the issues are raised by Adiga in Between the
Assassinations.
Unveiling New Vistas: A Critique on Indian English Fiction (2010). This
anthology discusses the novelists from Rabindra Nath Tagore to Aravind
Adiga and Chetan Bhagat with their respective works and India through
their eyes. It is in fact a gallery of various aspects of versatile India.

A Survey of Indian English Novel(2011)- The author’s name is Dr. Satish

Kumar. This book gives a detailed explanation of the development of Indian
English Novel from 1835 to 1990. It has fourteen chapters and all the
chapters which deal with the novelists during pre and after independence.
The Indian Novel with a Social Purpose by K.Venkata Reddy(1999)
explains all the Indian Novels in English as well as regional novels which
are translated into English. It also gives a glimpse of the roots of Indian soil
and political, social aspects which effect Indian novels

Aravind Adiga’s The White Tiger: A Freakish Booker(2011)- This book

by Sudhir K.Arora weighs the novel The White Tiger on the scales of Indian
circumstances and finds it totally unrealistic. It contains fourteen chapters.
All the fourteen chapters reveal how Aravind Adiga portrayed a derogatory
image of India or the nakedness of India infront of western countries, even
it throws light on how Aravind Adiga describes the cultural, religious, social,
and political aspects with the use of irony, satire and paradox. Aravind
Adiga’s The White Tiger: A Symposium of Critical Responses (2011). This
anthology is a testimony of huge responses on Adiga’s novel. The critical
appraisals here ruminate over the valuable India from the social and
political points of view also. The findings here are worth reading which give
a broad view to the thoughts of the novelist.

A Prespectives on Aravind Adiga The White Tiger(2012)- This book is

the authored by Ashok Kumar Saini. It reveals the outlines of materialistic
activities in Aravind Adiga’s The White Tiger and it includes various articles
of different authors. Adiga asserts that a lot of such so called entrepreneurs
have ascended the slick, murky treads of success ladder in India to
become business tycoons. His point of view is debatable though very much
realistic in the present.- day scenario of the modern Indian Society.
Bhattacharjee Archana(2013) highlights in her article Population Growth
and Environment Issues; Reflections in Aravind Adiga’s The White Tiger
how population growth, Air pollution, water pollution reflect a dark picture of
India in Aravind Adiga’s The White Tiger. Population is increasing day-by-
day and it has an evil effect on environment. The paper has raised various
other issues like urbanization, destruction of forests, land degradation, loss
of biodiversity and environment degradation etc. Adiga notices that there
are two Indias- one of Darkness and the other of light. So, the writer’s
mission is to draw attention towards environmental degradation of the
country.

Deswal Prateek (2014), in his paper, A Critical Analysis of Aravind Adiga

The White Tiger: A Socio-Political Perspective A young researcher identifies
the critical political views in Aravind Adiga’s novel The White tiger. This
paper critically examines and brings about clarity about real India and
Adiga’s India. According to researcher, the novelist depicts the
unromanticized picture of India, where poverty, unemployment, crime,
illiteracy can be seen. He divides the nation into two categories- rich which
represent the light of India and poor are a symbol of India’s Darkness. His
characters have been presented as corrupt and dishonest which have no
sympathy towards the poor. Adiga has exposed the fake election system or
education system of India where corruption is rampant. After a complete
analysis of Adiga’s novel, the researcher has confidently affirmed that he
has projected the problems existing in India in the most piercing and
stinging manner. Parteek Deswal however, criticises Adiga for his one sided
and biased view of the Indian socio- politico religious life.

Choudhury A Monir(2015), in her research paper Bringing India of

Darkness into Light, has investigated Aravind Adiga’s The White Tiger, he
has tried to show how the politicians have deceived the people of India for
their benefit . Accordingly, the condition of the poor is very miserable in
modern society, they are exploited by the rich and ignored by the politicians
in power. Adiga truthfully has portrayed how caste and religion can be
immensely important factors in shaping the life of the poor. So, Caste
system is also a big obstacle in poor man’s life. He expresses his anxiety
that government does not recognize the rights of underprivileged people.
The novelist gives a delicate hint of how corruption is everywhere from top
to bottom. Thus, the paper deals with darker aspects of both the rich and
the poor and also provides awareness towards Darkness of life and
depraved political system as highlighted in Adiga’s novel.

Dave Mamta(Oct 2015)- In her research paper, The Significance of Social

Awareness in the novels of Aravind Adiga” shows how Aravind Adiga pays
attention to the social issues like poverty, unemployment, crime, terrorism,
illiteracy, corruption, prostitution, gang rape etc. are existing in modern
society of India. The writing of Aravind Adiga shows the pathetic condition
of the poor. The writer’s mission is to create awareness towards social
evils, inequalities and disparities among the people. He also tries to find out
the solution of the problems. So, the message of the paper is to focus on
economic, cultural, religious condition of the society and people might think
of finding solutions all those issues which is helpful in thesis. The scholar
believes that Adiga’s novel stirs, awakens and excites a reader’s
awareness towards the corroding social problems of India. And, by creating
awareness towards them, a corrective measure might be undertaken to
sort them out.

Sreelatha M.(2016), in her paper Resistance To Contemporary Realities in

Aravind Adiga’s Last Man In Tower- reveals the realities of metropolitian
city of Mumbai, the city of dreams where everyone wants to complete his
dreams. She says that Adiga depicts the property business with the use of
satire, fantasy and reality. Real estate business which is totally corrupt,
exposes the reality of changing society. Even, it shows the plight of poor,
how the poor can become a victim of exploitation by the rich. According to
Sreelatha, Adiga through his novel has raised all the social issues existing
in society, also giving a social message.
 Research Plan
Chapter I

Biographical Roundup

(1) Birth and Parentage

(2) Education

(3) Source of Inspiration and Career

(4) Rewards and Achievement

Chapter II

Brief Study of Indian English Fiction

(1) Indo-Anglian Fiction

(2) Post -Independence Indian English Fiction

(3) Post-Modern Indian English Fiction

Chapter III
 A Peep into his Fiction

1. The White Tiger

2. Between the Assassinations

3. Last Man in Tower:

4. Selection Day

Chapter IV

Sociological Perspective

1. Class Conflict

2. Poverty

3. Humiliation of the Poor

4. Child Labour

5. Conflict between Good and Evil

6. Gender Discrimination

Chapter V
 Political Perspective

1. Religious Riots

2. His Views on Bureaucracy

3. Forms of Justice

4. His Views on Democracy

5. Policies of Indian Government

Chapter VI

Conclusion

1. Adiga’s overall Social and Political outlook of the Modern India

2. His message to eradicate the evils on the face of India

3. Future of Aravind Adiga’s career as a Novelist

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 Adiga Aravind, Between the Assassinations: Picador (IND), 2008

 Adiga Aravind, Last Man in Tower: Fourth Estate (IND), 2011

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 Social Criticism in the Novels of Aravind Adiga

Review of Literature

Submitted in

Partial fulfillment for the Degree

Of

Doctor of Philosophy

(English)

Supervised by Submitted by

Dr. Kalpna Rajput JV’n Pooja Midha

Department of Humanities and Social Science

Faculty of Management and Humanities
 Jayoti Vidyapeeth Women’s University
Jaipur (Rajasthan), India

Novels of Aravind Adiga

. THE WHITE TIGER

“Let animals live like animals; let humans live like humans. That's my
whole philosophy in a sentence.”
By
Aravind Adiga

The White Tiger novel is a debut novel of Aravind Adiga in 2008 who won
the Man Booke prize. This novel was adopted into a film in 2009. 2,50000
copies of this award wining book has been sold through out the world.
This novel has brought name and fame for Aravind Adiga through out the
world. It is a satire on present Indian society. It is a story of ordinary man
named Balram, lives in Laxmangarh village, his journey about village to city
and shows his frustration, aspirations from the prevailing society. This novel
describes basic story of Balram, his humble beginnings to become a
successful entrepreneur in Bangalore and his transmission from Halwai to
Blood- thirsty murderer. .

Aravind Adiga’s The White Tiger is the most controversial Booker Prize
novel. It is often rejected as “trash” or “raddi” because of its savage
mutilation of Indian cultural ethos and the hurt of the national pride. It is
also hailed as the masterpiece for its fascinating narration of two Indias. It
offers a commentary on Indian life though, to some critics, this commentary
seems to be inauthentic and lacking in truth.

In this novel, Aravind Adiga presents the darkness and bitter truths of the
modern society. He focuses on the social issues of modern society like
corruption, poverty, illiteracy, gambling, western culture, casticism, crime,
unemployment, quest for identity, loneliness, Rehabilitation etc. Balram is a
symbol of darkness, he chooses wrong path just to enjoy free and luxurious
life without formalities. In this novel, we can find the elements of quest for
identity and alienation in Balram.
This novel takes place in modern era where globalization is in its high peak.
Balram also get affected by globalization where technology has increased,
he wants success at any cost. For this, he did crime also. He wants to
become a success man of modern society. That’s why he changes his taxi;
business and become an enterprenour in Bangalour.

Aravind Adiga exposes the class based Indian society divided into rich and
poor. Poor is always ill-treated and used by rich. Human beings are treated
like caged animals, bonded labour. Balram comes from lower social class
so he always used by rich. This novel shows a big difference in Balram’s
status, living of standards at the end. He shows the false-pride, hypocrisy in
social status based on caste, creed and religion.

In White Tiger, Adiga attacks on social system where poor did not get
anything because of their status symbol. Poor did not get education, even
he did not get food, shelter for their survival. Poor condition is too worst, the
writer takes an example of Balram’s mother death where she did not get
clothes after her death in his novel.

Adiga shows the true picture of corruption prevailing in Indian society. In

this novel, he takes the example of illness and death of Balram’s father
when government hospitals take bribe from the poor on the name of
government policies and schemes. He tells that corruption is a biggest
obstacle in the progress of Indian society.

Aravind Adiga comments on corrupt political system where bribery is more

prevalent at every stage. He takes an example of Ashok in his novel, where
he bribes officers, ministers for tax exemption. Bribery is the rountine
means of doing business. In this novel, he boldly pictures the internal
affairs of political parties, bribe, blackmailing etc.

Adiga shows that corruption corrupts the mind of the common people. City
and lifestyles have been corrupted Balram and made him selfish and evil
who decides to steal money and murdered his master Mr. Ashok. With this
stolen money, he started his business and become a successful
businessman. So, throughout the novel, Balram undertakes various odd
jobs like table sweeper, coal crusher, servant, chauffer, driver, murderer of
his own master. He went through the crime because it was needed for his
freedom and betterment.

As The White Tiger is prescribed in the syllabus of some universities, the

contents of this book are designed to cater to the needs of the students.
What makes this book interesting is its simple language and lucid style. It
will be useful in developing the keen insight of the students as well as the
scholars who are sure to explore the unexplored regions of Aravind Adiga’s
The White Tiger and other novels as well.
 BETWEEN THE ASSASSINATIONS
Between the assassination is the second novel of Aravind Adiga published
in 2008-2009, though it was written before his first book The White Tiger. It
is a collection of twelve short stories. 16,000 copies of this book has been
sold in its first attempt. The title refers to the period between the
assassination of Indira Gandhi in 1984 and her son Rajiv Gandhi in 1991.
Indira Gandhi was the prime minister when she was assassinated. Adiga
considers 1991, the year in which India opened itself to the global market.

The stories of the novel related to the fictitious town of Kittur in Southwest
India which reveals the beauty of rural, coastal south where Hindus,
Muslims, Christians ,rich and poor , young and old, high and low caste
people living together. The stories of the novel revolve around different
classes, castes and religion in India. In each story, different characters are
introduced, but names and places can appear again and again. The novel
shows the ironies and injustices of Indian life. Between the Assassination
novel is quite similar to Adiga’s first novel The White Tiger.

Like The White Tiger, Aravind Adiga again shows the plight of poor people
in this novel. The protagonist in this book is just like a mundane man, all
characters are too real as they live in the society. Adiga captures the lives
of the poor and powerless. Children of labour class have to do the work on
tea stalls for their survival. They lost their innocence. He portrays the
female characters in his novels where she is doing work because of her
bad economic condition. Jayamma works in different towns where she
cooks and cleans other homes for money.

In this novel, Adiga offers a panaromic picture of India through his

characters. Many of the characters would be largely invisible in his story.
Adiga shows the difference between rich and poor, higher and lower caste
and honesty and dishonesty etc. It is also about politics and human nature.
His subject is related to frustration which comes from discrimination of
status, class and religion. His stories describe the realities of village people
who are sent by their families to the big cities to earn money. Adiga depicts
how they are doing menial jobs and living on the streets for their survival.

The concept of the novel is somewhere unique approach. The stories

which are tied together are well-crafted, ironic in tone with humour, horror
and grace. Each story has its own message and unique concept. Aravind
Adiga did his best in Between the assassination novel, he goes beyond his
imagination as a modern novelist, he presented his views very well
regarding the community. Aravind Adiga pays attention on Disparities
between the poor and the rich, corruption, violence and hypocricy.
 Last Man in Tower
Aravind Adiga has presented the next astonishing novel, that is Last man
in Tower. It was the third published book and second published novel by
Arvind Adiga in 2011. The protagonist of the novel is retired school-teacher
named Yogesh A.Murthy who is known as Masterji. It is a story of rage and
anger and turned it into a thrilling murder story. It is based upon again
crime and corruption like other novels of Adiga.

Last man in Tower is the most stunning work of Adiga. It is an interesting

story of human nature. This novel deals with human nature war between
principle and practicality. It shows the difference between money and ideas.
This novel presents a war between two men; Shah ji and Masterji.

Last man in Tower portrays the real image of India. It shows how urban
cities are developed, how people are adapting social and global changes.
In this novel, Adiga presented the picture of Mumbai, a big city where big
malls can be seen everywhere. A city like Mumbai city attracts people ,
money is everything for them, people are running for materialistic things,
they want money to fulfil their dreams and desires , for this they can leave
all human relationships, they can do anything for money. Adiga depicts
property business of big cities where land is costly and life is cheap. He
shows in his novel, how people like Dharmen Shah can use money for
attracting people.

In his novel, he again shows the difference between rich and poor. Rich
are living lavinshing life and on the other side poor are living in slums.
Again, he shows the plight of poor in India. This novel is a story of
capitalism. Adiga tells that people like Dharmen Shah exploit poor, helpless
people like Masterji in the society for their benefits.
Adiga shows some complexity in his characters like Shahji, Masterji, Rosie
(Bollywood star), his son Satish etc. in his novel. His characters are quite
ambitious but most memorable figures. It shows human feelings like
selfishness, greed, lust, desperation, fear, pettiness but also shows love
and concerns for the welfare of families.

Selection Day
Selection Day is another brilliant novel of Aravind Adiga in 2016. It has
shown remarkable talent of Adiga. Aravind Adiga’s third novel is quite
ambitious and original. It is a moving unsettling and absorbing story of
aspiration, set in Mumbai, story of two cricketing brothers about their
success and failure. The narrator of the story, the kumars, the father and
his two sons are the heart of the novel. He shows the social mobility,
liberalization in his novel.

It is very different book of Adiga. It is based in cricket game. Cricket is, of

course, a wonderful way of writing about shattered dreams- both personal
and national. It is a story of Mohan Kumar, it tells how Mohan Kumar
moved from Karnataka to Mumbai for his sons. He wants that his sons
become best batsmen in the world. In Mumbai, he tries to provide all the
education like mentally, physically, technically which is helpful for the all
round development for their children.

Selection Day is one of the finest novel about cricket game. Basically, it is
an unromantic book which shows the love for cricket. It shows the condition
of cricket game in India, how cricket turned to twenty 20, Indian Premier
League (IPL). Basically cricket is money in India, it also reveals the talent of
youth, fame and prosperity of cricketers. Adiga interrogates the success
and failure of two cricketing brothers Radha and Munjunath.

Selection Day is reminiscent of a very different Victorian novelist; Thomas

Hardy, because of its tragic resolution. It is written on conventional realism,
its characters are too real instead of imaginary. Adiga rises to the challenge
with a novel of ambition, originality and moral serious-ness, he remains
willing to take risks in the pursuit of fours and sixes. Mohan is a
magnificently realized character both loathsome and pitiable. Manju who
emeges from his brother’s shadow may be the most indelible figure in any
of Adiga’s novels, a mix of fear, genius and all kinds of repression.

Selection Day is a very funny book, a satirical book. He takes the example
of Mehta who uses funny language in the novel. In this novel, the
relationship of two brothers is significant but eventually becomes secondary
to the one between the younger one Manju. His all characters of novel are
unforgettable like Tommy Sir, Anand Mehta, and the big-dreaming investor;
Sofia, this book combines the best of The Art of Fielding and Slumdog
Millionaire for a compulsive, moving story of adolescence and ambition
fathers, sons and brothers. So, it is most absorbing and big- hearted novel
to date.
 Reference Books and articles-

Aravind Adiga is a present- day Indian novelist, writing in English. He is a

Man-Booker Prize winner and since he has adopted very ironical
comments tone and style in his work, he has drawn attention of quite a few
scholars. They have studied The White Tiger, Between the Assassinations
and Last Man in Tower from various angles and view points. I have
endeavoured to study, survey and analyse the books, articles and papers
of some Adiga scholars for my research project. This review of literature is
divided into two- parts. In the first part, I have briefly reversed those books
and articles that deal with history and survey of Indo- English literature. The
second part closely takes into account the comments, views, reviews,
interviews (of Adiga) and the various issues and points that Adiga has
raised in his The White Tiger, Between the Assassinations and Last Man in
Tower. A summary of the review of their literature is noted as below:
History of Indian English Literature(1998)- This book is written by
M.K.Naik. It gives basic information about the history of Indian English
literature. It is also helpful to know Indian socio- political scenario and
English literary changes during pre and after independence. New
Dimensions of Indian English Novel by M.Shyam Asnani(1987) explains the
significant role of fiction, novel or prose in the growth of global literature.
This book is also helpful to know about Indian authors, writers who play an
important role in writing literature through their ideas and experiences of
life.

Studies in Indo- Anglian Literature(2000)- It is a book by K.N.Joshi and

B.Shyamala Rao which narrates of the growth of Indo- Anglian literature. It
is helpful to gather the knowledge of all the poets, dramatists, novelists,
authors and writers of various periods. The Indo- Anglian Novel and the
changing Tradition(1972), a book by A.V.Krishna Rao(1972) describes the
Indo- Anglian literature and it’s process which move towards modern
novels. It also highlights the pattern of writing with an effect of Gandhian
consciousness.

Indian English Literature: A New Perspective (2001). This anthology of

critical papers concentrates on the Indo Anglian Novelists who paved a
path to the novelists of future generation. Critical Response to Indian
Fiction in English(2001),contains a series of critical articles, each devoted
to a description as simple and straightforward as possible. The volume is a
deep study into the works of Indian novelists in English and presents the
critical study of their respective works. Current Indian Creativity in
English(2003)- This book is authored by R.S.Tiwary. It gives an outlook
over current Indian creativity like Indian drama, Indian prose and Indian
fiction. It also includes feminist movement which effect Indian literature and
also includes current social affairs which are dealt with writers.

Singh Kumar Shaleen(2008) In his research paper Aravind Adiga’s The

White Tiger- A Mirror of Delhi Life represents how Aravind Adiga has
painted the dark image of metropolitian like Delhi. Even, the researcher in
his paper adds the comments of various authors such as those Andrew
Holgate, David Mattins, Lee Thomas, Neel Mukarjee etc. on the narrative of
The White Tiger. According to David Mattin’s- “Arch-defenders of India’s
claim to be truly democratic, even- handedly prosperous and corruption-
free (and these must be few outside of the Indian cabinet) might balk at the
The White Tiger. Everyone else surely, will be seduced by it.”He attacks the
busy life of city, a city of possibilities and impossibilities. He hits out at
corruption, traffic jam, pollution, the gap between the rich and the poor,
plight of downtroddens and miserable lives of poor which represent the
microcosm of the whole India. Lee Thomas rightly says-“…Adiga depicts
the Modern Indian dilemma as unique, intense family loyalities and culture
of servitude clash with the unfulfilled promises of democracy”.

Aravind Adiga:An Anthology of Critical Essay(2010)- The book’s

authors are P.D.Nimsarkar and Shubha Mishra. It concentrates on the role
of The White Tiger in changing the attitude of the world towards the
prevalent scenario of the modern India. The book contains the view points
of various authors on this novel. For example Asha Choubey and Tripti
Tripathi’s article Conflict Between Good and Evil in Aravind Adiga’s The
White Tiger explains that Balram has ‘Macbethian’ ambition to live like a
lord, and like a master which turns him into a cold blooded murderer. It
shows the journey of Balram’s darkness into the light of richness. As
Balram says-“Here, on the threshold of a man’s freedom, just before he
boards a train to a new life, these flashing fortune machines are the final
alarm bell of the Rooster Coop.”(248) Another Article of Vandna Pathak’s
The Marginalized psyche in The White Tiger explains that poor people are
victims of exploitation, how they are leaving their homes and turn to cities
for the betterment of his life. Even, Adiga says in his interview about poor
people that- “Let animals live like animals; let humans live like humans.
That’s my whole philosophy in a sentence”.(Adiga Aravind. The White
Tiger,p.276) Further, the article Contextual Antithesis in Aravind Adiga’s
Between the Assassinations by Sarita Singh describes the various political
and social aspects which effect the society. The researcher throws light on
Corruption, Bribery, Class- system all the issues are raised by Adiga in
Between the Assassinations. Suneil Shetty makes a sarcastic statement on
corruption, “When it comes to three areas- black marketing, counterfeiting
and corruption- we are the world champions. If they were included in the
Olympic games, India will always win gold, silver and bronze in those
three”.

Unveiling New Vistas: A Critique on Indian English Fiction (2010). This

anthology discusses the novelists from Rabindra Nath Tagore to Aravind
Adiga and Chetan Bhagat with their respective works and India through
their eyes. It is in fact a gallery of various aspects of versatile India.

A Survey of Indian English Novel (2011)- The author’s name is Dr. Satish
Kumar. This book gives a detailed explanation of the development of Indian
English Novel from 1835 to 1990. It has fourteen chapters and all the
chapters which deal with the novelists during pre and after independence.
The Indian Novel with a Social Purpose by K.Venkata Reddy(1999)
explains all the Indian Novels in English as well as regional novels which
are translated into English. It also gives a glimpse of the roots of Indian soil
and political, social aspects which effect Indian novels
Aravind Adiga’s The White Tiger: A Freakish Booker(2011)- This book
by Sudhir K.Arora weighs the novel The White Tiger on the scales of Indian
circumstances and finds it totally unrealistic. It contains fourteen chapters.
All the fourteen chapters reveal how Aravind Adiga portrayed a derogatory
image of India or the nakedness of India infront of western countries, even
it throws light on how Aravind Adiga describes the cultural, religious, social,
and political aspects with the use of irony, satire and paradox. Aravind
Adiga’s The White Tiger: A Symposium of Critical Responses (2011). This
anthology is a testimony of huge responses on Adiga’s novel. The critical
appraisals here ruminate over the valuable India from the social and
political points of view also. The findings here are worth reading which give
a broad view to the thoughts of the novelist.

A Prespectives on Aravind Adiga The White Tiger(2012)- This book is

the authored by Ashok Kumar Saini. It reveals the outlines of materialistic
activities in Aravind Adiga’s The White Tiger and it includes various articles
of different authors. For example, Democracy for Common Man or
Criminals as Portrayed in Aravind Adiga’s The White Tiger by Dr. Anil
Verma highlights the criminal activities of modern society. In the novel,
Balram murders his master and steels his money, it shows the journey of a
common man who turned to criminal. Adiga says in his interview, “Now a
day this anger is coming out. Such crimes are taking place in our cities.
Recently it was reported that workers at a car parts factory near Delhi
murdered the chief executive after they were laid off. It rattled a lot of
people. That kind of incident used to be highly unlikely. Now it is much
more likely”.(Times) Adiga asserts that a lot of such so called entrepreneurs
have ascended the slick, murky treads of success ladder in India to
become business tycoons. Another article is Duality of Human Existence in
Aravind Adiga The White Tiger by Anita Sharma describes that Balram
became a business tycoon with the stolen money of his master. Even, he
repents upon his activity and confesses, “ True, there was the matter of
murder- which is a wrong thing to do, no question about it. It has darkened
my soul. All the skin- whitening creams sold in the markets of India won’t
clean my hands again.”(The White Tiger,318) His point of view is debatable
though very much realistic in the present day scenario of the modern Indian
Society.
Bhattacharjee Archana(2013) highlights in her article Population Growth
and Environment Issues; Reflections in Aravind Adiga’s The White Tiger
how population growth, Air pollution, water pollution reflect a dark picture of
India in Aravind Adiga’s The White Tiger. As Balram says, “Rush hour in
Delhi. Cars, scooters, motorbikes, auto rickshaws, black taxis, jostling for
space on the road. The pollution is so bad that the men on the motorbikes
and scooters have a handkerchief wrapped around their faces-each times
you stop at a red light, you see a row of men with black glasses and masks
on their faces” (Page-133). Population is increasing day-by- day and it has
an evil effect on environment. The paper has raised various other issues
like urbanization, destruction of forests, land degradation, loss of
biodiversity and environment degradation etc. Adiga notices that there are
two Indias- one of Darkness and the other of light. Even, Balram comments
on Bangalore’s pollution-“The entire city is masked in smoke, smog,
powder, cement, dust. It is under a veil. When the veil is lifted, what will
Bangalore be like? (Page-317) So, the writer’s mission is to draw attention
towards environmental degradation of the country.

Deswal Prateek (2014), in his paper, A Critical Analysis of Aravind Adiga

The White Tiger: A Socio-Political Perspective, A young researcher
identifies the critical political views in Aravind Adiga’s novel The White tiger.
This paper critically examines and brings about clarity about real India and
Adiga’s India. According to researcher, the novelist depicts the
unromanticized picture of India, where poverty, unemployment, crime,
illiteracy can be seen. He divides the nation into two categories- rich which
represent the light of India and poor are a symbol of India’s Darkness and
people are still living in rooster coop. As Balram(the protagonist of the
novel) states-“See this country, in its days of greatness, when it was the
richest nation was like a zoo. … And then, thanks to all those politicians in
Delhi, on fifteenth of August 1947, the day the Britishers left- the cages had
been let open; and the animals had attacked and ripped each other apart
and jungle law replaced zoo law”. (63, The White Tiger) His characters
have been presented as corrupt and dishonest which have no sympathy
towards the poor. Adiga has exposed the fake election system or education
system of India where corruption is rampant. After a complete analysis of
Adiga’s novel, the researcher has confidently affirmed that he has projected
the problems existing in India in the most piercing and stinging manner.
Parteek Deswal however, criticises Adiga for his one sided and biased view
of the Indian socio- politico religious life. Parteek adds the comment of Sir
Simon Jenkins, former chairman of Booker prize jury: “Indian writers in
English face a peculiar problem - they write about India but their readership
is mostly in other countries. Because of this paradox they create an image
of India that is exotic and doesn’t show the real India. I worry about this.”
(Sunday Times of India, Oct 19, 2008)

Choudhury A Monir(2015), in the research paper Bringing India of

Darkness into Light, has investigated Aravind Adiga’s The White Tiger,
Monir has tried to show how the politicians have deceived the people of
India for their benefit . Accordingly, the condition of the poor is very
miserable in modern society, they are exploited by the rich and ignored by
the politicians in power. Even Adiga has given a statement: “India is two
countries in one: an India of Light, and an India of Darkness” but also
connoted the dirty and corrupt aspects of the rich (Adiga,2008, p. 10).
Adiga truthfully has portrayed how caste and religion can be immensely
important factors in shaping the life of the poor. So, Caste system is also a
big obstacle in poor man’s life. He expresses his anxiety that government
does not recognize the rights of underprivileged people. In an interview with
Lee Thomas, “Aravind Adiga expressed his anxiety that if the government
does not recognize the rights of the underprivileged and their aspirations to
succeed, and if it does not provide opportunities to “these poor people to
rise…this can only lead to trouble” (Thomas, 2009). The novelist gives a
delicate hint of how corruption is everywhere from top to bottom. Thus, the
paper deals with darker aspects of both the rich and the poor and also
provides awareness towards Darkness of life and depraved political system
as highlighted in Adiga’s novel.

Dave Mamta(Oct 2015)- In her research paper, The Significance of Social

Awareness in the novels of Aravind Adiga shows how Aravind Adiga pays
attention to the social issues like poverty, unemployment, crime, terrorism,
illiteracy, corruption, prostitution, gang rape etc. are existing in modern
society of India. The writing of Aravind Adiga shows the pathetic condition
of the poor. As Adiga says-“The Dreams of the rich, and the dreams of the
poor- They never overlap, do they? See, the poor dream all their lives of
getting enough to eat and looking like the rich. And what do the rich dream
of? Losing weight and looking like the poor.” The writer’s mission is to
create awareness towards social evils, inequalities and disparities among
the people. He also tries to find out the solution of the problems. So, the
message of the paper is to focus on economic, cultural, religious condition
of the society and people might think of finding solutions all those issues
which is helpful in thesis. The scholar believes that Adiga’s novel stirs,
awakens and excites a reader’s awareness towards the corroding social
problems of India. And, by creating awareness towards them, a corrective
measure might be undertaken to sort them out. In the words of Adiga- “At
a time when India is going through great changed and, with China, is likely
to inherit the world from the west, it is important that writers like me try to
highlight the brutal injustices of society. That’s what writers like Flaubert,
Balzac and Dickens did in the 19 th century and, as a result, England and
France are better societies. That’s what I’m trying to do- it’s not an attack
on the country, it’s about the greater process of self- examination.”

Sreelatha M.(2016), in her paper Resistance To Contemporary Realities in

Aravind Adiga’s Last Man In Tower- reveals the realities of metropolitian
city of Mumbai, the city of dreams where everyone wants to complete his
dreams. She says that Adiga depicts the property business with the use of
satire, fantasy and reality. Real estate business which is totally corrupt,
exposes the reality of changing society. It is a story of Masterji and Shahji.
Shah wants to buy the apartments of Vishram tower but Masterji refused to
sell it and then the war begins between them. Masterji remains to be the
last man in the tower. Prasannarajan comments- “With a rare deftness
that avoids sentimental forays into psychology, Adiga turns Vishram into a
tower of beastly passions, and the walls of decency breakdown in the
ferocity of promised freedom. There is only one man, abandoned and
defenceless, clinging to his memories and his idea of social morality, to
absorb the extraordinary brutality of very ordinary people. Last Man in
Tower is more than a suburban morality tale with a big social message
written by an angry novelist”. Even, it shows the plight of poor, how the
poor can become a victim of exploitation by the rich. According to
Sreelatha, Adiga through his novel has raised all the social issues existing
in society, also giving a social message. According to a review, Adiga
“reflects the daily humiliations of living in Mumbai. Whether it is through the
fight for water or the battle to board the commuter trains, Mr Adiga captures
with heartbreaking authenticity the real struggle in Indian cities” (The
Economist).