1

TRAUMA OF PARTITION REFLECTED IN SELECT

INDIAN ENGLISH NOVELS: A COMPARATIVE STUDY

Synopsis submitted to

Swami Ramanand Teerth Marathwada University,

Vishnupuri, Nanded- 431606
For the registration of Ph.D. Degree in English
Under the Faculty of Arts

(April 2016)

Research Student

Gangadhar Potanna Aaklod

Research Supervisor

Dr. Umakant D. Padamwar

Asst. Professor, Dept. of English
Gramin Mahavidyalaya, Vsantnagar, Mukhed,Dist. Nanded
(Swami Ramanand Teerth Marathwada University, Nanded)
 2

Introduction of the Study:

The Partition of India into two, i.e. India and Pakistan, in 1947 was an unpleasant past
that no one wants to remember. The incident was unprecedented for the world for it was the first
time when any country was divided on the basis of religion. The second big reason was mass
migration. Partition also resulted in unprecedented violence, murders, rapes and much more.
Unfortunately the partition served to increase the hostilities between India and Pakistan instead
of bringing peace.

This tragedy of Partition has given rise to the imagination of many writers who wanted to
define the trauma and the social complexes which affected the whole subcontinent. The fictional
explorations about partition record the human disaster and suffering as the main theme of the
writers in many languages like English, Urdu, Hindi, Bengali and other Indian Languages.

Significance of the Study:

Though it is almost seventy years span after the partition, still it has immense effect on the
minds of the people of both the countries. Even, as the years passed, the hostility and
complications between the two countries have been growing continuously. We have to go
through all those incidents and relate them with the present conditions. Partition created hostility
among the different religions that we still experience it many times in our own country.
Terrorism added fuel to the fire as it spreads hostility in the name of religion. We should remind
the causes, the disaster, and its effects on the political, social, economical and religious life of the
subcontinent to avoid such incidents in the future, because it is not affordable for the world to
face such incidents in the coming time.

Objectives:
1) To study the theme of partition explored by the authors.

2) To make comparative study of the trauma of partition reflected in the novels selected for
present study.

3) To study social and political responsibility and impact of partition, the way the individual
writer dealt with the theme of partition.

4) To find out differences and similarities among the novels dealing with the theme of partition.
 3

Research Methodology:
The researcher is going to use the Descriptive Method of research for this subject.

Sources of Data:
This research work depends upon the original texts of the Partition novels. These texts
would be used as primary sources along with the secondary sources. The secondary sources will
be the books having references to these writers’ works along with articles, reviews in journals,
magazines and websites will also be analyzed.

Hypothesis:
The trauma of Partition has the immense effect on the minds of the people of the
subcontinent. In this research work the hypothesis will be substantiated on the basis of relevant
information about partition in Indian English novels.

The Research work is distributed into the following chapters:

Chapter I: Introduction

Chapter II: Attia Hosain

Chapter III: Manohar Malgonkar

Chapter IV: Bapsi Sidhwa

Chapter V: Comparative study of the selected novels

Chapter VI: Conclusion

Chapter-I: Introduction:
In this chapter, the concept of Partition, its background and the Indian English novels
dealing with the theme of partition will be discussed.

1) The Concept and Background of Partition:

The concept of partition in 1947 was not new to India as it had witnessed the
bifurcation of Bengal earlier in 1905. The world also witnessed the division of Germany and
Korea but they had no such disastrous experience as India had. Hence this partition of India
 4

into two was a unique experience for the whole world, because it was the first time in the
world history that a country was divided on the basis of religion.

The Indian subcontinent was turned into diabolical region in August 1947 when the
British announced the division of subcontinent into India and Pakistan. The partition of India
was not merely a historical fact but it was an example of Indian tendency to forget everything
that brings with it some kind of agony. India seems to be scared recalling the memory of the
unpleasant past, unlike the other countries of the world. This partition raised many problems, one
of the most tragic and serious problem was the transfer of population. The Partition of India into
two, i.e. India and Pakistan, in 1947 was an unpleasant past that no one wants to remember. The
incident was unprecedented for the world for it was the first time when any country was divided
on the basis of religion. The second big reason was mass migration. Partition also resulted in
unprecedented violence, murders, rapes and much more. Unfortunately the partition served to
increase the hostilities between India and Pakistan instead of bringing peace.

Partition created hostility among the different religions that we still experience it many
times in our own country. Terrorism added fuel to the fire as it spreads hostility in the name of
religion. We should remind the causes, the disaster, and its effects on the political, social,
economical and religious life of the subcontinent to avoid such incidents in the future, because it
is not affordable for the world to face such incidents in the coming time.

2) Brief survey of Indian English Novels dealing with the theme of Partition:
The trauma of partition has been a challenge to the imagination of the new writers. It
has given rise to fictional explorations with an attempt to define the inner turmoil and social
complexes that affected much to the whole subcontinent. The partition fiction, apart from
English, began to rise in many Indian languages like Urdu, Hindi and Bengali etc. All these
fictional works faithfully record the human disaster in the wake of partition. The theme of
partition has been one of the favorite themes with the Indian and Pakistani writers.

Khushwant Singh’s Train to Pakistan(1956), Attia Hosain’s Sunlight on a Broken

Column(1961), Manohar Malgonkar’s A Bend in the Ganges(1964), Bhishma Sahni’s
Tamas(1973), Chaman Nahal’s Azadi, Rahi Masoom Raza’s Adha Gaon(1966), Amitav
Ghosh’s Shadow Lines(1988), Bapsi Sidhwa’s Ice Candy Man(1991) and short stories by
Saadat Hassan Manto and the poems of Faiz Ahmed Faiz are some of the great examples
which attempt to give us the experience of the gruesome human disaster, communal hatred,
extreme disintegration and violence.
 5

Chapter-II: Attia Hosain

Sunlight on a Broken Column is an autobiographical novel by Attia Hosain. In this
novel the novelist presents a feminine view of nation formation and national identities. It exposes
a Muslim woman’s point of view in nation formation. Because of the autobiographical aspect of
the novel, there are many convergences between Attia Hosain and her fictional protagonist,
Laila. Laila’s observation of sociopolitical events of mid-twentieth century and their
ramifications on her own life, her family and her community are extensions of Attia Hosain’s
own experiences. The world of Laila is a reflection of Attia Hosain’s contemporary society.
Laila’s strong will to counter the patriarchal oppressions and feudalism makes her remarkable.
Her radical approach against the pseudo morality and strict gender segregations in the novel
shows path to the progressive women.

Chapter-III: Manohar Malgonkar

A Bend in the Ganges is a novel by the Maharashtrian novelist Manohar Malgonkar.
The novel has some common aspects with Train to Pakistan but it never enjoyed the kind of
popularity that Khushwant Singh’s novel has. But it has all the ingredients of a bestseller. The
real aim of the novelist was to provoke thoughts on the reasons and activities of partition and
Independence. The novel raises some fundamental questions such as whether the Hindus and the
Muslims could ever be united, secondly whether non-violence could be a practical way of life
and much more. This novel the examination of violence, it is the philosophy of violence
produced by the terrorist movement. The novel begins with Mahatma Gandhi’s Civil
Disobedience Movement and ends with partition violence and riots. The novel portrays the
communal violence, brutality and riots and also focuses on its impact on the thought and
behavior of people. The novel mainly focuses on the transformation of three young men Gian
Talwar, Debi Dayal and Shafi Usman.

Gian believes in non-violence whereas Shafi and Debi believe in violence. These
freedom fighters from the Hanuman Club, ostensibly for physical culture but really intended for
terrorist activities. Dissatisfied with Gandhian non-violence, they advocate a new religion of

Chapter-IV: Bapsi Sidhwa

Ice Candy Man, a novel by Bapsi Sidhwa, is the most important and the most
representative of the partition novels written by a Pakistani writer. This is Sidhwa’s most popular
novel. The novel is about an eight-year-old Parsi girl, Lenny. Her beloved, Ayah, a Hindu is
abducted never to come back in her life again. She betrays Ayah’s hiding place, trusting the Ice
Candy Man, but this guilt of betrayal never leaves her. This novel is woman centric which shows
us everything through the eyes of Lenny. The novel basically shows how the partition and its
 6

trauma affected women. The novel describes the communal violence and the turmoil during the
partition through the eyes of an eight year old Parsi girl, Lenny, belonging to Lahore. This is the
story of a lame and helpless Lenny and her beloved Hindu Ayah, who takes care of her as her
sister. Ayah, her suitors and her sexuality is always witnessed by Lenny. The sudden breakout of
the riots, communal violence, Ayah’s suitors Ice Candy Man and Dilnawaz, their battle to get
her, her abduction and acceptance of Islam, her marriage and rescue from a brothel with the help
of Lenny’s relatives is superbly narrated by the writer.

Chapter-V: A Comparative Study of the selected novels

In this chapter the researcher will compare the three novels Attia Hosain’s Sunlight
on a Broken Column, Bapsi Sidhwa’s Ice Candy Man and Manohar Malgonkar’s A Bend in the
Ganges. The thematic concern dealt by the novelists, characterization, plot construction, socio-
political impact of the partition, the differences and similarities among the novels, their value in
literature and other important things will be discussed.

Chapter-VI: Conclusion
An attempt will be made to conclude the findings and the explorations and the critical
analysis will be summed up. These novels present the immense trauma of partition on the minds
of the people of Indian subcontinent which is still burning in their hearts. An attempt will be
made to attribute a rightful place and value to the novels and the novelists in the canon of Indian
English novel as well as in the world literature.

Research Student Research Guide

Gangadhar P. Aaklod Dr. U. D. Padamwar