Nectar In A Sieve By Kamala Markandaya

Kamala Markandaya’s novel, Nectar in a Sieve, focuses on a time period in which urban development is taking place in India. This disruption of the Indian culture brings forward the issue of what Edward Said would describe as, “the Other.” Edward Said’s theory helps to generate an understanding of stereotyping and binary structures in society. Due to the changes occurring in their society, the characters in Markandaya’s novel are often subjected to stereotypical beliefs for being different, which coincides with Said’s theory of “the Other.” Markandaya’s novel shows how the concept of “the Other” does not just apply to one specific group, but affects everyone.

The British, or the colonizers, are not likely to be seen as victims of the concept of “the Other.” However, the character Kenny proves that, they too can be classified as Others. “Have I not so

This is shown in Rukmani’s children, Ira and Selvam. When Ira has her baby, Rukmani is afraid of how the community is going to react to it, however, Ira loves the child. “No sign of strain or fear crossed her face, she was as happy as a bird with her son, singing to him, playing with him, ducking and chuckling as if he were the most beautiful baby any woman could have. Perhaps he was to her. Such heaviness of spirit as there was, pressed not on her but on us, her parents” (115). Ira’s reaction to her son’s disorder surprises Rukmani, who believes the child will place a burden on her and Nathan for being different; she is labeling her grandson as an Other. Despite their mother’s concerns, both Ira and her brother treat the child as if nothing is wrong with it. “From the beginning Selvam had accepted the child’s albinism: accepted it and thought no more of it” (124). Ira and Selvam’s acceptance of the child shows the difference in the effect “the Others” has on the older generation versus the younger