The Art Of Characterization In Indian English Literature

Art of Characterization Aristotle laid utmost stress on the plot in a story, later on, this emphasis shifted to character. Character is less important in symbolic, satirical, stream of consciousness, technique novel or highly experimental novels. A great novel enables us to identify ourselves with hero or heroine and enjoy characters. The most enjoyable fictional characters seem to be very realistic. The pre-independence novelists showed marked tendency to construct regular plot, so as to convey their messages to the readers more effectively. But with the popularity of psychological novels, the emphasis is being laid more on characters. R K Narayan excels as an artful delineator of character. He says his focus is all on character. If his

During the last 40 years, there has been a great deal of experimentation in the use of the English language in Indian English Literature. A few writers who wrote novels in English in the early part of twentieth century used the language carefully, with stiff correctness, always aware that it was a foreign tongue. In the 30s one notices a sudden development of Indian English Novel, in quantity as well as quality and this is because of their confidence in the use of English language as one of India’s many other languages. Out of this confidence raises their will to twist the language according to the situation, Mulk Raj Anand is the first mindful experimenter, followed closely by Raja Rao, and in the next decade by Bhabani Bhattacharya and others.

The Indian English novelist’s writing shows the impress of the region from which she hails. For instance, Mulk Raj Anand, manages to convey a Punjabi taste through his English. R.K Narayan’s novels exhale south Indian air. Raja Rao deals with Kannada-speaking characters and nuances of their language and Bhabani Bhattacharya’s English succeeds in recreating a Bengali rhythm. Kamala Markandaya and Manohar Malgonakar do not connect themselves with the region they represent and their English does not betray their own area. They are as much at home in Standard English as any educated, cultured local