MODERN SOUTH ASIAN LITERATURE IN ENGLISH

Paul Brians

GREENWOOD PRESS

MODERN SOUTH ASIAN LITERATURE IN ENGLISH

Recent Titles in Literature as Windows to World Cultures Latino Literature in America Bridget Kevane

MODERN SOUTH ASIAN LITERATURE IN ENGLISH

Paul Brians

Literature as Windows to World Cultures

GREENWOOD PRESS Westport, Connecticut • London

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Brians, Paul. Modern South Asian Literature in English / by Paul Brians. p. cm. — (Literature as windows to world cultures) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0–313–32011–X (alk. paper) 1. Indic literature (English)—History and criticism. 2. Indic literature (English)—South Asian Authors—History and criticism. I. Title II. Series. PR9484.6.B75 2003 820.9'954—dc21 2003052842 British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data is available. Copyright © 2003 by Paul Brians All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, by any process or technique, without the express written consent of the publisher. Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 2003052842 ISBN: 0–313–32011–X ISSN: 1543–9968 First published in 2003 Greenwood Press, 88 Post Road West, Westport, CT 06881 An imprint of Greenwood Publishing Group, Inc. www.greenwood.com Printed in the United States of America

The paper used in this book complies with the Permanent Paper Standard issued by the National Information Standards Organization (Z39.48–1984). 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Contents

Acknowledgments Introduction 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 The Fiction of Rabindranath Tagore: Quartet (1915) Raja Rao: Kanthapura (1938) Khushwant Singh: Train to Pakistan (1956) R. K. Narayan: The Guide (1958) Attia Hosain: Sunlight on a Broken Column (1961) Anita Desai: Games at Twilight (1978) Bapsi Sidhwa: Cracking India (1988) Bharati Mukherjee: Jasmine (1989) Salman Rushdie: East, West (1994) Shyam Selvadurai: Funny Boy (1994) Rohinton Mistry: A Fine Balance