English Studies Journal | Captivating Experiences of Discrimination, Disasters as Agents of Change for Diaspora in Chitra Banerjee’s Novels: Mistress of Spices, Queen of Dreams and One Amazing Thing

The IUP Journal of English Studies :

Captivating Experiences of Discrimination, Disasters as Agents of Change for Diaspora in Chitra Banerjee’s Novels: Mistress of Spices, Queen of Dreams and One Amazing Thing

Article Details

Pub. Date	:	Mar, 2015
Product Name	:	The IUP Journal of English Studies
Product Type	:	Article
Product Code	:	IJES21503
Author Name	:	Ritu R Agarwal
Availability	:	YES
Subject/Domain	:	English Studies
Download Format	:	PDF Format
No. of Pages	:	6

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Abstract

An attempt has been made in this paper to justify the fact that Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni as a South Asian diasporic writer has through her novels tried to present the social evils of discrimination and disasters looming large over the countries in the form of man-made disasters like terrorism and racial discrimination and natural disasters like earthquakes. She has also tried to present the impact it creates on the psyche of the individuals resulting in an environment of distrust. Twenty-first century, though an age of globalization, radicalization and internationalization, still witnesses the narrow boundaries of caste, class, race and religion. Divakaruni’s Mistress of Spices (1997), Queen of Dreams (2004) and One Amazing Thing (2010) have been analyzed to present the fact that disasters do not just disunite but they also raise questions on the human existence and the need to understand and create bonds of friendship between nations to fight the challenges. Though discrimination and disasters create discord, they also give rise to an art of life management.

Description

Metka Zupancic, a noted researcher, has observed,

“Divakaruni’s prose writings… carry profound ethical values and the promise of a world that we could all build together, with literature as an efficient and convincing tool for collective transformation based on mutual understanding and love as a binding force that may perform miracles” (Zupancic, 2013).

Divakaruni herself has commented, “We want to survive, but not at the cost of losing our humanity” (At Google Talk, 2010).

As a person who moved away from her homeland to the US, for Chitra, writing seems to be a way of reliving her experiences and the way it impacts the diaspora. She has tried to look at discrimination and disasters with a keen sense of insight. Her novels bring out the pain and trauma of the diaspora but they also assert the need for a better understanding of human existence.

Keywords

English Studies Journal, Captivating Experiences, Discrimination, narrow boundaries of caste, class, race and religion. Divakaruni’s Mistress of Spices, Disasters, Agents, Diaspora, Chitra Banerjee’s Novels, Mistress of Spices, Queen of Dreams.