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Thinking Activity on Arvind Adiga's The White Tiger


The White Tiger is the debut novel by Arvind Adiga which was first published in 2008 and won one of the most important literary awards, The Man Booker Prize. Novel is an unflattering portrait of India as a society of servitude and corruption. But if, Literature is mirror of life and society, writer should portrait whatever is present in reality and A committed writer consciously draws the attention of the reader towards injustice in society. Adiga is one of them, He expose the ugly but real face of India. So there is question that,

How far do you agree with the India represented in the novel – The White Tiger 

I do agree with that the India represented in the novel -The white Tiger. Harbinder Kaur writes in his essay that , Adiga exposes the real but ugly face of India's heart of darkness, particularly the rural India, Indian political system and government machinery. Rural India is represented by the village Laxmangarh, district Gaya, Bihar.
Despite this, Adiga has presented a series of Binary cut in Indian Society—the contrast of Darkness and light, people with big bellies and small bellies, Foreign liquor and Indian Liquor and dream of rich and dream of poor etc., satirize the political and social system in India. Among that all most elaborate Binary cuts is Darkness and Light. The areas by the sides of the river Ganga referred  to as Darkness while the big cities like Bangalore and Delhi belong to Light. Balaram’s obsession with Chandelier is suggestive of his eagerness to be in light, as he writes that, A man in hiding and yet he's surrounded by Chandeliers… There- I am revealing the secret to a successful escape. The police searched for me in Darkness: but I hide myself in light.
Thus, rural areas are physically dark, there is hardly electricity, education and economic wellness, it is backward in all respects, the cities are lighted and rich. Narration of this India in The White Tiger is really represented on real /land of India.

Do you believe that Balaram's story is the archetype of all stories of rags to riches

 By portraying Balram’s life, Adiga portraying life of so many Indians like Balram. Who forcibly taken out of study and work for repay the loan taken by the family. If we see archetype of Balaram's story, his early life in village including the short period of his school life and his work as canteen boy in tea shop, later on his experience as driver in Dhanbad in house of a former feudal lord, his experiences as driver in Delhi where he was employed by the landlord's son who had come from America and his life as an entrepreneur in Bangalore after the murder. So, all these narration suggest that he wants money/success by hook or crook. Analyzing the situation we can say that the protagonist is representative of archetype of stories of rags to riches.


Is it possible to do deconstructive reading of the white Tiger how
Before that let be clear that,
What is Deconstruction
To dismantle structures of meaning so as to expose the foundation a upon  which they are built.
To show that conflicting forces within the text itself serve to dissipate the seeming definiteness of its structure and meanings.
To reveal the concepts of objectivity and linguistics autonomy as constructs
To show that a text is characterized by disunity rather than unity.

Deconstruction in novel The White Tiger… Balram Halwai -an anti Hero.

 The white Tiger by Arvind Adiga has been termed as Black comedy. On some extend we laugh on half-baked Balram’s act and other side we have deep sympathy for him but as a hero of novel, Balram has not all the quality of Hero. In the article ‘Balram Halwai: An Anti Hero' by Sarika Bajpai and R.N. Shukla they writes that, The central character of such a novel cannot be heroic for a hero is endowed with admirable courage, nobility and moral superiority and is capable of heroic deeds, dashing, strong, brave, resourceful and virtuous. The anti-hero is “a central character in a dramatic or narrative work who lacks the qualities of nobility…

The protagonist of The White Tiger has nothing heroic about him. He is out to shock the reader and society. He has irreverent attitude to religion and religious
symbols so important in Indian life. He shows as much disrespect to the Hindu gods as to Christian God, his Son and the Holy Spirit or the Muslim Allah. He has made fun of the tradition of beginning a story with a prayer to a divine power by saying that he was obliged to begin with “kissing some God’s arses”,.
He makes a fun of people who pray to gods and goddesses with offerings of coins or bigger amounts and demand some or the other blessings in return. In book he clearly writes that.
Every day thousands of foreigners fly into my country for enlightenment. They go to Himalayas, or to Benaras, or to Bodh Gaya, they get into weird poses of yoga, smoke hashish, shah a sadhu or two, and think they're getting enlightened.

 Thus, Balram Halwai is an anti Hero who has an unheroic character, he is half baked in knowledge, education in making decisions too, He has no respect for religious or Divine power.

(References from this book - Arvind Adiga's The White Tiger A Symposium of critical response, Edited by R.K.Dhawan)
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