Humor or Black Humor? The Use of Humor and Irony in The Financial Expert

Abstract

K. Narayan was one of the pioneers of Indo Anglian fiction along with Mulk Raj Anand and Raja Rao. Their heydays were marked by complicated social issues such as India’s struggle for Independence and the more stressful period afterwards. Among the three, many consider R. K. Narayan as the most realistic in fiction considering Indian settings. The Financial Expert is again considered as Narayan’s masterpiece by many. It’s a well-constructed novel in five parts. The story is focused on three main aspects relating to the central character of Margayya. They are; Margayya’s determination to acquire wealth, his love for his own son Balu and his relationship with his brother and sister in law. It is at times mesmerizing to analyze Narayan’s use of humor and irony in crafting the fate of a normal middle class individual.