Class Consciousness in Indian Partition Fiction: An Interpretation in Marxist Perspective

Abstract

Abstract

The surge in research on Indian partition, no doubt, is now making clearer the imposition of range, depth and impact of such traumatizing and forceful geopolitical cage-lines over human civilization. The history turned myth of the riot, sky rending cry of the homeless, the women and the children in the heap of horror and violence still twist our everyday common sense. We are bound to see the past history as the pre- history of the present as thought by Lukacs, a Marxian critic. This paper examines two cardinal novels on Indian partition and explores a growing class consciousness or class conflict among the Indians who were already bounded up with distinctions of caste, religion and ?barna? according to their professions from the time of the Aryans. It is interesting to note that on the eve of partition, although, the Communists in India remained active in pocket size party offices only, a notable section of the Indian population, mostly the younger educated generation began to keep faith on the violent revolution of the Marxist thought to bring equality and uniformity among the Indian people. My argument is that in such a dark age as partition of India denotes, violent revolution did appear ?foreign? for the countrymen because it was against the Indian traditional values of non-violence and tolerance. Yet, it was true that a new class consciousness was emerging out of the debris of prejudices and ignorance in Indian society on the eve of partition as an inevitable fact and here, Marxist approach is sure to unveil a new vista of interpretation in the horizon of class struggle that played a crucial role behind the division of the country.