Victimization of Protagonists Nathu and Tita - Essay Example

Tamas by Bhisham Sahni & Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel - Nathu and Tita; Victims of Society. Order No. 276819 No. of pages: 5 1st Writer: 6530 Introduction Literature is the instrument which reveals to people, the human face of events in history, at the objective and subjective planes. History is sometimes understood most thoroughly, when we place its contents in the context of a vivid narrative and ‘Tamas’ of Bhisham Sahni and the Mexican masterpiece ‘Like Water for Chocolate’ by Laura Esquivel are excellent narratives, who use momentous historical events of their own nation to tell the story of the turbulent times that existed, even while donning it with a human face. ‘Tamas’ (Darkness) concerns itself with the story of the partition between India and Pakistan, which is that reprehensible chapter of Indian history, depicting the exodus of the terror – stricken Hindus who lived in the Muslim majority regions and whose screams drowned the jubilant shouts of Independence. One of the quotes in the novel goes like this, "If people knew each other, they would find it hard to hate." (Bhisham Sahni, Tamas) This realistic portrayal fetched the novelist, actor and playwright, Bhisham Sahni, the Sahitya Akademi Award for 1975. Laura Esquivel’s ‘Like Water for Chocolate’ is a true portrayal of the Mexican revolution as its background, when various political parties were squabbling for control of the nation and putting forth their separate ideas about the governing of the nation. Victimization of both the protagonists ‘Like Water for Chocolate’ is a story that takes place in the late 19th century, narrates about the widowed Mama Elena who has three daughters Gertrudis, Rosaura and Tita. The story uses the Mexican revolution as a metaphor for change, where Elena represents the old power structure while in Tita we have the attitude of rebellion, seen in the new members of the governing parties in the current times. The story revolves around the theme of forbidden love on the ranch, where the youngest daughter Tita is forbidden to marry her true love Pedro because according to the law the mother had to be looked after by the youngest daughter which happened to be Tita. Tita’s mother was so heartless as she offers Rosaura to Pedro in marriage instead. Pedro loved Tita so much that he agrees to marry Rosaura only for the one reason of being close to his true love Tita. Tita was victimized by her own mother ever since her birth. This is aptly described by the author who states “Tita was literally washed into this world on a great tide of tears that spilled over the edge of the table and flooded across the kitchen floor….” These lines show the pain, suffering, suppression and trauma that poor Tita experienced at the hands of her mother Elena. Besides this Tita was left to the mercy of the cook Nacha and hence was confined within the walls of the kitchen for long periods of time. There was always a sense of foreboding that seemed to hang over Tita’s head because of the mental and physical torture she had to undergo at the hands of her mother as she went about her daily chores. ‘Like Water for Chocolate’ is a book imbued with magic realism, where religio-mythical themes are dominant, and the story takes on the look of an epic. This tale of love and loss is enhanced by Tita’s search for her identity and the longing for fulfillment which her mother had denied her, when she refused to allow her to get married to Pedro. In preparation for Rosaura’s marriage, Tita had to mix the batter with a straight face and without exhibiting any sorrow. Tita was overwhelmed with sadness and sheds tears which fell into the mixture as she carried out her duty. This resulted a a vomiting session of the guests and poor Tita was once again victimized by her mother who threw accusations at her and physically assaulted her. It was only after her mother’s death that Tita comes to understand the reason for her mother’s behavior and how due to being suppressed by her parents and not being allowed to marry the man she loved, she took out all her frustration on Tita. The author of ‘Tamas’ Bhisham Sahni had given life to his depictions of human pain, suffering, fear and death in his vivid portrayal of Nathu the cynosure of victimization during the Indian partition, and in addition to being greatly influenced by the Bhiwandi riots which were what prompted him to write his most interesting novel on the partition titled “Tamas.” ‘Tamas’ is a historical narrative, where the authors gaze “moves like a camera over the entire scenario of 1947.’(Kumar, Sukrita Paul) Bhisham Sahni has brilliantly captured the gory reality of the Partition of India, but what sets the novel apart from the others is the humane touch which he infuses into all his characters especially the victimized Nathu, irrespective of their communal differences and sympathies. Nathu was a pawn in this scenario where he was lured to kill a pig for just Rs. 5. The incident sparked hatred among the Muslims when the pig was thrown in front of their mosque as a result of which the pitiable Nathu lost his life. Nathu was a poor chamar by profession and had to skin animals. He was extremely poor and hence was easily lured to earn five rupees to kill the pig, unaware of their horrible motives of parties who were trying their best to earn name and fame at the cost of other people of which Nathu was one of the miserable creatures. Nathu’s plight was further heightened when he was a witness to many of the killings that was triggered due to his killing of the pig. He is distraught at the thought of having been a party to the plight of innocent people. One of the worst incident’s he heard of were Sikh women and children jumped into a well in the village to escape being molested by the ferocious attackers. Nathu’s deeply disturbed condition is seen when he says - “…how could I know for what purpose I was being asked to kill a pig?” At this juncture, poor Nathu recalls the words of his father, “son keep your hands clean, the man who’s hands are clean will never do an evil deed, earn your bread with dignity and self respect”. Nathu realizes his mistake only after the deed had been done and feels so guilty at what he had done and confides his fears to his wife stating – “It’s all my doing.” Though his wife tries to pacify him, Nathu is beside himself with grief. We can see further victimization meted out by the British attitude in not trying to put an end to the problems faced by Nathu and all those suffering people and this is clearly summed up in the dialogue between Deputy Commissioner Richard and his wife Lisa, where she implores her husband to use his authority to stop the fighting. Richard seems cold and heartless and tells her that the only way they can stay in power, is to turn a blind eye to these events because “If the masses keep fighting among themselves, the rulers have nothing to worry about.” The life of Tita is the chronicle of victimization, where the young girl’s woes begin immediately when she is born and here it is fate which is to be blamed. Being the youngest of three daughters it is her duty to look after her mother in her old age, and so she is not allowed to marry Pedro, whom she loves passionately. This social custom proves to be the first obstacle in their happiness and continues to haunt her future happiness too. Mama Elena is the dictatorial patriarch whose strong personality subjugates the young Tita completely thereby victimizing her. She resorts to the twin issues of tradition and respectability whenever she wants Tita to comply with her wishes, while in her own life we see a flouting of these very canons. She herself has an affair which results in the birth of Gertrudis, but she will not allow Tita to even care for Pedros son. She runs her own ranch with little concern of the patriarchal conventions of society, but holds on to Tita, as the crutch for her old age. The victimization of Tita occurs when she holds onto the obsolete traditions and is not allowed to rebel at her mothers authoritarian decrees, with Elena’s definite pronouncement, that “For generations, not a single person in my family has ever questioned this tradition”. Symbols used in the stories Food serves as one of the strongest symbols of Tita’s passion. It is shown to be a direct cause of the emotional and physical unrest that plagues the protagonists. Thus Rosura’s wedding guests feel morose and some of them vomit after eating the cake because it has Tita’s tears. The passion she feels for Pedro is transmitted to the dishes she prepares for him and it is this which brings about Gertrudis’ frenzied sexuality. It is through food that Tita’s personality is conveyed and it is symbolic of her self. The symbols used in the story of ‘Tamas’ was the cow and the pig around which the whole story revolved. It was these symbols that began the onslaught of human carnage and suffering depicted against a political backdrop. It was these symbols that caused the divide between the Hindus and Muslims. Killing the pig was just another chore for Nathu whose only concern was the badly needed money he would earn. The Muslims retaliate to this incident due to religious fanaticism, by killing the cow and gradually the slaughtering of animals is replaced by the slaughtering of human beings brought about by rumor mongering. Conclusion According to me both the novels were very good in their own respect. I think The author of ‘Tamas’ Bhisham Sahni had given life to his characters through his depictions of human pain, suffering, fear and death through his vivid portrayal of the Indian Pakistan partition. I reflected on both these novels and what I found very interesting was the sincerity with which it was narrated. The wonderfully narrated love story of Tita and Pedro and the struggle they had to face because of the existing norms and the callous attitude of Tita’s mother, really tugged at my heart strings while I empathized with her. Nathu’s plight as a victim of a biased society made me realize how cruel the world is and more than humanity, it was money and power that was more important. References Muse India - Past Issue - Bhisham Sahni: Dialogue with Sukrita ... http://www.museindia.com/showcont.asp?id=248 Laura Esquivel – Like Water for Chocolate www.greenmanreview.com/book/book_esquivel_waterchocolate.html A life of commitment: Bhisham Sahni, 1915 - 2003. http://www.hinduonnet.com/fline/fl2015/stories/20030801003612900.htm Like Water For Chocolate – the book Haven www.thebookhaven.net/Z_Like_Water_for_Chocolate.html Bhisham Sahni- Books. http://www.dawn.com/weekly/books/archive/020804/books18.htm Obituary – Bhisham Sahni www.guardian.co.uk/news/2003/sep/09/guardianobituaries.books Bhisham Sahni www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bhisham_Sahni Read More