Chapter VI Conclusion

Transcription

1 Chapter VI Conclusion Literature is an expression of various facets of human life as well as a social chronicle. A work of literature is inescapably conditioned by the choice and development of its subject matter, the ways of thinking it incorporates, its evaluations of the modes of life it renders, and even in its form by the social, political and economic organization and forces of its age. Bapsi Sidhwa, the internationally-acclaimed Pakistani Parsi writer, has secured an enviable position for herself in literary circles today. She has proved that her minority experience as the member of a tiny Parsi community in Pakistan, far from being a visible trouble spot on her creative psyche, offers her enough material and space to celebrate her talent. She feels that it has given her a unique sense of detached attachment for her country and its people. Her creative odyssey, which started with The Crow Eaters, has grown from strength to strength in her successive works like The Pakistani Bride, Ice-Candy-Man and An America Brat. Like her favourite author Charles Dickens, Bapsi Sidhwa s childhood was also unhappy. Whereas Dickens was hit hard by penury, Sidhwa was afflicted with polio. Her sensitivity, however, found solace in the company of books. She read avidly whatever came her way and her extensive reading was of great help to her when she started writing. Bapsi Sidhwa also has very lucid views on the role of a writer in modern society which is dominated by media, flood of information and almost an overabundance of communication. She strongly feels that a writer of fiction cannot really alter social reality or change the world. About the role of a writer, Bapsi Sidhwa tells Montenegro: But I do think that a writer can at least place facts so that people recognize themselves and stop taking themselves too seriously or start seeing themselves in a more realistic light. We all are so prone to see ourselves as a little better than the other person (51). Being a Parsi herself, Bapsi depicts the Parsi life in all her novels except The Pakistani Bride where there is only a casual mention of a Parsi doctor. In Ice-Candy-Man, An American Brat and especially in her first published novel, The Crow Eaters, Sidhwa has given detailed information about the customs, ceremonies, beliefs, superstitions, rites, rituals, myths, legends and other aspects of the Parsi life.

2 157 The Parsis are the minuscule minority in today s world. Demographically there are only a hundred thousand Parsis in the world. It is also an estimate that by the year 2020 India will be the most populated country on earth with approximate 1200 million people and Parsis will number only about 23,000. At that point the community will be termed tribe rather than ethnic community because any community with a count below 30,000 is labeled as tribe. Urbanization, late marriages, low birth rate, strictures against conversion and non-acceptance of the children of Parsi women marrying outside the community into its fold are some of the reasons responsible for making Parsis the fastest declining community in the world. A Parsi demographer Kersi Limathwala notes in this connection: Though there are no definite figures available at present, a rough estimate is that in a year there are 1,000 deaths and 500 births (qtd. in Yadav 54). It has inevitably led to the anxiety in the Parsi writers regarding the survival of their fast perishing race together with attempts to leave representations of their race on the pages of history for the future generations. Bapsi Sidhwa s first novel The Crow Eaters, has a unique place in the history of English fiction as it is the first internationally published novel which showcases the different aspects of the Parsi life in detail. Before Sidhwa, Perin Bharucha in The Fire Worshippers (1968) and Nergis Dalal in The Sisters (1973), touched upon some of the aspects of the Parsi life. The Crow Eaters has influenced not only a new generation of Parsi writers but also many Indian and Pakistani writers who are introducing Parsi characters in their works more freely. Above all, this novel has made the non-parsi world familiar with the Parsis. Zoroastrianism promotes Parsis all-round welfare in this world. It attaches due importance to social prestige, prosperity and success in this world. Loyalty to the ruler of the state is a value which the Parsis meticulously practise. The training of obedience to parents in a Zoroastrian family is a training for obedience to constitutional forms of Government. Zoroastrianism teaches love and regard, loyalty and obedience to the constitutional forms of government. At the social level, Parsi life is characterized by humanism and universal brotherhood. Brotherhood of man is a cardinal doctrine of Zoroastrianism. The true Parsis are always tolerant towards the faiths and beliefs of others. They mix freely with members of other faiths, sympathise with them in their sorrows and afflictions and work to alleviate their misery. Zoroastrianism attaches great importance to righteousness and honesty in connection with work and in the economic sphere. One of the notable features of Zoroastrian life is that

3 158 there is no usury in Parsi life. The quintessential Zoroastrian values like charity, philanthropy and benevolence are cherished by the Parsi community. Zoroastrianism believes that the two poles of human consciousness, Angra-Mainyu (evil principle) and Spenta Mainyu (divine or good principle), are engaged in a perpetual conflict in a man s life. Bapsi Sidhwa s fiction is a running commentary on the values, beliefs, strengths and weaknesses of the Parsis. In The Crow Eaters, Freddy s quest for prosperity and social prestige is very much a tendency promoted by the Zoroastrian worldview. With his enterprising outlook and dynamic approach, Freddy emerges ultimately as the patriarch of the Parsi community in Lahore. He remains a devout Parsi since his commitment to the Zoroastrian values of charity and benevolence is unflinching. Charity is the value which provides the impetus for Freddy s sustained mercantile activity. He tells his audience once: And once you have the means, there is no end to the good you can do. I donated towards the construction of an orphanage and a hospital. I installed a water pump with a stone plaque dedicating it to my friend, Mr Charles P. Allen (Sidhwa, The Crow Eaters 10). Freddy s charitable deeds may not exalt him as a paragon of Zoroastrian values as they are certainly tinged with self-promotion. He himself admits once: I ve made friends love them for what could be called ulterior motives, and yet the friendships so made are amongst my sweetest, longest and most sincere. I cherish them still (The Crow Eaters 11). A shrewd and tactful Parsi, Freddy blends generosity and self-interest. Sidhwa, an insider in the Parsi community, writes about charity which is the part of the Zoroastrian ethos: The moment a Parsi strikes it rich he devotes a big portion of his energies to charity. He builds schools, hospitals and orphanages; provides housing, scholarships and finance. Notorious misers, they are paradoxically generous to a cause (The Crow Eaters 21). Bapsi Sidhwa portrayed the dying businessman Faredoon Junglewalla s offspring to remain loyal to the British Empire. The Parsis longstanding attitudes of loyalty to the British stemmed from the Zoroastrian religious belief of loyalty to a ruler and a close relationship between state and community. All that the Parsis wanted from the ruling British authorities was religious autonomy and protection. They got both. Such feelings were prevalent in the Parsi milieu and Bapsi Sidhwa aptly conveys it in The Crow Eaters. Freddy took every opportunity to demonstrate his loyalty to the British. Self-preservation is of primary concern to the Parsis. We see this operating principle at work when Faredoon, soon after his arrival in

4 159 Lahore, goes to Government House and signs his name in the visitor s register. Having thus paid homage to the British Empire, established his credentials and demonstrated his loyalty to Queen and Crown, Freddy was free to face the future (The Crow Eaters 22). Freddy s visit symbolises the traditional submissiveness and pragmatism of the community. If such an act seems absurd, social historians will recall that on occasions like royal birthdays, coronation ceremonies, arrival of a new viceroy or death in the royal family, the Parsis demonstrated their collective loyalty by holding public meetings and Jashans (group prayers). In cases of British military entanglements outside India, Parsis adopted the terminology of British imperialism. They termed Britain s wars as just and essential for world peace, for the progress of civilization and freedom. Parsis celebrate different rites and ceremonies connected with the birth, death, maturity and new year with gusto. These ceremonies are a characteristic feature of a community which has faced the vicissitudes of history and has retained its unique identity intact. Navjote ceremony has an important place in Parsi community life. The ceremony marks the initiation of a child into Parsi faith with the presentation of Kusti and Sudra, the two outward emblem of the creed. Navjote ceremony, like upanyan ceremony of Brahmins, represents the selection of faith by choice and not by birth: Freedom of choice is a cardinal doctrine in the teaching of Zarathustra. A child born of Zoroastrian parents is not considered a Zoroastrian until he has chosen the faith at the Navjote ceremony. Zarathustra in his Gathas says: Give ear to the Great Truths. Look within with enlightened mind (lit: flaming mind) at the faith of your own selection, man by man, each one for himself (The Crow Eaters 124). Together with Navjote, Madasara is another important ceremony in Parsi religion. It is celebrated on the occasion of the marriage and is connected with fertility, a major concern of Parsis. During this ceremony newly wed husband and wife plant a mango. Sidhwa gives a detailed description of the marriage ceremony of the Parsi community in The Crow Eaters. The marriage ceremony in the Parsi community is preceded by preliminary ceremonies four days before the actual ceremony. Sidhwa provides the minutest detail of the marriage ceremony of Billy and Tanya in The Crow Eaters and shows that the Parsi mode of marriage is a mix of the Hindu and Muslim modes of marriage. In fact, the Parsis are cultural hybrids as they have adopted the customs of Hindus and Muslims both. But it is interesting to note that the actual ceremony is performed after sunset. Also, part of the ceremony is repeated in

5 160 Sanskrit as a reminder of pledges given to prince Yadav Rana who gave refuge to the Zoroastrians when they landed in India about 1300 years ago. The novelist has given meaningful hints about other aspects of the Parsi way of life. Sidhwa tells us that most Parsis are relentless eaters and have a remarkable passion for elaborate food. Gluttony is another deadly sin which lures the Parsis in a big way. Bapsi also draws our attention to the Parsis love for money and their enviable business sense. Another distinctive characteristic of Parsis is their loquaciousness. Bapsi Sidhwa humorously names her novel The Crow Eaters on the popular perception about Parsis notorious ability to talk ceaselessly at the top of their voices like an assembly of crows (The Crow Eaters 56). In Ice-Candy-Man, the Ayah gives a full explanation of the adage when some Hindu children derisively call Lenny a crow eater: Why do they say that? I ask fiercely. Because, y all do kaan! Kaan! at the top of your voices like a rowdy flock of crows, says Ayah (Sidhwa, Ice-Candy-Man 100). The Parsi system of disposal of the dead bodies is unique since it brooks no difference between the rich and poor, the king and pauper. They are exposed to sun s rays and offered to birds on the same platform so that a king s corpse may lie side by side with that of a pauper. All are equal and there are no costly funerals or coffins for the rich and the powerful. There is an explicit prohibition against cremation or burial underground. A Parsi s last charitable act on earth is the donation of his dead body to hungry vultures. The Parsis have their own belief system regarding the journey of soul after death. It is believed that if uthama ceremony is not done, the soul of such a person cannot ascend to the chinwad bridge and remains in limbo. The chinwad bridge allows the passage of soul to heaven and hell. If the deeds are good, the bridge expands and the soul gets a passage to heaven, but if the deeds of dead person are not good the bridge contracts and the soul falls to hell. When Soli dies, the writer describes the elaborate rituals connected with the death of a Parsi. Among other rituals is the custom of bringing a dog with two additional spots over its eyes near the corpse to detect any residue of life in the dead. The writer explains the relevance of this rite: It is believed that his four eyes can ward off evil spirits and can detect the faintest hint of life; a precious faculty in pre-medical days when corpses were inclined to recover and sit up (The

6 161 Crow Eaters 177). The pall-bearers wear white clothes from head to toe: Even their hands were gloved in white cloth tied at the wrists. White scarves bandaged their foreheads and the sides of their faces (The Crow Eaters 178). The novels of Bapsi Sidhwa also celebrate the distinctive identity of the Parsis not only through their distinctive rituals but also through their clothes and manner of dressing. The dress of Parsis give them a distinctive presence and a Parsi can be easily detected by his appearance even in the crowd. It is what Sidhwa notes in her novel The Crow Eaters about a group of Parsis on a railway platform: The Parsi women tied their heavy silk saris differently, with a triangular piece in front displaying broad, exquisitely embroidered borders. The knotted tassels of their kustis dangled as if pyjama strings were tied at the back, and white mathabanas peeked primly from beneath sari-covered heads. The men wore crisp pyjamas, flowing white coats fastened with neat little bows, and flat turbans. They looked quite distinctive (The Crow Eaters 56). Sudra and Kusti are two most visible outward symbols of Zoroastrian faith. Sudra is a Zoroastrian religious undergarment made of pure white muslin, worn like a slip next to the skin. The child first wears it, together with the Kusti, at the Navjote. White is a symbol of purity of spotlessness thereby representing that deeds of the Parsis should be pure. Kusti is a sacred thread woven from seventy-two strands of wool, girdled around the waist three times, worn over the Sudra. All the Parsi characters in The Crow Eaters including Freddy wear Sudra. The finely made Kusti of Putli, Freddy s wife becomes popular in Karachi as well. Fire, an elemental symbol in Parsi religious belief-system, is a representation of Ahura Mazda s purity of creation. Bapsi Sidhwa puts forth its importance in Parsi religion in The Crow Eaters: Fire, chosen by the Prophet as the outward symbol of his faith, is venerated. It represents the Divine Spark in every man, a spark of the Divine Light. Fire, which has its source in primordial light, symbolises not only His cosmic creation but also the spiritual nature of His Eternal Truth (The Crow Eaters 49). The Parsis do not worship fire as God. They regard it as an emblem of refulgence, glory and light. In worshipping Fire, a Parsi attempts at self-exultation, to purify his manashni (thoughts), gavashni (words) and kunashni (deeds). In short, Fire serves as a constant monitor to a Parsi in preserving piety, purity, humility and brotherhood.

7 162 Ice-Candy-Man, at least to some degree, emphasises the principal value of compassion and charity in the Zoroastrian worldview. In the narrative, Godmother and Lenny s mother are engaged in the relentless task of rehabilitation of fallen women like Ayah and Hamida during the Partition. Lenny s mother employs Hamida, a woman who had been kidnapped, rescued and later on spurned by the family, as Lenny s new Ayah to rehabilitate her. Lenny s Godmother Rodabai, who has access to many ears (Ice-Candy-Man 211), also arranges Ranna s education in a boarding house after he had been orphaned. The social commitment and willingness to help the needy is best perceived in Godmother s rescue of Ayah. Though they are minor characters and are of peripheral interest in the narrative, they nevertheless take the path of Asha (uprightness and harmony) as highlighted in the Zoroastrian ethics. In Ice-Candy-Man, Bapsi Sidhwa has revealed the Parsis attitude to the imminent Partition and the concept of Swaraj. Set in pre-partition Lahore, the novel highlights vulnerability of human relationships. Here again, the Parsis find it difficult to decide whether to support the Swaraj or to continue their loyalty to the British Raj. At a special meeting organized at the temple hall on Warris Road, an acrimonious debate on the political situation takes place. Col. Bharucha advises the Parsis to keep away from the nationalist agitation. Dr. Mody, however, pleads for involvement in the freedom struggle for the simple reason that our neighbours will think we are betraying them and siding with the English (Ice-Candy-Man 37). On the initiative of the banker, Toddywalla, they resolve to follow their time-tested path of compromise and adaptability. Bapsi Sidhwa in Ice-Candy- Man describes Jashan prayer which the Parsis of Lahore celebrate on British victory in World War II in all its details. The occasion is marked by all the sacred rituals pertaining to the holding of thanksgiving ceremony. In An American Brat, Zoroastrianism operates explicitly. The heightened consciousness of Feroza is the outcome of expatriation. She thinks that only the New World ensures happiness coupled with freedom and, therefore, she opts for it. Though there is a change in the external mode, her inner self remains typically Zoroastrian. Thus her survival in the new habitat is due to her success in preserving her ethnic identity. Feroza is a typical migrant who practises the value of adaptability. She takes the idea of adaptability to the point of consummation. Thus for Feroza, the chosen land (America) provides an adequate social space to grow, whereas Zoroastrianism continues to provide enough emotional and religious

8 163 space. Most of the Parsi characters in the novels of Bapsi Sidhwa have strong faith in their religion. To visit a Fire Temple or an Agyari which is a dark, cold and tranquil place preserving its quiet atmosphere even in the middle of the busiest, most-crowded city streets, is more of a personal act of devotion than a compulsion. Feroza, the protagonist of An American Brat, observes the rituals of her religion with devotion, but she is not a zealot and has liberal conception of her religion. She had a comfortable relationship with the faith she was born into (Sidhwa, An American Brat 40). Before leaving for America, she visits agyari where she is fascinated by the atash, the sacred fire. Feroza is enthralled to see the priest who was luminous in a froth of starched white robes and was making the offering of sandalwood to the fire from a long-handled silver ladle (An American Brat 41). Feroza s experience at the fire temple shows her commitment to Parsi rituals and her deep attachment to them: Feroza whispered her prayers and gazed devoutly at the small flames licking the crisscross of sandalwood, and, suddenly, she felt the spiritual power of the fire reach out from its divine depths to encompass her with its pure energy. She was at once buoyant, fearless, secure in her humanity. And as the lucid flame of the holy vision illumed her mind and was absorbed into her heart, she felt herself being suffused with God s presence. She felt He was speaking to her, acknowledging her prayers (An American Brat 42). When Feroza is trapped in the fire escape of YMCA, she instinctively recites Kemna Mazda prayers: Who shall protect us when the vengeful harm of the wicked threatens us but Thee, O Mazda! May the Evil utterly vanish and never destroy Your Creation... (An American Brat 90). She, in desperation, repeats the one hundred and one names of Ahura Mazda: One Who Relieves Pain and Suffering, The Lord of Desire, The Causeless Cause, The Cause of Everything, The Creator of All That is Spiritual, The Undeceived, The Forgiving... (An American Brat 90-91). Her instinctive return to the liturgy of her religion shows that despite her modern outlook, she has inculcated a deep attachment towards her religion. She reverts to its unfathomable resources when there is no human help possible. In addition to this, the controversial issue of the prohibition of inter-community marriages among the Parsis is elaborately examined in An American Brat. Mixed marriage is

9 164 one of the challenges which the microscopic Zoroastrian community confronts today. Parsis are not allowed to marry outside their community because Zoroastrianism emphasises the need for preserving the ethnic purity. According to Zoroastrianism, children born to people who marry outside the community will be misfits. Bapsi Sidhwa describes the Zoroastrian belief in An American Brat in detail: Once a Parsee-Zoroastrian marries a non-zoroastrian, he or she is deemed to have renounced the faith and ceases to be a Parsee-Zoroastrian. The laws of purity of the Zoroastrian faith forbid inter-marriages, as mixing physical and spiritual genes is considered a cardinal crime against nature. Hence, he or she does not have any communal or religious rights or privileges (An American Brat 305). And moreover surprisingly the Parsi community that prides itself as westernized and liberated community is in fact not so liberal. Sidhwa portrays Parsi community s traditional dictum of double standards one for the man, another for the woman especially when it is the question of inter-faith marriage. Man s inter-faith marriage is acceptable and the children born out of this wedlock are accepted into the Parsi fold. But if a woman marries a non-parsi, she is an outcast and debarred from community and even from their temple Agyari. The Parsis are fundamentalists to the core so far as inter-faith marriage of Parsi women is concerned and the priests are not prepared to move with the times even when the community is dwindling. Sidhwa portrays this paradoxical situation of social life of the community where women, though considered equal, are, in fact, not allowed any kind of freedom or choice in this matter. Thus in the novels of Sidhwa, we find that there is sometimes a clash also between Parsi identity and mainstream Indian identity. This conflict produces a sense of insecurity which leads to further consolidation of identity syndrome in Parsis. Due to this clash Parsis are believed to have a strong sense of group identity and cohesiveness. Alongwith it, there are deep rooted reasons behind this desire for distinctiveness in communities. The first reason of it is that all communities struggle to maintain an identity of their own through ethnic practices and rites related to birth and burial as a means to connect themselves with a rich and glorious past. Their cherishing of this imaginary glorious past gives them a sense of satisfaction and superiority. The second reason for trying to attain a distinct identity may be that a minority community carries within it the unconscious fear of the majority community and this fear of losing themselves in the majority space makes them stick to their cultural

10 165 rituals and rites with greater force. This fear particularly takes deep roots in a community that is endangered due to decrease in its numbers. This fear of loss of identity is not only inter-cultural but also intra-cultural. While the young members of the community remain in dilemma about past and future, roots and novelty, old and new life styles, the elders remain more conscious about their ethnic and cultural roots. The seniors expect the new generation to follow the traditional cultural and religious paths and preserve their ethnic identity while the young ones object it on the grounds of out of sync with the times and irrationality and advocate, by and large, cultural adaptability. At the same moment, we find that if Parsis try to maintain their unique culture through the observance of rituals and maintaining the right of entry to their religion closed for other communities, there is perceptible adoption of the beliefs, customs and value system of other cultures existing with them. In An American Brat, if the concern for maintaining the unique identity is one of the major driving force of Parsi community, there is other, though less perceptible, urge which takes concrete from due to the close proximity of living in a multicultural milieu. Bapsi Sidhwa s novelistic space provides excellent ground for these contesting claims between identity, multiculturalism and generational clashes and as a writer she is not limited by them rather her novels are enriched by all these complexities and contraries. The Crow Eaters breaks new grounds as it portrays the Parsi community for the first time in literature with candid irony and humour. Sidhwa tells David Montenegro that she faced several difficulties from the community at Lahore when the book was launched: The book launch took place at an international hotel in Lahore and since there are not so many books written in English launched it was quite a function.... And there was a bomb threat which subsequently I realized was from a Parsi who felt very strongly about the book. It took me some time to realize the turmoil the book had created within the community. They thought I was revealing secrets that I had no business giving out... they felt I was damaging the image... they felt threatened by it, although it was written out of great affection (Interview by Montenegro 33). Though she has been accused of being unfair to the Parsis by her own community, Bapsi Sidhwa has done a great service to them by showcasing the different aspects of their life in her novels. The view of life of Bapsi Sidhwa is expansive. Human foibles and follies

11 166 are treated with tolerance and mild corrective irony. Reacting to the charge of unfair portrayal, Sidhwa makes candid admission about her own community, The Parsis are no angels by any means. One sees their strengths, weakness and strength of their women (Interview by Chelva 46). Sidhwa neither glorifies nor vilifies Parsi life and community. What Bapsi Sidhwa attempts to establish is that the Parsi community is like any other community with its own strengths and weaknesses. She does not exalt the community, but only places Parsi life in perspective. She offers a rich insider s insight into Parsi life. Sidhwa s vision is ironic which reveals her moral preoccupations. As a writer firmly rooted in Parsi consciousness, Sidhwa explores both the superficial and the profound dimension of the comic mode, conveying in the process, the diversity and complexity of life. She has not only presented the various aspects of Parsi life but also provided the non-parsi world with a better understanding of their ways of life, their faith and values. She has, thus, fulfilled M.G. Vassanji s concept of the essential role of the writer as a preserver of the collective tradition, a folk-historian and myth-maker (63). Bapsi Sidhwa has been highly regarded as a feminist post-colonial author who effectively addresses the issues of cultural difference and the place of women in Indian and Pakistani society. Critics have noted both The Pakistani Bride and An American Brat for their examinations of cultural conflict and their strong characterizations. The western feminist literature has influenced Sidhwa greatly. Though by using English as her medium of expression, Sidhwa indubitably belongs to an elite circle, yet she is able to give voice to the marginalized figures of Pakistani society, mainly women. She poses a strong counter-voice to the dominant patriarchal narrative which has subdued women s roles to the absolute minimum, through silencing female literature in one form or the other. She rigorously questions the histories and the assumptions of contemporary Pakistani society and literature. The acidic attack on a number of biases and beliefs against women is somewhat softened by her candid and wry humour which pervades a substantial amount of her work. Oppression of and discrimination against women is a recurrent motif in Bapsi Sidhwa s fiction. In The Pakistani Bride, Sidhwa protests against male dominance and oppression of women. The Pakistani Bride is a tragic story of the interaction of two different cultural paradigms the patriarchal mountainous tribe and the westernized urban plain. The novel is based on a true story and highlights the plight of women in the patriarchal society of

12 167 Pakistan where they are worse than slaves. They are supposed to cater to every whim and desire of men. Men are so tyrannical that they abuse and beat even their mothers. Sakhi hits his old mother with a stick on her shoulder and legs when she tries to stop him from beating the ox. When Zaitoon intervenes, he strikes her on the thighs and head, shouting, you are my woman! I ll teach you to obey me! (Sidhwa, The Pakistani Bride ) The protagonist Zaitoon s struggle is for autonomy and an identity of her own. She is pitted against a hostile environment and with sheer will power and grit is able to overcome obstacles strewn in her path. She is ultimately protected and saved, which suggests that an awesome, ancient, natural order combined with a young girl s defiant spirit can overcome the oppressive shackles of a conspiracy of men (Abrioux 70). Along with Zaitoon, Carol, an American girl in The Pakistani Bride, married to a Pakistani army officer is equally oppressed in her relationship. In Carol, Sidhwa reveals the pangs of a western, upper-class woman in the maledominated society. But since the means of resistance are more easily available to her due to her privileged class and race identity, she decides to break free. Carol s story nicely complements Zaitoon s and viewed together they help to convey the author s view of the status of women in the novel. Likewise, Ayah who becomes a victim to the lust of men during the Partition riots in Ice-Candy-Man is another victim-figure. Ayah is the highly victimised woman who suffers excruciating pain and agony at the hands of the mob that tears her apart. As if this physical abuse by the mob is not enough, the Ice-Candy-Man clinches her lot by condemning her to prostitution. Oppression of women, which is central to the narrative in The Pakistani Bride is dealt with in An American Brat also, however briefly. If poverty, sickness and fundamentalism in Pakistan are disgusting, the status granted to and enjoyed by women is even more disturbing. This novel is deeply concerned with gender inequalities and oppressive practices under Islamic rule in Pakistan. Sidhwa strongly condemns the Hadood ordinances and the Zina ordinance introduced by General Zia which devalue woman to the level of a commodity. These were grossly unfair to women and often perpetuated crimes against them by enabling the male offender to go free while the female victim was punished. Also women who had enjoyed equal witness status under the previous law were discounted by fifty percent under the new laws. This novel also discusses the closed attitude of the Parsi community which does not permit Parsis to marry non-parsis and which excommunicates any woman

13 168 who marries a non while permitting a man to remain within the community even if he marries a non. Sidhwa is concerned with the way women are treated by the faith which seems biased and unfair. Sidhwa feels that Parsi community must move with the time and permit equal rights to the women who marry outside the community. As a feminist and scriptwriter of Water, Bapsi Sidhwa exposes the inherent indifference, fatalism and violence latent in orthodox Hinduism. Water is all about Indian widows in the 1930s and how they were made to live in the widow houses. Bapsi throws light on exploitation of widows by rich Brahmins in this novel. Throughout Water, Bapsi exposes the cruelty of Hinduism against widows and shows how they are dragged into prostitution. It is not that Bapsi is rejecting Hinduism as a respectable religion. She merely raises the right questions since she wants to empower with the means to help those widows who till this day, suffer in same conditions described in the novel. Thus we find that in almost every novel, Bapsi Sidhwa has very realistically illustrated women s plight and exploitation in the patriarchal society. Men establish their masculine powers and hence fulfil their desires by brutally assaulting women. Men as aggressors feel elated and victorious whereas women endure the pain and humiliation of the barbarity enacted upon them. Sidhwa adds a new dimension to the feminist perspective by pointing out that women may be harassed and exploited not only by men but also by other women. In Ice-Candy-Man, Slavesister is shabbily treated and frequently humiliated by her elder sister, Godmother Rodabai. She leads the life of a bonded slave in her own family. In An American Brat it is Feroza s mother who causes her unhappiness. Sidhwa never preaches about feminism as such but the events in her novels speak a lot about it. Sidhwa, as a novelist, undoubtedly, talks of emancipation of women. As Sidhwa is in her real life, so are her women characters in her fictional world. They are fairly beautiful, intelligent, modest but strong willed, and courageous. They try to cope with the parental, societal and cultural pressure in their life as much as they can but when they find their very life or identity in danger, they throw off all shackles and fight with full force to foil the foul attempts of their adversary. Their tactics vary with the nature and strength of their opponent. Bapsi Sidhwa s protagonists are mainly women and they invariably win against men in their struggle for survival and honour. In The Crow Eaters,

14 169 Jerbanoo outlives her tormentor, Faredoon Junglewalla. Zaitoon in The Pakistani Bride manages to save her life despite the looming threat. In the same novel, Carol, an American girl who is equally oppressed in her married life, decides to break free and returns to her own American culture. In the same way, Ayah in Ice-Candy-Man is liberated from the Hira Mandi, a notorious place for prostitution and sent back to her family in Amritsar. An American Brat shows that the protagonist Feroza in spite of enormous pressure of her family to return to Lahore and her failure in her first love, decides to settle in America. And Chuyia, too, is escaped in the end of the Water. Thus we see that Sidhwa s women are strong-willed, assertive and courageous. They resolve their crisis in their own way. Though men in her novels are finally humiliated or rejected, Sidhwa is never antimale. Sakhi and Ice-Candy-Man are the two most unpleasant characters in her fiction but they too are not villains. Sakhi s brutality and Ice-Candy-Man s cunningness are hereditary and environmental traits. Hence, we find that Sidhwa is a very optimistic writer. She loves life in spite of all its ugliness, brutality and horror. In the original story on which The Pakistani Bride is based, the girl is killed but Sidhwa makes Zaitoon survive. She seems to give a positive message to women that life must be preserved under any circumstances since one can fight oppression only when one is alive. It is noteworthy that no woman character dies in any of her novels. Freddy in The Crow-Eaters tries to kill Jerbanoo by setting fire to his house but she is rescued by the fireman. Ayah in Ice-Candy-Man and Feroza in An American Brat face a lot of sufferings in their personal lives but they never lose heart and ultimately they win. Sidhwa indirectly seems to advise women to fight against the injustice, exploitation and oppression. Partition is Sidhwa s another favourite theme which finds explicit expression in all of her novels except An American Brat. It is briefly suggested at the end of The Crow Eaters and in the beginning of The Pakistani Bride. However, it is in Ice-Candy-Man that it forms the main theme of novel. There have been a number of novels written on the horrors of the Partition but Sidhwa s treatment is altogether different. It is the first novel written on Partition from a Parsi perspective and is therefore, more objective than Khushwant Singh s A Train to Pakistan, Manohar Malgonkar s A Bend in the Ganges, Chaman Nahal s Azadi and Mehr Nigar Masroor s Shadows of Time. This novel is the most moving and essential book on the Indian Partition. Told from the awakening consciousness of an observant, an

15 170 eight-year-old Parsi girl, the violence of the Partition threatens to collapse her previously idyllic world. The issues dealt within the book are as numerous as they are horrifying. The novel highlights the changes wrought upon the destiny of the individuals by one of the cruellest movement of population in modern times caused by the Partition of India in The Partition led to the outburst of communal riots and thousands of people lost their valuables and even lives. Thousands were rendered homeless and rootless overnight. Friends turned foes overnight and their individual relationships were sucked by the ebbing surge of communal feelings and religious fanaticism. It also shows how the dehumanizing effects of communalism reduced human beings to the level of hunting beasts who drenched themselves in the blood of their own fellow beings. In one of her infrequent bursts of poetry, Sidhwa writes, Despite the residue of passion and regret, and loss of those who have in panic fled the fire could not have burned for Despite all the ruptured dreams, broken lives, buried gold, bricked-in rupees, secreted jewellery, lingering hopes... the fire could not have burned for months and months... (Ice-Candy-Man 139). Sidhwa replaces flowing, poetic sentences with forceful criticism when she theorizes about what kept burning. Sidhwa repeatedly condemns the dehumanizing impact that religious zealotry played in promoting mob mentality, separation and revenge during the Partition. Thus, we see that this extremely taut and highly sensitive story takes up the themes of communal tensions arising out of using religion as a way to define individual identity, territorial cravings, political opportunism, power and love. It also presents the Parsi dilemma of retaining allegiance to political masters, as well as a Parsi-Pakistani perspective of Partition. She purports to present an alternative picture of the Partition. She declares her purpose to subvert the accepted notions about the events and people considered responsible for Partition. Bapsi Sidhwa rejects the British and pro-hindu Indian versions of history. She subverts the popular myth about Partition, which was nursed and cherished by people on either side of the border in the subcontinent. From the point of Bapsi Sidhwa, Partition was the result of British policies of divide and rule, Gandhi s mixing of religion and politics and Nehru s Prime-ministerial ambitions. Bapsi Sidhwa says that Muslim League and Jinnah have been presented in the books of Indian and British scholars in a biased manner and she wants to rectify this misrepresentation. Sidhwa s presentation of Gandhi, Nehru, Patel and Master Tara Singh as the architects of Partition and excusing Jinnah paves way for an alternate view of reality. Sidhwa s assessment of Jinnah s

16 171 role in the freedom movement is also noticeable. She is of the view that British have been less than fair to him as well as to Pakistan. Bapsi Sidhwa s portrayal of Gandhi is too radical to miss. She squarely blames Gandhi for the Partition, while not caring to remember that the strongest opposition to the idea of Partition came from Gandhi himself. While the detractors of Gandhi exploit his mixing of religion and politics, they just as easily forget that for Gandhi all religions were equal and his prayers used to contain hymns from the sacred texts of all faiths. Although in her interviews she claims to have deepest respect for Gandhi it doesn t translate into words on the pages of her novels and thus her praise for Gandhi seems to be nothing more than lip service to ward off criticism on that account. The analysis of the political leadership during the Partition days by Sidhwa is subjective and at times even prejudiced. Bapsi says that Nehru has got preferential treatment because he was young and handsome and more importantly, he was a favourite of the Mountbattens. The contrast between Nehru and Jinnah is seen as the opposition between superficiality and worth, the appearance and reality. The charm of Nehru is presented as deceptive while the austerity of Jinnah is seen as his virtue. Here the writer sheds all the pretensions of using Lenny as an objective narrator, and uses her authorial voice directly to stress the disparity between Nehru and Jinnah. Although there are so many flaws and inaccuracies in Ice-Candy-Man it stands apart in its rendering of the theme of Partition. Without histrionics or preaching, Sidhwa s novel communicates her desire that one should learn lessons from history. In her interview with Julie Rajan she comments, If we are not going to learn lessons, we are doomed to repeat our evils. Historically people have gone on fighting each other for religion, for land, for women, for position for greed and those elements prevail still. Man s nature has not changed but one can try, and hope it will (qtd. in Gaur 13). The subject of expatriate experience has engaged the attention of many Asian and African writers. Some of the Indian women novelists like Anita Desai, Kamla Markandaya and Bharti Mukherji explored this theme in some of their novels before Sidhwa. In their novels the protagonists suffer from racial prejudice or from the problem of adjustment whereas in An American Brat Feroza s unhappiness is mainly caused by her own family. Besides this, Sidhwa has added a new dimension to the theme of expatriate experience by

17 172 exploring the cultural differences which make a person alienated even in his own country. Qasim in The Pakistani Bride and Ayah in Ice-Candy-Man have such feelings. Bapsi Sidhwa in all her novels has taken up the issue of the cultural difference and the problems arising out of it. But the issue of the cultural difference moves from periphery to centre mainly in Sidhwa s fourth novel, An American Brat. This novel basically deals with the intercultural theme which has assumed vital significance for many postcolonial novelists. An American Brat is the story of a young woman who journeys through three cultures her own community s Parsi culture, her country Pakistan s Islamic culture and the western culture of the United States of America. The novel talks specifically of Feroza s understanding of her own and other cultures that distance offers. Feroza s passage to America, her education in life and her transformation into a mature young woman form the kernel of the novel. The novel deals with the change that Feroza undergoes in the West and how her perspective on life changes. Paradoxically, Feroza s parents are apprehensive about Feroza following the conservative Islamic code. She is deeply influenced by the Islamic life-style and does not like her mother s dress of sleeveless blouse and saree. The parents find her conservative which threatens their liberal westernized way of living. They send her away to America to broaden her mind and expose her to a western life-style. In this New World of America, Feroza acquires not only a free way of living but also falls in love with an American Jew. And when Feroza decides to marry David, her mother Zareen sets out for America to dissuade her daughter from marrying a non-parsi. Zareen feels that Feroza s marriage to a non-parsi would be nothing less than cultural suicide. Conversion is not permitted among Parsis and a Parsi girl marrying outside the faith is expelled from the Zoroastrian religious community. She can no longer practice her religion and is no longer considered a Parsi. Zareen s emphasis on the difference between the Zoroastrian and Jewish cultures frightens David away from Feroza. When Zareen insists on fulfilling her traditional obligations by giving fabulous gifts to David s relatives and making the marriage a big affair, David feels compelled to defend his position. He tells that a Jewish marriage is an equally elaborate affair:

18 173 My parents aren t happy about the marriage, either. It s lucky they re Reform Jews, otherwise they d go into mourning and pretend I was dead. We have Jewish customs, you know. My family will miss my getting married under a canopy by our rabbi. We have a great dinner and there s a table with twenty or thirty different kinds of desserts, cake, and fruit. Then there s dancing until late at night.... I belong to an old tradition, too (An American Brat 298). It finally becomes clear to him that Feroza s culture is entirely different from his and he cannot adjust himself to it. Now his feelings for Feroza undergo a change. Her exoticism which once attracted him to her, now frightens him. He decides to get out of her life. He gets a job in California and finally leaves Denver and Feroza as well. Though Feroza feels shocked, insecure and uprooted for some time but she soon bounces back. She decides not to go back home but live in America and face life directly. With David turning away from her, Feroza finds herself depressed and frustrated, and tries to find comfort in her tradition, culture and faith. Her interest in her faith is renewed and she is determined to follow her faith. She is now confident of choosing the right man as her husband though he may or may not belong to her own faith. For her there is no going back to Pakistan. She would live a free life of a bird and would not be bound by the unjust rules of her community. It is the new mature Feroza who fully understands her predicament and the way to resolve it. Thus Sidhwa shows that Feroza s varied experiences in an alien culture transforms her completely and she becomes assertive and self-confident. Hence we find that in An American Brat, the conflict between the two cultures is discernible not only on the social plane but also on the personal level leading to a quest for identity. Bapsi Sidhwa shows keen interest in the interaction of two cultures that exist side by side. The Zoroastrian mode of life of Feroza, the Parsi protagonist, clashes with the modern American way of life with its emphasis on material prosperity. The resultant conflict compels her to make a moral choice in her life. And Feroza s mental turmoil typifies the predicament of the modern multicultural society. She also represents the youngsters, especially the expatriate ones, striving hard to strike a balance between tradition and modernity, past and present, dependence and freedom. While flying and falling alternately, they are trying to soar to the state of being self contained from where there is no falling.

19 174 Thus Bapsi Sidhwa draws her subjects from widely different aspects of life. She has dealt with issues ranging from history to contemporary reality. Ironic but objective portrayal of the Parsi community, oppression of women, religious fundamentalism, unjust evaluation of historical events, cultural difference weave different kinds of thematic patterns in her novels. She is a realist and she portrays life as she knows it. She does not provide unnecessary details and even avoids passing judgement on her characters. But she always sympathises with her characters in their trials and tribulations in her works. She is not a didactic writer who preaches about anything but undoubtedly she is a good moralist. Her humorous tone, irreverence to established traditions, sense of fair play, subtle characterization and taut presentation of events impart a very specific charm to her novels. The fact that her novels have been translated into several languages and published in numerous European and Asian countries shows her popularity across the world and also the adaptability of her art. Though her literary output is meagre, she holds a very special place among contemporary writers of English fiction in the subcontinent.

20 175 WORKS CITED Abrioux, Cynthia. A Study of the Step-father and the Stranger in the Pakistani Novel The Bride by Bapsi Sidhwa. Commonwealth Essays and Studies 13.1 (Autumn 1990): Print. Gaur, Rashmi. Bapsi Sidhwa : Life and Works. Bapsi Sidhwa s Ice-Candy-Man: A Reader s Companion. Ed. Rashmi Gaur. New Delhi: Asia Book Club, Print. Sidhwa, Bapsi. An American Brat. New Delhi: Penguin, Print Ice-Candy-Man. New Delhi: Penguin, Print Interview by Chelva Kanaganayakam. The Toronto South Asian Review 2.1 (Summer 1992): Print Interview by David Montenegro. Points of Departure: International Writers on Writing and Politics. Michigan: U of Michigan P, Print The Crow Eaters. New Delhi: Penguin, Print The Pakistani Bride. New Delhi: Penguin, Print. Vassanji, M.G. The Postcolonial Writer: Myth Maker and Folk Historian. A Meeting of Streams: South Asian Canadian Literature. Ed. M.G. Vassanji. Toronto: TSAR Publication, Print. Yadav, Jyoti. Affirming Parsi Identity in a Multicultural World: A Study of Bapsi Sidhwa s The Crow Eaters, Ice-Candy-Man and An American Brat. Oasis: A Half Yearly Periodical of English Language and Literature 1.1 (June 2009): Print. ######