Narrative techniques used by Raja Rao

Here is my presentation attached with the link
https://www.slideshare.net/HemaGoswami1/hemas-presentation-on-kanthapura

1. 1. Kanthapura By Raja Rao
2. 2. • Raja Rao was an Indian writer of English language. • He was born on 8 November, 1908 and died on 8 July 2006. • Raja Rao is a novelist of philosophical consciousness. • Born in brahmin, he is aware of his brahminical obligations.
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4. 3. • Raja Rao’s first novel Kanthapura was published in 1938, mainly portrays the freedom movement launched by Mahatma Gandhi in the 1920s to liberate India from the imperialistic hegemony of the British. • The novelist sympathetically explores the Gandhian values of loving one’s enemies, non-violence and abolition of untouchability.
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6. 4. RAJA RAO’S USE OF NARRATIVE TECHNIQUES IN KANTHAPURA Raja rao’s Kanthapura is a triumph of narrative art. Straightforward and chronological- the narration is straightforward and chronological, there is no backward and forward movement as we found in a stream of conscious novel.
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8. 5.  Use of persona Raja Rao makes effective use of persona (imagined character) called Achakka. So it means that the tale has not been narrated by the novelist himself. This device of narration followed by many novelist like Joseph Conrad in Lord jim and Kamala markandya also used but no one get such success which Raja rao got.
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10. 6. The advantage of the choice of persona Fact and Myth  Making Achakka the narrator enable Raja Rao to mingle fact and myth. For the old woman Jawaharlal is a Bharata to the Mahatma. The mahatma who,she believes, will slay Ravana so that Sita may be freed. For her Gandhi has attained the status of God and Moorthy is regarded as his avtar in Kanthapura. To her Satyagraha has become a religious ceremony.
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12. 7. The manner of narration • Achakka’s manner of telling the tale is characteristically Indian. • The telling of the story gives the whole affair an ithihasik- at least a PURANIC dignity. • There are rhythmic chains of proper names like Rachanna and Chandranna and Mandanna; Satamma and Rangamma and Puttamma and Seethamma. • There is nevertheless consummate art in all this riot of artlessness
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14. 8. Narration: Dramatic and Varied • The narration is dramatic, it varies according to the requirements of the action and the situation. • The language, the accent, the tone, the tempo, constantly keep changing. • The life on the coffee estate, the crucidities and vulgarities of the Red-man, the sickness that broke them and the violation of women’s honor- all have been portrayed most vividly to the last details of credibility
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16. 9. Use of suspense • Suspense and anxiety of villagers to see Moorthy when he released from jail have been adequately conveyed. “ And hearts began to beat and yet we saw no Moorthy, and yet no Moorthy, and yet not a hair of his head was seen……….” The suspense is that if really Moorthy was released then where he gone, so was it the true news or just a rumour.
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18. 10. • Visualization Achakka is garrulous and when she conveyed large events she liberally picked up epithets and images, so we should say we visualised the way she narrated the picketing and Satyagraha. Even the large numbers of coolies who comes out of coffee estate is conveyed through multiplicity of images and epithets.
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20. 11. • Poetry Sheer poetry comes out of the narrator’s lips. She sung the song of coming of Kartik- “ Kartik has come to Kanthapura…….with the glow of lights and the unpressed footsteps of the wandering Gods…… In such passage narrator becomes an inspired poet.
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22. 12. Conclusion In this way we can say that Raja Rao makes effective use of narrative style. The act of villagers are transformed into a Gandhian epic instead of remaining merely a sthala puran or regional novel.