Chapter Six Conclusions • Chapter VI
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Chapter Six Conclusions • Chapter VI Conclusions Why do people write autobiographies? One can understand why biographies or even travelogues are written. A biography studies a life from outside and a travelogue is essentially a depiction of experiences and encounters with places and people unknown, often from out of a tourist interest of curiosity and wanderlust. Not so with an autobiography. Autobiographies from non-literary fields like politics, science, education, administration Eire firmly specific in their frame of reference. However, autobiographies of literary figures become more inclusive, comprehensive as literature touches all. There is an image of the social, cultural, aesthetic, regional, religious, familial life of the writer revealing eventually the factors that went into his/her making as a writer. A writer's autobiography is then, a very human document, whatever motives it may have been written with. Often the evidence of this "making" is reflected in the literary creation itself The autobiographical novel is evidence in support. When some writer was asked why he did not write an autobiography he promptly quipped, "What else have I done in my writings?" Does the economic status decide the approach? Except for Khushwant Singh and Dom Moraes who came from wealthy families, the other four writers faced financial problems. Khushwant Singh and Amrita Pritam are models of what may be called "Punjabiat", with a life- loving, fun-fond, care-free, liberal, sensuous or even sexual—approach to life and times. R. K. Narayan, on the other hand, has the genes of a god-fearing, straight laced middle class, tradition- loving Brahmin. The framework of such a life is firmly marked and adhered to. Bachchan's is an elitist, proud, self-conscious, self-portrait. Dom Moraes lived life of a nomad. His rather harsh 230 opinions about India, his excessive love for England made him a controversial figure. However, as a journalist he had done many adventurous assignments which any contemporary Indian has ever done. Baby Kamble hails from a different world altogether. She does not demand sympathy or denounce the way the upper castes crushed or demeaned her. No shrill curses, no temper tantrums than often mark Dalit writing. The rather derogatory term, "Narcissistic" has crept in the discussion in the core chapters above. However, it is not meant to be so in the present context, because if there is no self-love, autobiographies may not be written at all: Here I am, someone among many. I have dominated the field I worked in and my contribution cannot be neglected. The world has to take cognizance of my existence, without which an understanding of its own self will not be complete. Thus, I am more than an individual; I am an institution in myself! This may be the psychology -or philosophy— behind the self-love. But, then, howsoever towering the self may be, it has to exist within a frame of reference which has social, economic, political and such dimensions. A life cannot exist significantly without being spent in some space and time marked by social particulars. Thus a creator of time becomes a creature of time also. The present study has tried to investigate into this process of being and becoming with reference to six creative lives. Taken together, they compose the mosaic of India with its multiple diversity. It is a portrait of India. They represent different languages, different regions, different religions, and different familial and sociocultural backgrounds. Bachchan, Khushwant Singh and Amrita Pritam hail from the North while R. K. Narayan represents the South in all its 231 finer shades. Baby Kamble and to some extent Dom Moraes, belong to Maharashtra, the central region of India. Certain similarities and differences are observed in the life and the writings of these writers. First the similarities in their life are discussed. R. K. Narayan and Khushwant Singh spent their early childhood with their grandmothers, R. K. Narayan, with his maternal grandmother and Khushwant Singh with his paternal one. They show a deep influence of these significant years. They had big families and there was a complex bond of relationship. Both R. K. Narayan and Khushwant Singh were supported by their families. After her mother's death Amrita was brought up by her father in strict conditions for a girl imposed by traditional Punjabi society. She could not free herself for a long time. It was only after she came to Delhi that she got chance to live a free life, and to meet new poets and friends. She also had the company of her grandmother. Harivansh Rai Bachchan also lived in a big family with younger brother, sisters, uncles and aunts and grandmother Radha Bua. Though he writes about his ancestors and his family, he went away from it and lived his life in his own way. Later, when he married Teji, a Punjabi girl, he buih his nest away from the society which did not accept his marriage. Dom's was a 'nuclear family' in the real sense of the term. Even in his house where they were only three people, there was no emotional bonding among them as seen in Indian families. His was a 'broken home' due not only to his mentally disturbed mother but also due to his father's global assignments away from home for many days together. It is but natural that his memories of 'home' are associated with servants and his pets. However, Dom Moraes refers to his paternal grandfather who taught him Latin and he liked his grandfather at that time. Babytai spent her childhood with her grandparents as a pampered grandchild. Hers was also a big family. 232 None of these writers were scholars at school or college and faced failures. Babytai even did not matriculate. However, they were voracious readers and read widely from childhood. Narayan's head master father had a good personal library and his school also had a good collection of books. Narayan took full advantage of it. Later in the Maharaja's College, he got chance to enter the college library. Khushwant Singh became an ardent lover of English language in schooldays. Afterwards he became a good reader and read almost every book came in his hands. He loved English poetry very much and memorized many poems by heart. Hariwansh Rai Bachchan was a poet through and through. From his school days he read a lot: books, journals such as Saraswati, Young India, Nav Jeevan etc. He cultivated his Hindi and very early became a part of the Hindi literary world. Being a lonely child Dom Moraes took to reading and read at home as well as in the R. A. library. Babytai also borrowed books from library and read them sitting in their shop. This helped them to develop their style and the effect of their reading is certainly reflected in their writing. Almost all the writers referred to in this research work experienced the pre- Independence era, its restlessness and the post- Independence crisis of the free India. Every writer expressed it differently. R. K. Narayan gives only some references from his childhood, when he participated in a procession with his friends leaving the school and was reprimanded by his maternal uncle and the headmaster. Khushwant Singh, as a college student, gave slogans 'Bharat Mata ki Jai! Bhagat Singh ki Jai!' in his college, ran by Christians. Hariwansh Rai left his education in the middle as he was influenced by the freedom movement. Dom Moraes ignored all the major events of the struggle for freedom of India as he did not think himself as an Indian at that time. At one place in My Son's Father he says, "I had no real consciousness of a nationality." (p. 100) Amrita gives only some passing remarks. But she is a witness to the Partition and expresses it 233 emphatically in her writing. Baby Kamble was deeply influenced by the thoughts of Babasaheb Ambedkar. She and her community started to taste the fruits of freedom from caste consciousness, and exploitation by the so called high caste. She also has not mentioned freedom of India in the true sense of the term. None of the writers selected here discusses politics or writes in favour of any politician or any political party although all of them have witnessed the freedom struggle and are associated with politicians as friends. Among them R. K. Narayan, Khushwant Singh, Amrita Pritam and Hariwansh Rai Bachchan are selected as members of Rajya Sabha. All of them and Dom Moraes, who has writen biography of Indira Gandhi have good relations with many well-known politicians. Khushwant Singh has worked as a diplomat in Indian embassies in countries such as UK, Canada and was familiar with many diplomats and politicians. Rai Bachchan has family relations with the Nehrus and later Indira Gandhi. They are self-willed, self-styled. R. K. Narayan, Khushwant Singh and Hariwansh Rai Bachchan do not have any literary background. Baby Kamble does not even have literacy in her family. Amrita Pritam's father was a poet, he taught her first metrical composition. Though at first she writes according to her father's wish, she breaks the shackles and writes boldly. Dom Moraes has got the legacy of writing as his father was a well- known journalist and author. However, Dom finds his own way as his is the genius of a poet and though he has suffered from the disappearance of the Muse, he waits long for the return of the Muse. All of them have sought their way to success meticulously and have achieved their place in literary world and in the contemporary society.