Crime, Power in Subcontinent: Moth Smoke & The God of Small Things

Abstract

Misuse of power and authority is a very dangerous dilemma of mankind. The class system is the main reason behind this uneven distribution of power among upper and lower class. As Karl Marx divides it into two classes, first one is upper class which is called the Bourgeoisie and second class Is The proletariat. This paper is an attempt to explore the connection between crime and power in the subcontinent. This paper explores debut novels of Mohsin Hamid and Arundhati Roy to discuss in detail about this issue by having two perspectives. In Moth Smoke (2000) written by Mohsin Hamid, the perspective of Pakistani people will be seen. On the other hand, in The God of Small Things (1997) written by Arundhati Roy will present the Indian view of this class system and power misuse. The paper analyzes these two novels through the lens of Marxist theory. According to Karl Marx, the biggest crime is to exploit the rights of the working class or lower class. In this paper, the exploitation of lower class or poor people will be discussed in detail. The paper addresses the Marxist criminological perspective where the judicial system also supports the upper class and works against the lower class. The law also favors the powerful and is bias towards them and works against the powerless. In both novels lower-class people are used as scapegoats and they are sacrificed for elite class. This Marxist criminology and power distinction disturb the balance of country and economy. The main purpose of this paper is to put forward the oppression and exploitation happening in both India and Pakistan. Both of these novels have portrayed the human complexities and dilemmas and the plight of lower-class people and these aspects will be analyzed under the light of the Marxist theory, particularly Marxist criminology.

Introduction

Arundhati Roy is a critically acclaimed Indian writer who received immense popularity and reputation in the field of English Postcolonial Literature. Her debut novel The God of Small Things was well-received among readers as well as critics. She won the Booker prize for her novel and bagged huge acclaim all over the world for presenting the harsh realities and complexities of Indian society. In The God of Small Things, Roy explores the relationship between the owners of factory and their employees. Chacko who is the boss of the factory uses his power against his employee Velutha when he finds out that Velutha is against the capitalist system and wants to revolt against them.

Save your time!
We can take care of your essay

• Proper editing and formatting
• Free revision, title page, and bibliography
• Flexible prices and money-back guarantee

Place an order

Mohsin Hamid is a Pakistani writer who also bagged immense popularity for his depiction of the socio-political situation of society in Pakistan. His other works such as The Reluctant Fundamentalist and How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia also deal with the issues of class system, exploitation and globalization. Both these writers sketched their characters and constructed their plot according to the Marxist theory. In Moth Smoke, Hamid explores the equation between Aurangzeb who is called as Ozi and Darashikoh who I called as Daru. Both belong to different social class and Ozi uses his power and falsely accuses Daru of a crime.

The theory which is used to analyze these two texts is “Marxist theory’ given by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. The concept of Social Stratification and class system is proved to be a disastrous monster in society. The powerful become more powerful day by day and starts exploiting the poor more and more. This uneven distribution of power and wealth leads towards crime, particularly towards Marxist Criminology. “Capitalist societies are ‘dog eat dog societies in which each individual company and each individual is encouraged to look out for their own interests before the interests of others, before the interests of the community, and before the protection of the environment. If we look at the Capitalist system, what we find is that not only does it recommend that we engage in the self-interested pursuit of profit is good, we learn that it is acceptable to harm others and the environment in the process” (Gordon)

The law is said to be unbiased and equal for everyone but the sad reality of society is that laws are made by powerful people according to their own convictions. These laws are molded according to the needs and benefits of the powerful people and very often the scapegoat is the person from lower class. In the two novels which are under observation in this paper lower class people are sacrificed to save the honor and dignity of the upper class. The proletariat are crushed under the heavy feet of social stratification. According to Karl Thompson

“Marxist criminologists see power being held by the Bourgeoisie and laws are a reflection of Bourgeois ideology. The legal system (lawyers, judges and the courts) and the police all serve the interests of the Bourgeoisie. These institutions are used to control the masses, prevent revolution and keep people in a state of false consciousness.”

Research Methodology

The Research methodology used in this paper is a qualitative method because in literature the only research methodology or framework is interpretation. Hence, both of the novel The God of Small Things and Moth Smoke will be analyzed and interpreted with the help of Marxist theory and all the Marxist elements present in the novels will be interpreted. The main purpose of this research is to bring out manipulation and misuse of power by thoroughly studying both the novels

Research Gap

The comparative study of one Pakistani and one Indian novel will help to bring forward the condition of society and law as well as power politics in the sub-continent. All the main elements and characters of the novels will be analyzed through the lens of Marxist criminology with the help of descriptive qualitative research method.

Research Questions

1. How the Bourgeoisie exploit the rights and dignity of the proletariat in Moth Smoke and The God of Small Things?
2. How Law favors and works for the Bourgeoisie against the proletariat in Moth Smoke and The God of Small Things?
3. How does capitalism lead to crime?

Research Objectives

1. To explore how the upper class exploits the rights of lower class and crush their dignity.
2. To examine how law favors the powerful against the powerless.
3. To understand how Capitalism is the main cause of increase in crimes.

Literature Review

Both of the novels which are under discussion in this paper are the area of interest for many researchers from past few years because of the diversity of topics and socio-political elements present in these novels. Starting from Moth Smoke then Munazza Yaqoob (2010) gave a whole different perspective to look at Moth Smoke in her research paper Human Perversion and Environmental Space: An Ecocritical Study of Mohsin Hamid’s Moth Smoke where she pointed out the ecocritical elements present in the novel. She explains that there is a connection between nature and human beings. If nature is disturbed and polluted then it also disturbs and pollutes human nature. Just like in Moth Smoke the environment of Lahore is shown as polluted which polluted the hearts of the characters as well.

Then there is an article Spiral of Fear and Silence in Mohsin Hamid’s Moth Smoke and The Reluctant Fundamentalist by Salma Khatoon and Nosheen Fatima (2019) in which the authors explain the effects of constant exploitation, insult and manipulation. The lower class is suppressed by the upper class and because there is no support from law and society that’s why the lower class is forced to stay silent against this oppression which leads to a burst of anger and aggression like a volcano. Just like how Daru transforms into a totally different person after he becomes poor. He tries every possible way to react to oppression by selling drugs and even committing murder.

Now looking at the articles written on The God of Small Things then there is an article GENDER DISCRIMINATION IN THE NOVEL GOD OF SMALL THINGS written by Dr Sujatha (2018) explains the feminist perspective of the novel. The female characters are shown more brilliant and active than the male characters but the male ego of Ipe family never allows the male members of the family to appreciate the hard work and intelligence of Mammachi and Ammu. Similarly, Chacko is allowed to choose a girl for himself but when Ammu falls in love with a boy, she is insulted and even disowned by the family. The researcher throws light at the gender discrimination and “subaltern” perspective of the novel.

Another article The Emotional Abusing and being Abused in Roy’s The God of Small Things written by B. Winmayil explores different types of abuses mentioned in the novel. He divides the bused into three categories the females, the child and the lower class. The female characters of the novel are throughout abused by society. Ammu is molested by the corrupt police officer and also, she is humiliated by her own family mainly Chacko and baby Kochoma. Child abuse is also discussed in the form of rape of Estha when he is raped by a shopkeeper outside a cinema hall which leads him towards a traumatic childhood as well as complex adulthood. The effect of this abuse is everlasting that is why he couldn’t lead a normal life after this incident. Then the third category is of lower class people in which Velutha a Pravan which is considered as the lowest rank of the caste is abused and humiliated and eventually beaten to death because of his relation with Ammu and his rebel against the powerful class the bourgeoisie. The researcher discusses these three types of physical and mental abuse in detail.

Textual Analysis

The British left the system of oppression and power politics post colonialism in the subcontinent. The concept of “us” and “other” is changed from the colonized and the colonizers into the rich and the poor. The poor who were colonized by foreign people are now colonized by their own rich people due to power politics going on in the society. As Boehmer explains “The colonial relationship, mediated through discourse, is not then a simple opposition between the colonizer and the colonized but a complex network of discursive, power, relationships. (Boehmer p.23). The same power relationship is much evident in Mohsin Hamid’s Moth Smoke by showing the contrast between the lifestyle of Aurangzeb (Ozi) and Darashikoh (Daru). Ozi is a wealthy person who owns an expensive jeep also has a well-paid job. He lives a luxurious life in a big house with his beautiful wife. He is a powerful respectable person in society who flaunts his wealth and power with pride. As Ozi once says in the novel “I am wealthy, well connected, and successful. My father’s an important person. In all likelihood, I’ll be an important person. Lahore is a tough place if you are not an important person.” (184). He puts the blame of the murder committed by him on Daru shows that how powerful people use their power and exploit and manipulate the law as the law bodies also support the powerful only. According to Karl Thompson “Capitalism is Criminogenic which means that the Capitalist system encourages criminal behavior. The Law is made by the Capitalist elite and tends to work in their interests. All classes, not just the working classes commit crime, and the crimes of the Capitalist class are more costly than street crime.” (Thompson)

This clash of classes and unequal distribution of power leads towards Marxist criminology where the poor starts working for their own interest as Karl Thompson writes “Capitalism is Criminogenic because it encourages us to want things we don’t need and can’t afford”. In Moth Smoke, Daru also starts illegal activities and drug smuggling in order to earn money and match the standards of living of the Bourgeoisie class. He wants air conditioner, generator and car-like Ozi by hook or crook. As William Chambliss remarks“Drug dealers see themselves as innovative entrepreneurs. So internalized is the desire to be successful that breaking the law is seen as a minor risk.”

The same manipulation of laws and power politics are present in Arundhati Roy’s The God of Small Things in the form of relationship between a boss and an employee where Chacko who is the head of the family as well as the pickle factory manipulates the rights of the workers working in the factory as Marxism was the main movement going on at that time as Arundhati Roy explains

Marxism was a simple substitute for Christianity. Replace God with Marx, and Satan with the Bourgeoisie. Heaven with a classless society, the Church with Party, and the form and purpose of the journey remained similar. Communism crept into Kerala insidiously. As a reformist movement that never overtly questioned the traditional values of a caste-ridden, extremely traditional community. The Marxists worked from within the communal divides, never challenging them, never appearing not to (Roy p.64).

Velutha who is a hard-working young worker in the factory starts to feel this unfair social stratification and tries to rebel against this power politics becomes the victim of the power game. Velutha falls in love with Chacko’s sister Ammu and when Chacko finds out about their relationship as well as Velutha’s involvement in the communist party protest, he frames Velutha in a murder case. Velutha is falsely accused of committing the murder of Sophie Mol and is sent to jail. In jail the law and law bodies like police also work for Chacko and beat Velutha till death. It is not necessarily that Marxism contributes nothing to India, but that Marxism is not totally accepted by people. Even though Velutha transgresses into the realm of Marxism and searches for fraternity, he is destined to be tricked by others ‘hypercritical conversion to Marxism. (Pei p.12)

Characterization

The paper is divided into five chapters. The very first chapter is a brief introduction of both novelists and their novels as well as the introduction of the theory given by Karl Marx. The second chapter is based on research methods and questions along with the main purpose or aim of this study. The third chapter is based upon the literature review of other scholars in this domain. The fourth chapter is a textual analysis or data analysis of novels in light of Marxist theory. The fourth chapter is the conclusion of this discussion to sum up the whole idea.

Conclusion

There is only one rule which is governing all the systems all over the world only the powerful has the access to all the luxuries by exploiting the rights of poor people. the dilemma of our society is that the Law bodies also favors the powerful and works against powerless people. By the comparative study of both the novels Moth Smoke and The God of Small Things, it is much evidence that a crime is committed by the powerful but its punishment is given to an innocent poor powerless person which shows the dark and horror face of the society.

Work Cited

1. Hamid, Mohsin. Moth Smoke. Penguin Books, 2013.
2. Roy, Anuradha. The God of Small Things. 1997.
3. Thompson, Karl. The Marxist Perspective on Crime. 2016.
4. Pei, Ting. “The Minor-Narrative of Transgression in The God of Small Things”. Contemporary Literary Review India, Vol. 4, no. 4, Nov. 2017, p 12