“THE ONLY AMERICAN FROM OUR VILLAGE” BY ARUN JOSHI

Prepare by IRSHAD HUSSAINKIU SKD CAMPUS

CONTENTS 1. About author2. Characters 3. Summary of the story4. Themes

ABOUT AUTHOR Name Arun Joshi Born 1939 Nationality Indian Alma mater attended shools in india and united states Occupation  Director, Shri Ram Centre for Industrial Relations Literary works

Novels1. The Foreigner. 1968.2. The Strange Case of Billy Biswas., 1971.3. The Apprentice. , 1975.4. The Last Labyrinth. New Delhi, Vision, 1981.5. The City and the River. New Delhi, Vision, 1990.Short Stories6. The Survivor: A Selection of Stories. New Delhi, Sterling, 1975.

Died 1993Read more: Arun Joshi Biography - Delhi, City, Publishing, and House - JRank Articles http://biography.jrank.org/pages/4485/Joshi-Arun.html#ixzz46o9DSVlx

CHARACTERS Main characters:1. Dr. Khanna (the hero)2. Kundan Lal (khanna’s late father)3. The stamp farosh (Radhay Mohan), Kundan Lal’s

friend Minor characters:1. Joanne (khanna’s wife)2. The principal 3. Kundan’s relatives

SUMMARY Khanna Lal, a well reputed physicist, was a seed of India but now settled in America. He visits India where he meets Radhay Mohan his father’s friend who drags Khanna into past remembering him how Khanna had been ruthless and ignorant towards his kind father. He told him how his father faced all the perils and hardships of his poor life and made him esteemed and made the life of his children comfortable. But the tragedy is that the children being damn busy in materialism ignored their father and let him die a pathetic and miserable life. Later, Dr. Khanna suffers from a severe disease and all the time observes his burning feet.

THEMES Main themes:

1. Filial (children-parents) relations2. Cross culturelism3. Sin and punishment / divine justice

Sub themes:1. Nostalgia 2. Class difference

FILIAL RELATIONSThe story deals with the relationship between Khanna and his father. Kundan faces all the problems of life as he belonged to a poor family and earned a bright future for their children. We can see the affection and passion in Kundan Lal for his children who all the time praises them in front of his friends and felt pride just because of their success. But on the other side Khanna blindly turned a deaf to his aged father. And even did not visit him when he was on the verge of death as well as posthumously. And one can see his unkind attitude when he comments calmly (I was sorry) on learning his father death.

CROSS CULTURELISM

Although Khanna was Indian origin but he migrated to America and went through cross culturelism. He has no concern about India and is too interested in America. Joshi says “….his training in the new civilization had been perfect”. We see the difference when Radhay says “Maybe you don't have villages like ours in America…”.

DIVINE JUSTICEAccording to Indians ignoring parents is a heinous sin. Offspring are bound to take care their aged parents as they had been looked after in their infancy, childhood and adolescence. Khanna’s treatment with his father was against divine therefore he is punished, divine snatches his wit and hurled him headlong into the hell of lunacy, “He has further indicated that he thinks he has been cursed”. In the end he loses all his fame “He has generally come to be known as the man who does nothing but stare at his feet.”.

NOSTALGIA "when one is fed up of present one tries to

seek refuge in past.“The same thing happens with both Kundan Lal

and his son Khanna. They lived in their past and escaped from the present.

When Kundan comes to know the atrocity of his son he lost his zest for life and goes to his school to see his carved name on the desk and on honor board. In such a way he finds solace from memories.