International Journal of Education, Learning and Training

Vol. 1 (No.1), November, 2016

ISSN: 2289-6694
DOI: 10.24924/ijelt/2016.11/v1.iss1/22.35 [Link]/journals/[Link]/journals/ijelt
This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Research Paper

“Detaching The Identity Dilemma in Kiran Desai’s The Inheritance of Loss”

Sashikala Sunmugam
Centre for Nation Building and
Languages
Tunku Abdul Rahman University College
sash_27288@[Link]

[Link] [Link]
English Language Studies Section
Universiti Sains Malaysia
szna@[Link]

[Link] Liau Wei Lin

English Language Studies Section
Universiti Sains Malaysia
agnes@[Link]

Abstract
This paper explores selected Indian characters depicted in Kiran Desai’s The Inheritance of
Loss (2006). This study finds that these characters are struggling with an identity dilemma
which induces their inner-conflicts: double-consciousness, resistance and othering, due to
the dominance of the colonial system. This study observes that this hegemonic influence
has created the privileged and less-privileged status of the Indian individuals which have
concealed their true natures. Thus, these Indian individuals are confined and recognised
through their essentialised identity, as connoted by the colonial system. Therefore, the
objective of this paper is to de-contextualise the selected characters from their
essentialised identity, exposing their true nature without the influence of their privileged
and less-privileged status. To achieve the targeted objective, this paper discusses the
identity dilemma of the selected characters through a Strategic Essentialistm reading, a
term coined by Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak (1987). This is to detach the Indian individuals
from their identity which is defined and structured by the colonial system which
segregates them under the formation of social hierarchy, as well as detaching them from
their post-colonial condition. In the conclusion, this paper discloses the ability of the term
Strategic Essentialism to unveil the disguised nature of the privileged members and the
hidden nature of the less-privileged members, conveying their identity dilemma which fails
their assimilation in their own homeland and foreign land.

Key Terms: Strategic Essentialism; colonialism; The Inheritance of Loss

ISSN: 22896694 Page 22

1. Introduction

This paper discusses the identity of the selected characters (Indian individuals)
by examining their identity dilemma which they encounter and experience in their lives.
It is conceived that identity is an integral property which an individual possesses.
Tiwari (2012) explains in her article “Identity Crisis- Indian English Fiction of post
1980’s”, that “identity is a multi- dimensional word. In psychology and sociology,
identity is a person’s conception and expression of their individuality and or group
affiliations - such as national identity and cultural identity” (6). Tiwari remarks that
identity links an individual to his/her national identity and the group or community
he/she belongs to and eventually it constructs an understanding of the individual’s
sense of belonging and self-awareness. It is also perceived that “identity may be defined
as the distinctive characteristic belonging to any given individual or shared by all
members of a particular social category or group” (6), led to the revelation that an
individual’s characteristic is also understood, recognized or perhaps stigmatized and
typically defined based on the identity of the group which the individual belongs to.
Furthermore, it is observed that this form of understanding and recognition upon an
individual’s identity leads to complications and conflicts which the Self of the individual
suffers.
According to Erikson (1970) “identity crisis (…) was one of the most important conflicts
that people face in development…an identity crisis is a time of intensive analysis and
exploration of different ways of looking at oneself” (qtd. in Tiwari, 6). From Erikson’s
affirmation, this paper recognizes that the selected characters based on the selected
novel of Kiran Desai suffer from identity crisis which has complicated their identity
formation and invited miseries into their lives. They are recognized by the identity
which is imposed on them by the society according to their social groups. Due to these
forms of impositions, the Self of the individual resists the given identity and desires for
an identity which would elevate their status and values individually, socially and
nationally.
This present paper discusses their conflicts under the lenses of identity dilemma
which induces inner-conflicts within their Self and eventually cause problems and
failures in their lives. In order to understand their identity dilemma, it is important to
highlight the roots of the problem which have complicated the formation of the Indian
individuals’ identity. The selected characters belong to the Indian nationality and their
ancestral system of colonialism is scrutinized and unveiled to help this study de-
contextualize their Indian identity which is essentialized by this hegemonic system
(colonialism).

2. Literature Review

1.0 THE PRE- AND POST-COLONIAL INDIA

This paper traces the influences of the colonial system that has played a major role in
defining the identity of the Indian individuals as stated below:

the legacy of Enlightenment enabled imperial Europe to

represent itself as the norm, as the most ‘evolved’ form of
human society, and colonialism was not surprisingly seen as
Europe’s attempt to haul the rest of the world from its ‘stupor’
and energize it to march along the trajectory of progress and
freedom, with itself as the undisputed leader. ‘History’, in other

ISSN: 22896694 Page 23

 words, has always been the history of appropriation of ‘others
(Ganguly, 51).

Since India’s Independence in 1947, the Indian community is struggling to ward-off the
impacts of colonialism and retrace their native roots. However, as stated by Ganguly
(2000), the legacy the British left behind after conquering India could not be erased as
the history of the traditional Indian values were imbedded with Western effects. It was
later realized that the British had implanted their strategy and led the nation to the
colonial mind-set which has deeply influenced the Indian individuals. This paper
examines the experiences of the colonized individuals who have forgotten to retrace
their native and authentic traits because:

once a country like India achieved its independence from the

British colonial machine, how then were these people
supposed to identify themselves? They were a vast nation of a
tremendously varied cultural history, labelled ‘Indian’ by the
very powers they had striven to evict from their country
(Hayati and Amiri, 16).

As cynically pointed by Hayati and Amiri, before the colonial days, the Indian
individuals had their own government and methods of ruling and segregating their
community to their own comfort and advantages. It is undeniable that the upper caste
was always the dominating group and the lower caste had always been the struggling
and marginalized community. Evidently, the unjust social hierarchy was under the
dominance of the caste system only until the British invaded their privacy and
westernized the traditional system. This move made the Indian individuals inherit a
history which is not their own but the history of the Other (British).

Consequently, this paper scrutinizes the identity dilemma of the selected characters by
foregrounding the impositions of privileges upon the Indian individuals which
ultimately essentialized the identity of the individual to the group they belong to as well
as their rights and freedom in the society. Hence, the upper caste is known as the
privileged and the lower caste is known as the less-privileged. Accordingly, colonialism
standardized and systematized the Hindu caste system and introduced a westernized
system to colonize the individuals mentally and nationally.

1.1 ESSENTIALISM AND ITS COMPLICATIONS

Essentialism is a “view that things have essential properties, properties that are
necessary to those things being what they are” (Stone, 8). The perspective of
essentialism aids the human mind to grasp / understand the identity of a property, be it
a race, culture, gender, human or animals. Stone stresses that essentialism tends to
misjudge or stereotype representations of certain groups and their identity.
Consequentially, this present paper focuses on the identity of the Indian individuals
(selected characters) and their dilemma which they encounter through essentialized
identity. Another critic, Eide emphasizes that “essentialism presupposes that a group or
a category of objects/people share some defining features exclusive to the members of
this particular group or category” (66). She conveys the idea that essentialism draws
similarities between individuals from a certain group. Prior to analysing the defaults of
essentialism, it is crucial to understand the origins of essentialism and its purposes.
According to Mallon “essentialism is a doctrine with philosophical roots in Aristotle and
Locke and with a substantial grounding in common sense or “folk” theorizing about the

ISSN: 22896694 Page 24

world” (146). Mallon’s description reveals that theorists such as Aristotle and Locke
created a perception to understand the nature and traits of the multi-coloured, multi-
lingual and multi-national people who live around this globe. People are grouped under
an essence which define their race, gender, class, age, group and ethnic and this idea is
argued as inaccurate by Iris Marion Young who criticizes that “(individuals) should not
be understood as an essence or nature with a specific set of common attributes…there is
no common nature that members of a group have” (qtd. in Mallon, 146). Factually,
Young asserts that it is inaccurate to categorize people under a group and to believe that
all of the members share common traits, attitudes and attributes. This perspective of
essentialism leads to misjudging the concerned individual’s identity and ultimately,
ignoring the originality, authenticity and natural traits of the person.

From another perspective of a critic, Paul observes essentialism as something which

“common sensically, we do recognize objects by their sortal persistence conditions and
we do want to say that there is something conceptually basic about the way we
distinguish between ordinary objects” (335). The conflict arises as explained by Paul
when humans try to comprehend other individuals based on one concept and one
condition. Usually, it is ascertained that those in the superior position attempt to
apprehend the exotic-ness or differences of an inferior individual or a foreign race. They
tend to draw a common or general concept to understand the differences of the inferior
individual / group. This concept of essentializing facilitates the human mind to
understand the differences which exist between the Self and Other. For instance under
the context of this study, during colonialism the colonizers generalized the colored
community as dependent because the colonizers viewed them as inferior, barbaric,
uncultured and unsystematic. So, the colonizers acted under an essentialized perception
and colonized the Indian individuals by ignoring their native values, traditions and
customs. Hence, the colonized Indians lost their native identity and fell under the
essentialized identity as perceived by the colonizers.

Therefore, an identity which is formed through the lenses of essentialism is wounded by

a stereotyped, biased, and discriminated judgement. Thence, this paper de-
contextualizes the identity of the selected characters from its essence to reveal their
genuine façade.

1.2 THE STRATEGIC ESSENTIALIST VIEW POINT

This present paper reviews that the view point of essentialism can mis-represent
and carries the ability to create a flawed identity of a certain individual or a member in
a certain group/ culture/ gender/ ethnicity. Objectively, this paper attempts to reveal
the de-contextualized identity of the Indian individuals from the context of caste and
colonialism. Hence, the term strategic essentialism is selected to challenge the
essentialized identity of the privileged and less-privileged individuals and give them a
genuine voice as suggested by the following quote:

post-colonial scholar Gayatri Spivak (1987) coined the term

“strategic essentialism” to refer to the ways in which
subordinate or marginalized social groups may temporarily
put aside local differences in order to forge a sense of
collective identity through which they band together in
political movements (Dourish, 1).

According to Spivak, strategic essentialism helps to distinguish the authentic identity of

an individual from the tangles of essentialized qualities which constrains the individual.

ISSN: 22896694 Page 25

Hence, to scrutinize the characters of the selected novels from a postcolonial viewpoint
and to portray their privileged and less-privileged status, the researcher learns that the
term strategic essentialism is appropriate to be used. Fundamentally, this paper targets
to de-contextualize the essentialized identity of the selected characters as “Spivak
suggests that strategic essentialism champions essentialism even if it is not fully
believed in because it is needed in the fighting of conflicts, intellectual arguments and
political battles. It can be a useful shorthand” (Plummer, 2). Therefore, strategic
essentialism aids this discourse to be neutral and not undertone or overtone the
dilemma of the selected characters and eventually challenges their privileged and less-
privileged status.

3. Research Design and Methodology

3.1 CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK

This designed framework lays out the structure and the flow of this study. It describes
the analysis of this study which is based upon the characters of the selected novels. The
main concept is to explore the identity dilemma experienced by the Indian individuals
through a strategic essentialist reading. The issue is these individuals are struggling
from identity dilemma due to the influences of the caste system and colonialism which
has essentialized the Indian individuals’ identity as the privileged and less-privileged.
Thus, these hegemonic systems induce inner-conflicts within the Self of the characters
and they are suffering in silence which further interests this study to explore deeper.
Their identity dilemma and inner-conflicts which are discovered is appropriately
discussed through the lenses of strategic essentialism, a term coined by Spivak (1987)
and de-contextualize the selected characters’ identity and reveal their genuine façade.

ANALYSE

IDENTITY DILEMMA OF THE CHARACTERS

IN THE SELECTED NOVELS

THROUGH

STRATEGIC ESSENTIALISM READING

DISCUSSES

COLONIALISM

ISSN: 22896694 Page 26

 INDUCE INNER-CONFLICTS

DOUBLE CONSCIOUSNESS
RESISTANCE OTHERING

EXPOSE

THE DE-CONTEXTUALIZED INDIAN IDENTITY

Figure 3.1: Framework of the Study

The illustrated Figure 3.1 portrays the structure of this paper which is to expose the de-
contextualized identity of the selected characters and reveal the genuine façade of the
individuals which consists their natural Self. Their identity dilemma is discussed through a
strategic essentialist reading as the term detaches the influences and the impacts of the
hegemonic system of colonialism which ruled, changed and damaged the Indian individuals’
true nature and identity. The colonial force induced inner-conflicts within the selected
characters which resulted in double-consciousness, resistance and Othering.

It is vital to provide a brief explanation on the inner-conflicts which are found experienced by
the selected characters. This aids the apprehension of the readers on the weight of the
influences of the inner-conflicts which provoked by their identity dilemma. The inner-conflict of
double-consciousness according to Singh can be considered as “interdependence between race
and nation, racism and nationalism as ways of imagining kinship, community, economic activity
and political society” (qtd. in Hyman). This definition reveals the status of an Indian individual
(relating to the context of this paper) whose identity is not well accepted in the society,
eventually chooses to create a double identity within him/her Self; one identity which suits
him/her in the society, so that their Self will be received in the society, community or political
groups. The other identity is the conscious self-identity which is buried within their Self and is
invisible to the outside world. Only the individual knows the existence of this self-identity which
is kept a secret and silenced. In fact according to Du Bois, he explains the crisis encountered by
the African Americans share the similar dilemma as these South Asians (Indians). He states that
“there is a “twoness” within African Americans as they are both American and a Negro…two
unreconciled…warring ideals in one body. The sense of always looking at one’s self through the
eyes of others” (qtd. in Hyman). Du Bois’s observations aids this study to identify the same
struggle encountered by these selected characters who live in a dual consciousness such as
upper and lower, fair and dark, colonial and colonized, or Anglo-Indian and Indian. These dual
identities affect the mental and emotional state of the marginalized and the privileged group.
Hence, they develop double-consciousness to upgrade their status and individual identity.

The other notion of inner-conflict as identified in this paper is the form of resistance the
individuals develop. This dilemma arises due to the limbo state that they are stuck into
(Rajkumar). This mental illness resists the individual’s self from assimilating in the society they
are living in. They resist accepting their denied identity and succumb to transcend an identity
he/she does not belong to. They resist accepting their native nature because in their mind, they
have set that their original identity as inferior and detestable. In the end, this form of resistance
influences them to adopt mimicry. Due to that, they are trapped in a limbo state and suffer from
misery as they are unable to change their mind-set. The selected characters are resisting their
identity as they are ignorant of their future and the repercussions.

And thirdly, the other inner-conflict is the process of Othering that they adapt to. Thomas
Macaulay in his Minute on Indian Education reveals the reason of the colonizers for educating
the Indians. He explains this process of Othering which the individuals fall into:

ISSN: 22896694 Page 27

 “it is impossible for us, with our limited means, to attempt
to educate the body of the people. We must at present do
our best to form a class who may be interpreters between
us and the millions whom we govern; a class of persons,
Indian in blood and colour, but English in taste, in opinions,
in moral, and intellect”(430).

The colonizers educate the Indian individuals in Western style to penetrate colonialism into the
Indian individual’s mind. This non-violent method of the colonizers deformed the identity
formation of the Indian individuals as the education which were taught to them ruined their
true essence of national and individual identity. Interestingly, this study observes this form of
colonialism affects the upper class the most, as they are the major group who grabbed the
access to education. The form of English education went straight into their brain and corrupted
their mentality; hence they became the puppets of the English. Meanwhile, the lower caste
gazed upon these colonizers from far and mimics the Westerners in the form of fashion (clothes,
language, and style of living) and desires for an impossible dream which is to become like the
Westerner. In a nutshell, the Indian individuals transcend their Self and become the Other in
their own native land. Ultimately this study stresses that their habit of praising and mimicking
the Other which their true Self never belongs to constitutes a deranging dilemma to their
individual identity.

4. DISCUSSION

4.0 THE JUDGE

This paper highlights the main character, the Judge (Jemubhai Patel) as the most
affected by the colonial confrontation compared to other characters in the novel. At the
age of twenty, he was sent to London to purse his Law degree in 1939. Throughout the
novel, the Judge is unable to forget his experience of departing from India to London
where he went through “the platform between benches labelled ‘Indians Only’ and
‘Europeans Only’” (Desai, p41). The practice of essentilializing and recognizing
individuals through differences causes the Judge to believe that his Indian identity is
inferior in a continental environment. This crisis conveys that despite the Judge’s
privileged status in the Indian social hierarchy, he feels inferior when he confronts a
white-skinned person. This remarks the Judge falling under the colonial dictation in
which he feels uncomfortable under his own skin as from a colonial perspective, his
identity is essentialized as an Indian with a coloured skin, the colonized or the exotic
(different / inferior). This mind-set implies the constraints of racial gaps which makes
the Judge feels alienated in a Western (colonial) country. Thenceforth, he develops
inner-conflicts within himself and creates the space of escapism which enables him to
disguise his inferior-complexes.

4.1 RESISTANCE

The excerpt below divulges the Judge’s Western imitations which bears his inner-
conflict of resistance against his native Self. This paper notes the Judge’s urge to cover
his dark skin beyond a white powder and disguises under a Western style as follows:

a shrivelled figure in a white shirt and black trousers

with a buckle to the side. The clothes were frayed but
clean, ironed by the cook, who still ironed everything-
pyjamas, towels, socks, underwear, and handkerchiefs.

ISSN: 22896694 Page 28

 His face seemed distanced by what looked like white
powder over dark skin (Desai, 37).

Apart from that, he insists on ironing everything which he uses and wears as from his
knowledge, the Westerners use ironed and neat clothes. His mentality and lifestyle
reflect his attractions towards the Western culture and his resistance towards his own
native culture. One of the critics, Abraham notes that “resistance takes the form of
refusing to be devalued” and this comment rightfully explains the dilemma of the Judge-
he resists his Indian identity because he fears being devalued. He resists the notion of
being regarded as someone lower or undervalued and from his experiences and
knowledge, the Indian identity is worthless compared to the Western identity.

Furthermore, his colonial status prompts him to succumb into the colonial dictation
where “the West became the norm against which to look at and evaluate others”
(Azoulay, 98). This paper notes that the Judge who is from a middle caste (2nd upper
class in the Indian social hierarchy) is given the privileges in the society which grant
him the access to education, monetary advantages, a respected social status and
superiority to other Indian individuals. Yet, his advantages as the privileged fail when
they confront the Judge’s colonial status. The Judge collapses under colonial
suppression and eventually behaves according to the Western dictation / depictions.

The failure to adapt in a foreign environment (London) converted the Judge into a
stranger himself when he returns to his native land (India). He resists his Indian Self
and has tuned into a Western mimic man. For instance, “never ever was the tea served
the way it should be, but he demanded at least a cake or scones, macaroons or cheese
straws. Something sweet and something salty. This was a travesty and it undid the very
concept of teatime” (Desai, 3-4). Desai described the Judge’s lifestyle who demands for
evening tea but in a Western style. He does not drink tea like an Indian but like an
English man with scones and cake. This Western practices provide him an undefinable
pleasure and if this evening routine is disturbed or lacks Western food, he becomes very
annoyed and angry. The Judge’s behaviour and his association with Western practices
reflect his resistance against his authentic Indian Self and his disinterest with his own
culture. Strategic essentialism unveils that his devotion towards the Westerner culture
emanate from his desires for a respected and distinguished identity. Hence, he has
pledged within himself to live like an Englishman his whole life.

4.2 DOUBLE-CONSCIOUSNESS

Furthermore, the other form of inner-conflict which the Judge is struggling is double-
consciousness. Lott (1998) claims that double-consciousness is a dangerous conflict in
his article “Subjugation and Bondage: Critical Essays on Slavery and Social Philosophy”
“Hegel also presumes that the Self first encounters the Other as a threat” (154). This
conflict is present within the Judge because he feels threatened by his colonized Self and
falls under the gaze of the Other (colonizers), “the Other is the indispensable mediator
between myself and me. I am ashamed of myself as I appear to the Other” (Satre qtd. in
Jules-Rosette, 270). The Judge feels undervalued with his Indian identity as he is
traumatized with his inferiority as illustrated in the following quote:

(he) eventually took revenge on his early revenge on his

early confusions, his embarrassments gloved in something
called “keeping up standards”, his accent behind a mask of a
quiet. He found he began to be mistaken for something he

ISSN: 22896694 Page 29

 wasn’t- a man of dignity. This accidental poise became more
important than any other thing. He envied the English. He
loathed the Indians. He worked at being English with the
passion of hatred and for what he would become, he would
be despised by absolutely everyone, English and Indians,
both (Desai, 131).

His inner-self is separated by two consciousness, one is the Self which detests its
authenticity, feels downgraded for being a brown skin and hides from the outer world.
While the second consciousness is the Self which praises the Other (Western), mimics
the Other and portrays its disguised façade to the outer world. Strategic essentialism
substantiates that the real culprit to the Judge’s struggles is not his Indian identity but
his country’s experience of colonization, “in the age of ‘crisis belonging’, where national
identity is competing with other global, alternative identities, globalization leads
towards some sort of pluralization of identities” (Bauman qtd. in Dervin).

4.3 OTHERING

According to Spivak, the process of Othering occurs with the presence of the colonizers
who dominated the inferior groups. The colonizers left a long and lasting impression on
the colonized individuals that they (Western) are the most powerful, educated and
superior groups, while the Other is meant to be dominated, guided and enslaved.
Desai explicitly described the Judge’s complexities and abnormalities as a colored skin
in a white skin world as follows:

Jemubhai’s mind had begun to warp, he grew stranger

to himself than he was to those around him, found his
own skin odd-colored, his own accent peculiar. He
forgot how to laugh, could barely manage to lift his lips
in a smile, and if he ever did, he held his hand over his
mouth, because he couldn’t bare anyone to see his
gums, his teeth. They seemed too private (45).

His inferior-complex explains his hatred against his authentic Self which eventually
motivates him to detach from his own being. The Judge hides himself from the Western
individuals as he feels undervalued and also ashamed of being a colored skin and an
Indian individual. Thus, he remains like an alien to the society and also to himself.
Interestingly, strategic essentialism displays him being obstructed by his own identity
dilemma.

By the Indian social hierarchy, the Judge is positioned under the middle caste category,
thus he is recognized as the privileged member, “Jemubhai Popatlal Patel had been born
to a family of the peasant caste. Jemubhai’s father owned a modest business procuring
false witnesses to appear in court (Desai, 64). His family hereditary ranks him as the
superior in the social hierarchy, hence he has easy access and advantages to education,
financial backup, social status, governmental aids and many other privileges. This study
highlights that the Judge is not positioned as a struggling member in the Indian
community because he does not experience suppression, marginalization or
discrimination economically, religiously, socially, physically or emotionally by his caste.
He belongs to the privileged category, hence he is respected in the community and is
able to demand and obtain his needs. Unlike the low caste or the subalterns, the Judge
has a dominant voice in the Indian society. Furthermore, his position as the Judge

ISSN: 22896694 Page 30

elevated his status even further in the society as he holds the highest role in the law and
order system. Thus, his Indian essentialized identity represents him as superior,
privileged, reputable and rich individual with authority in the society.

Strategic essentialism implies that the Judge’s privileged status does not eliminate him
from suffering and indeed he experiences a much complicated and complex dilemma
compared to the other characters who are less-privileged. In reality, the Judge
encounters mental agony and distances himself from his own Self.

Apart from that, the Judge’s inner-conflicts also reveal his experiences of feeling
unwelcomed in the soil of the Westerners, “he visited twenty-two homes before he
arrived at the doorstep of [Link] on Thronton Road. She didn’t want him either, but
she needed the money and her house was so situated” (Desai, 44). Unlike other
students, the Judge struggled to get a place to stay in London and the cold reception
which he received made him feel undervalued and unwanted. He became conscious of
his colonized and Indian Self, which further made him loathe his identity and
nationality. Other than that, the researcher also notes that the Judge is suffering in
silence, “for entire days nobody spoke to him at all, his throat jammed with words
unuttered, his heart and mind turned into blunt aching things” (45). His identity
dilemma hollowed his individuality and “he began immediately to study, because it was
the only skill he could carry from one country to another” (45).

4.4 UNSUCCESSFUL MIMICRY

Bhabha explains mimicry as “the sign of a double articulation; a complex strategy of

reform, regulation and discipline which ‘appropriates’ the Other as it visualizes power”
(89). Bhabha’s remark situates the Judge collapsing under mimicry as he desires to
relieve himself from his undervalued and colonized Indian identity. He mimics the
Western culture and establishes a Western mentality and lifestyle to feel superior.
Eventually, he detaches himself from being homogenized to his Indian community as he
believes he is different.

After retiring from his career, the Judge settled in a mansion in Kanchenjunga near the
hills of Nepal. He bought a mansion from a Scottish man and lives like a foreigner in his
native soil. His behaviour connotes his isolation from his Indian community and his love
towards the Western form of privacy. Bhabha criticizes that “a desire that reverses in
part the colonial appropriation by now producing a partial vision of the colonizer’s
presence; a gaze of otherness, that shares the acuity of the genealogical gaze” (93).
Through the Judge’s desires, this study apprehends that the colonizer’s presence is still
felt in the country despite being absent, as the Indian individuals have turned into
‘Western imitation’ who continue the tradition of the colonizers by colonizing their own
selves without force.

Thus, these Indian individuals’ practice of mimicry contributes to their failures and they
become strangers to their own selves. Significantly, the researcher entails that these
characters who are the privileged members in the Indian society suffer in silence and
their dilemma is kept a secret within themselves as their biggest fear is to be devalued
or disgraced.

4.5 THE LESS-PRIVILEGED MEMBER, BIJU

ISSN: 22896694 Page 31

The Cook who works for the Judge has a son, Biju and he is sent to United States of
America (USA) in the hope of getting a good employment and achieving success (the
American dream). However, Biju’s dreams shatters as he becomes an illegal immigrant
and escapes from being caught by the immigrant officers by hopping from one
restaurant to another. Above all, Biju fails to assimilate with the Western society as he
suffers from identity dilemma due to his post-colonial status. He is a few years older
than Sai and belongs to the lower caste (proletariat) hierarchy therefore, he is a less-
privileged member. Nevertheless, he too fails to embrace his identity and nativity like
the Judge.

In this paper, Biju’s essentialized identity as an immigrant and colonized condition

develop his resistance against his assimilation in a Westernized world. For instance
compared to the Judge, Biju’s identity dilemma is different as he encounters criticisms
and receives unambiguous resistance from the Western individuals as illustrated below:

“he smells” said the owner’s wife. “I think I’m allergic to

his hair oil.” She had hoped for men from the poorer
parts of Europe-Bulgarians perhaps or
Czechoslovakians. At least they might have something in
common with them like religion and skin color,
grandfathers who ate cured sausages and looked like
them too, but they weren’t coming in numbers great
enough or they weren’t coming desperate enough, she
wasn’t sure…”(Desai, 54).

The above incident conveys Biju’s individuality and native constitution encountering
denial and rejection from the Western community. Due to his colonized status and
intrinsic values, he is gazed from a stereotypical and marginalized view point. Strategic
essentialism highlights that Biju loses his job because his native temperament is
misconceived in the Western community. Interestingly, Biju’s backdrop from a Third
World country also becomes the subject which exposes his differences and makes his
individuality to be less preferred and resisted.

This paper remarks Desai highlighting the colonial superiority, “use the time off to take
a bath” said the owner. He had been kind enough to hire Biju although he found him
smelly” (26) which still persists in the modern era. In a strategic essentialism view
point, Biju is dictated to civilization by his Western employer and this leads him to
experience resistance and rejection. However, this study stresses that the ‘kindness’ of
the employer further disunite Biju from his inheritance and makes his individuality
puzzled as the employer’s inability to accept Biju as himself reflects the racial and
colonial gap between their two cultures (Western and Indian) which respectively
position them as the superior and inferior.

4.6 DOUBLE-CONSCIOUSNESS

Apart from that, Biju develops a different form of double-consciousness compared to

the Judge and Sai. Biju is torn apart between his native knowledge and Western
exposure. For instance, back in India almost everyone including his father hates the
Pakistanis and essentialized them under “beware, beware, keep away, distrust” (Desai,
25) perceptions. Thence, Biju’s native consciousness believes his Indian-ness gives him
more privileges than a Pakistani, “it was a country (America) where people from
everywhere journeyed to work, but oh, surely not Pakistanis! Surely they would not be

ISSN: 22896694 Page 32

hired. Surely Indians were better liked” (24). Strategic essentialism summons Bakha’s
prejudiced Self which is comprised of a native consciousness which allows him to think
his Indian identity is superior compared to a Pakistan identity (inferior). However, his
exposure in a Western world creates a conflict within him where he encounters another
(second) consciousness which realizes that the Americans treat Pakistanis as equal to
Indians. Thus, double-consciousness creates imbalance within him as he becomes
troubled with the differences of two cultures- native and Western.

4.7 OTHERING

Meanwhile, Biju’s encounters Othering when he applies for a VISA at the Indian
immigration department. He convinces the officer that “I’m civilized, sir, ready for the
U.S., I’m civilized, ’mam. Biju noticed that his eyes, so alive to the foreigners, looked back
at his own countrymen and women, immediately glazed over, and went dead” (201).
Strategic essentialism grasps Biju’s ability to detach himself from his genuine Self to a
façade which he does not possess. His claims of being a civilized individual to a White
person indicates his identity dilemma and reflects his failings under colonial dictation
and his desperations for a privileged status. Ultimately, Biju’s inner-conflict evokes his
desires for his identity to be accepted. Abdullah criticizes post-colonialism as “the
picture of the past may not play important role in the present situation but it is a mirror
through which one could see one’s venture into the present. It is also a guide to move
forward to the future” (62). Substantially, Biju’s dilemma concedes that his identity is
designed and influenced by colonial impacts which presently fail his individuality. In
other words, Biju is constrained as a post-colonial individual who is physically, socially
and nationally under-valued, stereotyped and marginalized.

4.6 STRATEGIC ESSENTIALISM

Strategic essentialism reveals that Biju encounters complications with his own skin
because he conceptualizes the white skin as superior, dignified and privileged.
Unpleasantly, the reality unveils that the Indian individuals’ failures to re-trace their
traditional and native values prompt them to praise the colonizers’ culture. As cynically
criticized by Abdullah, “whatever historical reality of pre-colonial Asia might be, the
post-colonial Asia is no longer in a par with the dominant Europe” (64). Thus through
these characters, this study highlights that these individuals who are marginalized by
their ancestral caste system have in turn become traumatized and dominated yet again
by the colonial system. And it resulted in their inabilities to assimilate with their own
nation or with a foreign nation.

Above all like Biju, the less-privileged individuals are blinded by false ideals like
‘American Dream’ which gave them hopes that success can be achieved with hard work
and recognized in a land which is unknown to him. Biju is also motivated and burdened
by his father’s advice, “stay there as long as you can, make money. Don’t come back
here” (Desai, 209). Strategic essentialism traces that these individuals have
essentialized their colonized nation as unprogressive, poor and uncivilized. Thus,
ironically they seek opportunities in the nation which once colonized and erased their
history and superiority.

However in a positive angle, Biju becomes enlightened through his inner-conflicts and
his illegal immigrant experiences. Strategic essentialism implies that Biju disengages
from his Indian less-privileged status and gathers courage to rebel and voice out. As

ISSN: 22896694 Page 33

mentioned earlier, subalterns’ voices are silenced in a dominant discourse whereas this
study finds Biju in spite of being a subaltern rebels and speaks up. His struggles in the
Western nation unwrapped him from his subordinate condition and demands for equal
opportunity to his Indian boss, Harish-Harry.

On the contrary, strategic essentialism divulges the disguised façade of the Judge who
hides beneath his superiority and privileged status. The Judge is suffering from a much
complex and disturbing identity dilemma compared to Biju. His inner-conflicts convey
his utmost fear of being devalued or rejected due to his inferiority as the colonized.
Hence, this study notes that the Judge is intensely driven to maintain the dignity of his
Self which explains his intimacy with the Western lifestyle. Due to his colonized
condition, the Judge becomes profoundly influenced by the Western dictation which
conveys the idea that Indian individuals are uncivilized and Westerners are civilized.
Therefore when the Judge finds himself on a Western soil amongst the white
community, the Judge becomes mobilized with his colonial impacts and feels inferior
under his colored skin. Through the Judge’s inner-conflicts, this study de-contextualizes
the Judge from his privileged status which disguises his identity dilemma. In reality, his
dominant and superior position silences his traumas and miseries and above all, no one
is conscious of the Judge’s downfall, pain or miseries because he buries them within
himself. Similar to the colonizers who ignored the grandness of the Indian history, the
Judge also ignores the negative shades which are visible in the white community and
embraces their civilization. According to Bhabha, colonialism succeeds when the
colonized accept their differences and inferiority as claimed by the colonizers. In the
end, he confronts self-hatred and embarrassments and returns to his native land as a
changed, cold and detached person who disguises his miseries beneath his Western
imitations.

5. Conclusion

As with Edward Said who de-Orientalize the Orients from the perceptions of the
Occidents, this study de-contextualizes the Indian individuals from the perspectives of
caste and colonialism which essentialized the individuals as privileged and less-
privileged. Strategic essentialism triumphs in this task as different forms of dilemma
suffered by the characters are revealed. For instance, the Judge is de-contextualized as
suffering from a chronic psychological dilemma because he feels inferior under his own
identity. Despite his privileged status, he becomes an outcast (unwanted) in the western
community, thence when he returns to his native land, he lives in denial throughout his
life.

Finally Biju, like the Judge develops identity dilemma due to his outcast status in the
Western community. However, Biju’s dilemma makes him realize the greatness of his
native roots and he becomes optimistic. In a nutshell, strategic essentialism displays the
different connotations and impacts the word ‘outcast’ and ‘outcaste’ connote. This study
entails that a privileged member too can become an outcast and marginalized in a
Western environment.

ISSN: 22896694 Page 34

Reference

Bhabha, Homi K. The Location of Culture. New York: Routledge, 1994. Print.

Dervin, Fred. “Cultural Identity, Representation, and Othering”. (2011). Web 10 July 2013.
<[Link]>.

Desai, Kiran. The Inheritance of Loss. New York: Grove Press, 2006. Print.

Eide, Elisabeth. "Strategic Essentialism and Ethnification." Nordicom 31.2 (2010): 63. Ebscohost.
Web. 9 March 2014.

Ganguly, Debjani. "Can The Dalit Speak: Caste, Postcoloniality and The New Humanities?" South
Asia 6.1 (2000): 43-62. Web. 30 August 2012. <[Link]>.

Hayati, Daryoosh and Amiri, Eisa. : “A Study of Hybridity and National Identity in the Selected
Novels of Bapsi Sidhwa and David Malouf.” Interdisciplinary Journal. 2.2: 8-24. Barnolipi.
Web. 13 February 2014. <[Link]>.

Hyman, Kimone. “Inclusion by Virtue of Othering.” The Stockton Postcolonial Studies Project.
(2013). Web. 25 July. 2013. <[Link]

Jules-Rosette, Benneta. “Jean Paul Sartre and the Philosophy of Negritude: Race, Self and
Society.” Theor Soc 36 (2007): 265-268. Web. 18 March 2013.

Macaulay, Thomas. Minute on Indian Education. Ashcroft, Griffiths, and Tiffin, The Post-Colonial
Studies, 428-430. Print.

Mallon, Ron. "Human Categories beyond Non-Essentialism." Journal of Political Philospohy 15.2
(2007): 146-168. Wiley Online Library. Web. 13 February 2014.

Paul, L.A. "In Defense of Essentialism." Philosophical Perspectives 20 (2006):334-372. Web. 12

February 2014. < [Link]>.

Spivak, Gayatri Chakravorty. Can The Subaltern Speak? 66-111, 1988. Web. 27 May 2013.

Stone, Allison. "Essentialism and Anti-Essentialism in Feminist Philosophy." Journal of Moral

Philosophy 1.2 (2004): 135-153. Lancaster E-Prints. Web. 12 April 2014.
<[Link]>.

Tiwari, Kanak Lata. “Identity Crisis- Indian English fiction of post 1980’s.” International Journal
of English and Literature 4.1 (2013): 6-10. Web. 26 June. 2013.
<http//:[Link]>.

IJELT is a FTMS Publishing Journal

ISSN: 22896694 Page 35