Dynamics between Local and Global in The Inheritance of Loss by Kiran Desai

Abstract

This research work is an attempt to analyze the dynamic relationship between local and global in Kiran Desai’s novel The Inheritance of Loss. The particular conflicts in the text is associated with dreams of the principal characters – Biju, Jemubhai Patel and Gyan and their disillusionments due to unprecedented currents of this era. Due to influence of global phenomenon of immigration, Biju endeavors to fulfill his dream of prosperity and pride crossing the national boarder to the USA but he gets completely disillusioned having identity crisis, unhomeliness and exploitation. Similarly, Nepali Indian community attempts to establish their own autonomous ethnic state so that identity, equality and prosperity of them would be prevailed. Hence, the dreams of merely seeking local or global as the ultimate promises remain disillusions for both types of characters. This fictional scenario has postulated the current socio-economic dynamics of this era. The feeling of unhomeliness, exploitation and movement of ethnic communities has also illustrated the context of internal marginalization which is the area of postcolonial studies. The other impressive observation in the text is Anglophilic attitudes of the characters Jamubhai Patel, Noni, Lola and Sai who turn out to be strangers and failures to their local site. Thus the journey from dreams to disillusionments in the text unfolds the dynamic relationship between global and local so as to direct appropriate balance between them. This kind of research helps instilling deserving ideas to all beings to lead meaningful life having proper negotiations besides applying connections to literary texts.