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The God of Small Things Essay

Decent Essays

"Colonised people are not simply those whose labour has been appropriated but those whose soul dwells an inferiority complex created by the death and burial of the its local cultural originality" How true is this statement?

I agree with this statement to quite a large extent. I think that souls of colonized people dwell an inferiority complex created by both the colonial rule and the death and burial of the local cultural originality. Moreover, I believe that ` inferiority complex' and the `death and burial of cultural originality' will later become two components of a vicious circle as time goes by.

It is easily understood that colonized people are those whose physical labour has been appropriated. People's lives are …show more content…

Chacko regards the War of Independence against Britain in 1957 as a war that they " have won and lost" and also a war that made the Indians "adore their conquerors and despise themselves" (p.53) The Indians had won as they gained their independence after war. However, they had also lost as they can't deny that the British government and the administration are better. They therefore adore their conquerors, love for a foreign culture. They think they are incapable of ruling themselves compares to the British, so they despite themselves. People get a sense of superiority as they are more like British.

Besides colonial rule, I think inferiority complex can be created by the "death and burial of the local cultural originality". In the book, under the good governance the British, the Indians start accepting western ideas and favour western products. While western culture is seeping into people's lives, the Indian local culture is having less impact on the people. There are less people follow traditional customs. All these gradually lead to the "death and burial of the local cultural originality." One of the best examples found in the book is the kathakali performance. To suit the tourist's taste, "the six-hour classics were slashed to twenty-minute cameos". (p.127) The Hotel People scarify this cultural originality for money. Culture of a country is very important to its people.

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