16. S E C U L A R E P I P H A N I E S :

T H E S H O R T S T O R I E S O F

J A M E S J O Y C E AND P U T U M A I P P I T T A N

The awesome r e p u t a t i o n en joyed by James J o y c e a s a

s u p e r c r a f t s m a n s h o u l d d e t e r anyone from comparing h i n w i t h

any o t h e r w r i t e r , l e t a l o n e one f rom t h e s o u t h e r n c o r n e r of

I n d i a w r i t i n g i n a l anguage n o t i n t e r n a t i o n a l l y well-known.

But c o n s i d e r i n g t h e f a c t t h a t J o y c e ' s s h o r t s t o r i e s

i n c l u d e d i n t h e c o l l e c t i o n of Dubliners a r e c o m p a r a t i v e l y

s i m p l e s t r a i g h t - f o r w a r d n a r r a t i o n s n o t s o t e c h n i c a l l y

complex and l i n g u i s t i c a l l y s o p h i s t i c a t e d a s h i s l a t e r

w r i t i n g s l i k e Ulysses and Finnegans Wake, it w i l l n o t be a

c a s e of g iant-pygmy compar i son , i f an a n a l o g i c a l s t u d y o f

h i s s h o r t s t o r i e s and t h o s e of P u t u m a i p p i t t a n who is

c e r t a i n l y one of t h e b e s t o f t h e I n d i a n s h o r t s t o r y

w r i t e r s , ' i s u n d e r t a k e n . I n h i s n a t u r a l i s t i c p o r t r a y a l o f a

s m a l l g r o u p of p e o p l e known t o him f u l l y , i n h i s c h o i c e of

"an a n s w e r a b l e s t y l e " , i n h i s employment of a r i c h t e x t u r e ,

i n h i s r e w o r k i n g s of o e r t a i n myths and l e g e n d s , i n h i s

p e s s i m i s t i c view of l i f e and , above a l l , i n h i s t o t a l

commitment t o a r t c u t t i n g him o f f c o m p l e t e l y even f rom t h e

p o l i t i c a l r e v o l u t i o n of h i s c o u n t r y , P u t u m a i p p i t t a n d o e s

r e semble t h e g r e a t I r i s h w r i t e r .

J o y c e (1882-1941) was bo rn i n D u b l i n of I r i s h

C a t h o l i c l ower m i d d l e - c l a s s s t o c k , h i s f a t h e r b e i n g a r a t e

c o l l e c t o r . He was e d u c a t e d a t J e s u i t c o l l e g e s and a t

U n i v e r s i t y C o l l e g e , D u b l i n . L a t e r he s t u d i e d m e d i c i n e f o r a

w h i l e i n P a r i s . D u r i n g t h e f i r s t World War he t a u g h t

l a n g u a g e s i n S w i t z e r l a n d s i n c e he was m e d i c a l l y u n f i t f o r

s e r v i c e and a f t e r w a r d r e t u r n e d t o P a r i s , where he c h o s e a

l i t e r a r y c a r e e r , s t r u g g l i n g c o n t i n u a l l y a g a i n s t i l l - h e a l t h

and s t r o n g p u b l i c condemnat ion of h i s work. The h e r o o f

h i s a u t o b i o g r a p h i c a l n o v e l A P o r t r a i t o f the Artist as a

Young Man, t o o o b s t i n a t e t o g r a n t h i s m o t h e r ' s dea th -bed

r e q u e s t , d e c l a r e s "non s e r v i a m " and r e n o u n c e s t h e s t a t e ,

t h e c h u r c h and t h e f a m i l y f o r t h e s a k e of a r t .

P u t u m a i p p i t t a n (1906-1948) be longed t o a l o w e r

midd le c l a s s f a m i l y o f T i r u n e l v T l i , h i s f a t h e r b e i n g a

government o f f i c i a l . H i s boyhood and y o u t h were a s

m i s e r a b l e a s h i s l a t e r l i f e . I f h i s cup o f s o r r o w was

a lways f u l l , he was o n l y p a r t l y t o b lame f o r t h a t . At t h e

e a r l y a g e of e i g h t , he was i l l - t r e a t e d by h i s s t e p - m o t h e r .

His academic c a r e e r was n o t marked by a n y b r i l l i a n t

a ch i evemen t and he s t r u g g l e d h a r d and l o n g t o g e t h i s B.A.

d e g r e e . P e n u r y and unemployment became h i s l i f e - l o n g

f r i e n d s . Having d e c i d e d t o e a r n t h e l i v e l i h o o d t h r o u g h

w r i t i n g s , he s o u g h t r e f u g e i n Hapikkopi which was o f t e n i n

t h e r e d . His i d e a l i s m , h i s commitment t o w r i t i n g , h i s

p e t u l a n t n a t u r e , h i s n o t o r i o u s l a c k of w o r l d l y wisdom d r o v e

him f rom one j o u r n a l t o a n o t h e r and he e a s i l y e s t r a n g e d

h i m s e l f from most of h i s f r i e n d s and r e l a t i v e s . He c o u l d

n e v e r l e a r n t h e a r t o f making money and it i s p a t h e t i c t o

s e e t h e a r t i s t - h e r o e s of many o f h i s s t o r i e s s t r u g g l i n g t o

l e a d a hand- to-mouth l i f e . T h e r e was n o l o v e l o s t be tween

him and h i s f a t h e r . The i m p u l s i v e son f i l e d a c a s e a g a i n s t

h i s f a t h e r f o r t h e p o s s e s s i o n of some a n c e s t r a l p r o p e r t y ,

g o t i t and squande red i t i n no t i m e . Towards t h e end o f h i s

l i f e , he was l u r e d i n t o t h e f i l m w o r l d , t h e g r a v e y a r d of

g r e a t a r t i s t s . H i s f i r s t a t t e m p t t o s a c r i f i c e a r t a t t h e

a l t a r o f money c o s t him h i s l i f e . He was i n f e c t e d w i t h

consumpt ion w h i l e working on a f i l m s c r i p t a t Poona and

d i e d o f i t .

I n h i s l e t t e r s J o y c e p o r t r a y s h i m s e l f " a s a h e r o i c

f i g u r e , c o n t i n u a l l y b e l e a g u e r e d b y d e b t , i l l n e s s , and

d i s l o y a l t y d e t e r m i n e d t o s e e h i s s e l f - a p p o i n t e d l a b o u r

t h r ~ u g h " ~ . He was sup reme ly i n d i f f e r e n t t o p u b l i c

d i s a p p r o v a l ; he t h r e w h i s money away on e x o r b i t a n t LIPS, on

d r i n k , and on e x p e n s i v e m e a l s . Bo th J o y c e and

Putumaippi t.t,ar~ fnlight, battles t o t h e and and c u u l d t h r i v e

on c o n f l i c t , p o v e r t y and n e g l e c t .

J o y c e loved and h a t e d h i s c o u n t r y i n t e n s e l y . He was

" a l l t o o ~ r i s h " , ' b u t r e s i d e d ma in ly i n f o r e i g n c o u n t r i e s

a f t e r h i s t w e n t i e t h y e a r . The P o r t r a i t b e g i n s w i t h t h e

c h i l d ' s e a r l i e s t r e m i n i s c e n c e and ends w i t h the' young man 's

d e p a r t u r e f rum t h e p a r e n t a l r o o f . Though he d i d n o t t a k e

p a r t i n t h e I r i s h R e v o l u t i o n , he had g r e a t a d m i r a t i o n f o r

t t i a I r ~ w t ~ l a a d a r L'arrlell I n ~ t s most d r a m a t l c episode, The

P o r t r a i t r e c a l l s a v i v i d l y remembered argument a t t h e

f a m i l y ' s C h r i s t m a s d i n n e r a b o u t t h e d e e d s of t h e I r i s h

r e v o l u t i o n a r y . P a r n e l l ' s d e a t h o c c a s i o n e d J o y c e ' s f i r s t

l i t e r a r y e f f o r t , a poem, which i s echoed i n h i s f a v o u r i t e

s h o r t s t o r y " I v y Day i n t h e Commit tee Room". I t is a

r e m a r k a b l e t r i b u t e t o t h e r e v o l u t i o n a r y :

"He i s d e a d , Our uncrowned k i n g i s d e a d , 0 , E r i n , mourn w i t h g r i e f and woe F o r h e l i e s dead whom t h e f e l l gang Of modern h y p o c r i t e s l a i d l ow .

I n p a l a c e , c a b i n o r i n c o t The I r i s h h e a r t whe reve r it be Is lowed w i t h woe - f o r he is gone Who would have wrought h e r d e s t i n y . The day t h a t b r i n g s u s F reedom ' s r e i g n And on t h a t d a y may E r i n w e l l P l e d g e i n t h e cup s h e l i f t s t o j o y One g r i e f - t h e memory of ~ a r n e 1 l . l

I n P u t u m a i p p i t t a n ' s c a s e a l s o , it was a l o v e - h a t e

r e l a t i o n s h i p between him and h i s c o u n t r y . Even when h i s

countrymen u n d e r t h e l e a d e r s h i p of G a n d h i j i were waging a

c r u c i a l b a t t l e a g a i n s t t h e B r i t i s h , P u t u m a i p p i t t a n e v i n c e d

no g r e a t i n t e r e s t i n i t . I f he had any sympathy f o r t h e

f reedom s t r u g g l e , i t was because he c o u l d n o t t o l e r a t e

i m p e r i a l i s m . He admired t h e f a t h e r of t h e n a t i o n b u t

a t t a c k e d t h e s e l f - s t y l e d Gandh ians m e r c i l e s s l y . The band of

w r i t e r s who p r e a c h e d t h e c a u s e of n a t i o n a l i s m i n t h e i r

poems, s t o r i e s and dramas p l e a d i n g f o r Swadeshi a r t i c l e s

and a d h e r e n c e t o t h e Hindu ways of l i f e cou ld n o t win h i s

a d m i r a t i o n . He n o t o n l y r e f u s e d t o b e drawn i n t o t h e i r

c i r c l e b u t a l s o d i d n o t h e s i t a t e t o l ambas t some of them

f o r t h e i r a r t i s t i c o f f e n c e s . No p o l i t i c a l c r e e d o r

i d e o l o g y , i n h i s o p i n i o n , was g r e a t enough t o c l a i m t h e

s u b o r d i n a t i o n of a r t . The h e a r t l e s s r i c h , t h e s t u p i d m i d d l e

c l a s s , t h e dumb p o o r , t h e l e a d i n g p o l i t i c a l p a r t i e s w i t h

t h e i r s e l f i s h l e a d e r s and t h e i r g u l l i b l e d i s c i p l e s - a l l is

g r i s t t h a t comes t o h i s m i l l .

"Ta" Oruvanukku" ( F o r a S i n g l e I n d i v i d u a l ) p o r t r a y s

an u n t o u c h a b l e , a v i c t i m of t h e c a s t e s y s t e m d y i n g of

s t a r v a t i o n i n t h e m i d s t of v o c i f e r o u s f r e e d o m - f i g h t e r s

c l a i m i n g t o f i g h t f o r t h e w e l f a r e o f e v e r y human b e i n g

' P u t i y a Nan tap ' (The New N a n t a ~ ) d e s c r i b e s t h e v a i n

a t t e m p t s of a Gandhian t o h e l p t h e H a r i j a n s l e a d a d e c e n t

l i f e . P u t u m a i p p i t t a n comes down upon t h e r u l i n g B r i t i s h e r s ,

t h e i r s t o o g e s i n t h e J u s t i c e P a r t y and t h e i r o p p o n e n t s i n

t h e I n d i a n N a t i o n a l Congres s i n an a n i m a l f a b l e c a l l e d

"Eppctum Huf iv i lE ' InPam" (Always Happ ines s a t t h e E n d ) .

The s econd p a r t of N Z r a t a Ramavanam c a l l e d "Raguvamsa

pa rakk i r ama Parvam" ( A c h a p t e r on t h e Heroism of t h e Raghu

Dynasty) s e r v e s t h e same pu rpose i n t h e f o r m of a puranic

s t o r y a b o u t t h e d e s c e n d a n t s of Rama. These a t t e m p t s remind

u s of J o y c e ' s a t t a c k s on t h e f awn ing s u b s e r v i e n c e of some

of t h e D u b l i n e r s t o t h e i r E n g l i s h m a s t e r s .

J o y c e ' s a t t i t u d e t o C a t h o l i c i s m i s a m b i v a l e n t . He

c e a s e d t o b e l i e v e i n many of i t s dogmas when he l e f t t h e

c h u r c h . H i s d i s g u s t of I r i s h C a t h o l i c c l e r g y is e v i d e n t i n

h i s w r i t i n g s : "The S i s t e r s " , f o r i n s t a n c e , d e a l s w i t h a

d i s s o l u t e p r i e s t . But J o y c e

r e t a i n e d f rom I r i s h C a t h o l i c i s m , however , an e s s e n t i a l m i s t r u s t of human n a t u r e a n d , mos t s i g n i f i c a n t l y , a m i s t r u s t o f s e x , which b o t h he and h i s r e j e c t e d c h u r c h viewed a s t h e t o s t p o w e r f u l e l e m e n t , i n man ' s m o r a l d e g e n e r a c y .

He c o n s i d e r s s e x t h e dominan t f o r c e i n man, t h e p r i m a r y

e v i d e n c e of t h e a n i m a l i n man.

P u t u m a i p p i t t a n was f a r f rom a d e v o u t H indu . He c o u l d

be u n s p a r i n g i n h i s a t t a c k s on i ts dogmas and i t s

h y p o c r i t i c a l a d h e r e n t s , e s p e c i a l l y t h e i r i l l - t r e a t m e n t o f

young widows and t h e obnox ious p r a c t i c e o f u n t o u c h a b i l i t y .

I n "NicakXrakkumpal" (The Murderous Gang) , f o r example , h e

highlights t h e a t r o c i t i e s p e r p e t r a t e d by t h e uppe r c a s t e

p e o p l e on t h e u n t o u c h a b l e s d r i v i n g them t o f r u s t r a t i o n . I n

u t t e r d e s p a i r , a b a r b e r and h i s w i f e c u r s i n g t h e Hindu

m i r a s d a r s embrace I s l am and t h e s t o r y d r i v e s home t h e p o i n t

t h a t t h e Hindu s o c i e t y has t o blame i t s e l f f o r a l l i ts

woes . The s l y s t r a t e g i e s employed by t h e r u l i n g Whites t o

c o n v e r t t h e poor Hindus who r e a d i l y y i e l d e d t o t h e charm of

money, power and government s u p p o r t a r e exposed i n t h e

s t o r y " P u t i y a KG?;u'' (The New Cage ) . Though t h e z e a l o u s

C h r i s t i a n s w i t h an unholy l o v e f o r p r o s e l y t i s m beoone t h e

main t a r g e t of a t t a c k , t h e w r i t e r d raws t h e a t t e n t i o n of

t h e r e a d e r t o t h e C h r i s t i a n h e r o i n e ' s g e n u i n e l o v e f o r t h e

Hindu husband and h i s m ~ t h e r . ~ So much of p l a i n - s p e a k i n g is

n o t t o be found i n t h e s t o r i e s of any of P u t u m a i p p i t t a n ' s

c o n t e m p o r a r i e s o r even s u c c e s s o r s . I t may be no ted h e r e

t h a t t h e p u b l i c a t i o n of Dubliners was h e l d up f o r many

y e a r s b e c a u s e J o y c e i n s i s t e d on c a l l i n g i ts d e n i z e n s by

t h e i r names and p o i n t i n g o u t i t s l o c a l l andmarks .

Both J o y c e and P u t u m a i p p i t t a n s h a r e a k ind o f

"p ro found pes s imism" . The D u b l i n e r s d e p i c t e d i n t h e s h o r t

s t o r i e s a r e e i t h e r p e r v e r s e o r s p i r i t u a l l y p a r a l y z e d : a

con fused p r i e s t , " a m a s t u r b a t i n g homosexual , a mothe r who

d e a l s w i t h m o r a l i t y a s a c l e a v e r d e a l s w i t h meat , a f a t h e r

who b e a t s h i s s o n , and a lower c l a s s g i g o 1 0 . " ~ The

~ a r a l y z e d d o n o t have t h e s t r e n g t h of w i l l t o g e t

t h e m s e l v e s f r e e d f rom t h e c l u t c h e s of D u b l i n , which is a

s l o u g h of d e s p o n d . They long f o r an e s c a p e which t h e y d o

n o t a c h i e v e . L i t t l e Tommy C h a n d l e r , f o r example , d r eams o f

w r i t i n g p o e t r y b u t " h e f e l t how u s e l e s s it was t o s t r u g g l e

a g a i n s t f o r t u n e , t h i s b e i n g t h e burden o f wisdom which t h e

a g e s had bequea thed t o him". ' One of t h e c e n t r a l t h e n e s of

a l l t h e s t o r i e s i s e x p r e s s e d by C h a n d l e r : "The re was no

d o u b t a b o u t i t ; i f you wanted t o s u c c e e d you had t o g o

away ' ' . g The g i r l E v e l i n e c a n n o t r u n away w i t h h e r l o v e r

b e c a u s e s h e is p a s s i v e l i k e a h e l p l e s s an ima l and

r e c o n c i l e s h e r s e l f t o b e i n g a p r i s o n e r f o r l i f e . A l l t h e

D u b l i n e r s a p p e a r e x t r e m e l y d e f i c i e n t i n mora l f i b r e . J o y c e

h i m s e l f o b s e r v e s : " I c a l l t h e s e r i e s D u b l i n e r s t o b e t r a y

t h e s o u l of t h a t h e m i p l e g i a o r p a r a l y s i s which many

c o n s i d e r a c i t y . " 1 ° J u s t i f y i n g h i s emphas i s on s p i r i t u a l

p a r a l y s i s , he w r i t e s ,

I t is n o t my f a u l t t h a t t h e odour of a s h p i t s and o l d weeds and o f f a l hangs round my s t o r i e s . I s e r i o u s l y b e l i e v e t h a t .you w i l l r e t a r d t h e c o u r s e of c i v i l i z a t i o n i n I r e l a n d by p r e v e n t i n g t h e I r i s h p e o p l e from h a v i n g one good l o o k a t t h e m s e i y e s i n my n i c e l y p o l i s h e d l o o k i n g g l a s s .

"Hy i n t e n t i o n " , J o y c e w r o t e t o a p u b l i s h e r , "was t o w r i t e a

c h a p t e r i n t h e mora l h i s t o r y of my c o u n t r y and I c h o s e

Dubl in f o r t h e s c e n e because t h a t c i t y seemed t o n e t h e

c e n t r e of p a r a l ~ s i s . " ~ ~ I n t h e s t o r y "The Dead", t h e

a tmosphe re of e n e r v a t i n g v a c u i t y is evoked s u c c e s s f u l l y

t h r o u g h a r e a l i s t i c a c c o u n t of t h e a n n u a l dance g i v e n by

t h r e e s p i n s t e r s a t t h e i r home.

J o y c e ' s a r t is used t o r e v e a l more t h e s o r d i d t h a n

t h e b e a u t i f u l i n l i f e . S t a n i s l a u s S t ephen once compla ined

t o h i s b r o t h e r , "To me you seem t o have e s c a p e d f rom t h e

t o i l s o f t h e p r i e s t and t h e k i n g o n l y t o f a l l unde r t h e

o p p r e s s i o n of a mons t rous v i s i o n of l i f e i t s e l f . . . There is

no s e r e n i t y o r h a p p i n e s s anywhere i n t h e book."13 But

J o y c e ' s pe s s imi sm is redeemed by t h e i r o n i c s t a n c e adop ted

by him. He c h o o s e s t o l augh r a t h e r t h a n t o r a i l a t l i f e ' s

i r o n i e s . His pes s imi sm " d r e s s e s now i n cap and b e l l s ,

c o v e r i n g a s a d h e a r t w i t h a gay cos tume , even a s a

Shakespea rean fool:'14 He d i r e c t s h i s comic s a t i r e a g a i n s t

a wide r a n g e of human f o l l i e s .

P u t u m a i p p i t t a n ' s pe s s imi sm may a l s o b e d e s c r i b e d i n

s i m i l a r t e r m s . H i s l a c k of f a i t h i n God and men is e v i d e n t

i n a number of s t o r i e s . "TuqpakkZ?i ' ' (The Wel l of H i s e r y )

and "Po??akaram" (The Golden C i t y ) a r e p a i n f u l n a r r a t i o n s

of t h e s u f f e r i n g s of i n n o c e n t women who a r e f o r c e d b y a

b r u t a l s o c i e t y t o s a c r i f i c e t h e i r honour f o r f o o d .

"Kalyi ;n iW i s a l y r i c a l e x p r e s s i o n of t h e p a n g s of l o v e

expe r i enced by a Young l ady mar r i ed t o an o l d man o b l i v i o u s

he r emo t iona l needs and d e s i r e s . The g r i n d i n g p o v e r t y of

a w r i t e r whose ambi t i on t o w r i t e a g r e a t nove l remains

f o r e v e r u n f u l f i l l e d becomes t h e s u b j e c t - m a t t e r of t h e s t o r y

' Oru Ng? K a i i n t a t u " ( A Day P a s s e d ) . I n " ~ T y a i k E l a Mayakkan"

( T w i l i g h t I l l u s i o n ) , a coup le of g o a t s f i g h t i n g a g a i n s t

each o t h e r n o t r e a l i s i n g t h a t t h e y were t o be s l a u g h t e r e d

t h e n e x t day is an e x p l i c i t symbo l i c r e p r e s e n t a t i o n of t h e

f u t i l i t y of human l i f e :

Why a r e t h e y i n a h u r r y when t h e i r b lood is t o be shed on t h e a l t a r tomorrow?

Tha t is what is i n t e r e s t i n g ! Tha t s t r u g g l e is t h e s e c r e t of l i f e , t h e ph i lo sophy

of l i f e . Human c i v i l i z a t i o n has been t h r i v i n g on t h i s f a i t h

o n l y . Next: I d o n ' t know a b o u t i t . I f t h e y know t h e y a r e g o i n g t o be s a c r i f i c e d

tomorrow, how can t h e y t h i n k of s u c h f i g h t ?

P u t u m a i p p i t t a n h imse l f d e c l a r e s t h a t t h e common

c h a r a c t e r i s t i c of h i s s t o r i e s is l a c k of op t imi sm. l6 But i n

h i s s t o r i e s a l s o , t h e p e s s i m i s t i c o u t l o o k is m i t i g a t e d by

t h e comic i r o n y t h a t is dominant t h roughou t

TBva I rakkam Ni;tZr, a Bench Cour t m a g i s t r a t e , f i n e s

a poor h o r s e - c a r t d r i v e r f i v e r u p e e s i g n o r i n g h i s h e a r t -

r e n d i n g p l e a s and a t n i g h t p r a y s t o God:

Our F a t h e r ! . . . F o r g i v e u s o u r s i n s . Welvlso f o r g i v e t h o s e Who a r e i n d e b t e d t o u s .

There is a ' s w a m i j i ' of t h e T h e o s o p h i c a l S o c i e t y a d d r e s s i n g

a l e a r n e d a u d i e n c e :

Man h a s been f i g h t i n g f o r h i s i d e a l s . T h e r e have been s o many war s and c o n f l i c t s . But t r u t h is one ! T h e r e a r e many p a t h s t o r e a c h i t . But man is i g n o r a n t of t h i s . What we u t t e r is a l s o t r u t h . D i f f e r e n c e s a r e o n l y s k i n - d e e p . He g o e s on i n t h i s v e i n i n t h e h a l l of an i n n f rom which a poo r f a m i l y h a s been d r i v e n o u t i n a s t o r m y r a i n s o t h a t t h e ed a t e d t h e o s o p h i s t s may have a p e a c e f u l mee t ing ! b3 H i s mo the r - we d o n ' t know i f t h e u n t o u ~ $ a b l e s have t h e r i g h t t o r e a c h Heaven - e x p i r e d . .

I n t h e s t o r y a b o u t a young widow who commits s u i c i d e , he

w r i t e s :

My hand t r e m b l e s t o w r i t e a b o u t t h e f a t e of women. But i s i t n o t n a t u r a l i n t h e Hindu s o c i e t y which h a s d i s c o v e r e d f a t e s t h e supreme r e a s o n f o r a l l t h e woes of l i f e

I f you want t o know t h a t t h i s is n o t t h e a g e of K a l i b u t of a d v e r t i s e m e n t you s h o u l d s e e t h e c i t y by n i g h t . These crowds!-why s u c h a h u r r y ? T h i t h e b a s i s of c i v i l i s a t i o n - c o m p e t i t i o n , hurry!'lis

Acco rd ing t o H a r r y L e v i n , " t h e open s t r u c t u r e which

c a s u a l l y a d a p t s i t s e l f t o t h e f l o w of e x p e r i e n c e , and t h e

c l o s e t e x t u r e , which g i v e s p r e c i s e n o t a t i o n t o s e n s i t i v e

o b u e r v a t i o r ~ , a r e u h a r u o t a r i u t i c of Joyoban n a r r a t i v e " . 2 2 He

d i s c a r d e d t h e o l d e r t e c h n i q u e of s h o r t s t o r y w r i t i n g t o b e

found i n t h e w r i t i n g s of Haupas san t , 0. Henry and o t h e r s ,

who a t t e m p t e d t o make d a i l y l i f e more e v e n t f u l by

u n s c r u p u l o u s m a n i p u l a t i o n of s u r p r i s e s and c o i n c i d e n c e s .

Very l i t t l e happens i n t h e s h o r t s t o r i e s o f J o y c e . Here t h e

a r t i s t is t r u e t o t h e u n e v e n t f u l n e s s t o w h i c h . t h e l i v e s of

modern men and women have been r e d u c e d . "An Encoun te r " and

"Two G a l l a n t s " may be c i t e d a s supreme examples of t h i s

k i n d .

I n P u t u m a i p p i t t a n ' s s t o r i e s a l s o , t h e c o n c e n t r a t i o n

is on r i c h t e x t u r e . When he a p p e a r e d on t h e Tami l l i t e r a r y

s c e n e , he n a t u r a l l y sounded a r e v o l u t i o n a r y n o t e s i n c e h i s

p r e d e c e s s o r s and c o n t e m p o r a r i e s d u r i n g t h e Gandhian e r a

chose n a t i o n a l i s m . Gandhism and s o c i a l e v i l s l i k e c a s t e

sy s t em and d r i n k a s themes f o r t h e i r p o p u l a r s t o r i e s

w r i t t e n i n an a l m o s t n a i v e s t y l e . He d i d n o t h e s i t a t e t o

a t t a c k t h e s i m p l i s t i c s e n t i m e n t a l s t u f f of t h e s e w r i t e r s

and l a i d t h e f o u n d a t i o n f o r t h e modern s h o r t s t o r y i n

T a m i l . A s h o r t s t o r y w i t h t h e q u e s t i o n mark a s t h e t i t l e

r e p o r t i n g a b r i e f one -page d i a l o g u e be tween a g u r u and h i s

d i s c i p l e on t h e n a t u r e of r e l a t i o n s h i p between God and t h e

world r e v e a l s t h a t he was f a r ahead of h i s t i m e i n h i s

c h o i c e of s u b j e c t - m a t t e r and n a r r a t i v e t e c h n i q u e .

" N i k a i v u p p Z t a i " [The P a t h o f Though t ] t r a c e s t h e t h o u g h t s

of an o l d man who l o s e s h i s w i f e i n t h e fo rm o f f o u r o r

f i v e d r a m a t i c s c e n e s . "Kayi_r:aravu" [Rope -Se rpen t ] ,

supposed t o be h i s l a s t s t o r y , r e a d s l i k e an e x q u i s i t e

t r e a t i s e on man and t h e f l u x of t i m e .

The s t o r i e s of Joyce and P u t u m a i p p i t t a n may b e

c a l l e d s e c u l a r e p i p h a n i e s s i n c e t h e y a r e s t r i k i n g

r e v e l a t i o n s of t h e l i v e s of t h e p e o p l e s whom t h e y have

chosen t o p r e s e n t . Epiphany s i g n i f i e s t h e sudden f l a r e i n t o

r e v e l a t i o n of an o r d i n a r y o b j e c t o r s c e n e . When J o y c e c a l l s

h i s w r i t i n g s e p i p h a n i e s , he wan t s t o emphas i ze t h a t t h e

moments a r r e s t e d i n h i s d e s c r i p t i o n s , t h e p a t h e t i c and

s o r d i d g l i m p s e s a l s o o f f e r a k ind of r e v e l a t i o n t hough v e r y

d i f f e r e n t f rom t h e m a n i f e s t a t i o n t h a t d a z z l e d t h e w i s e men

of t h e E a s t . His t h e o r y of e p i p h a n i e s is e x p l i c i t l y s t a t e d

i n Stephen Hero. By an e p i p h a n y , he meant a sudden

s p i r i t u a l m a n i f e s t a t i o n , w h e t h e r i n t h e v u l g a r i t y of s p e e c h

o r of g e s t u r e o r i n a memorable p h a s e of t h e mind i t s e l f .

He b e l i e v e d t h a t i t was f o r t h e man of l e t t e r s t o r e c o r d

t h e s e e p i p h a n i e s w i t h e x t r e m e c a r e , s e e i n g t h a t t h e y

t h e m s e l v e s a r e t h e most d e l i c a t e and e v a n e s c e n t o f moments.

He t o l d C r a n l y t h a t t h e c l o c k of t h e B a l l a s t O f f i c e was

c a p a b l e of an e p i p h a n y . C r a n l y q u e s t i o n e d t h e i n s c r u t a b l e

d i a l of t h e B a l l a s t O f f i c e w i t h no l e s s i n s c r u t a b l e

c o u n t e n a n c e .

' Y e s ' , s a i d S t e p h e n , ' I w i l l p a s s i t t i m e a f t e r t . i s e , ~ 1 1 1 1 0 ~ : t o i t , r e f e r t o i t , c a t c h a g l i m p s e of i t . i t i s o n l y an l t em i ~ i t h e o a t a l u g u a or D u b l i n ' s s t r e e t f u r n i t u r e . Then a l l a t once I s e e i t and I know a t once what it is ep iphany?

'Wha t ' ?

' I m a g i n e my g l i m p s e a t t h a t c l o c k a s t h e g r o p i n g s of a s p i r i t u a l eye which s e e k s t o a d j u s t i ts v i s i o n t o an e x a c t f o c u s . The moment t h e f o c u s is r eached t h e o b j e c t is e g i p h a n i s e d . I t i s j u s t i n t h i s ep iphany I f i n d t h e t h i r d , t h e supreme q u a l i t y of b e a u t y ' .

I r e l a n d i s J o y c e ' s microcosm. As Har ry Lev in o b s e r v e s , "The

world was h i s p a r i s h , h i s u n i v e r s e is ~ a r o o h i a l " . ~ ~ The

c i t y of Dub l in is "commemorated s t r e e t by s t r e e t " . 2 4

P u t u m a i p p i t t a n ' s d e s c r i p t i o n s of t h e immed iac i e s of d a i l y

l i f e , of t h e s t r e e t s and l andmarks , t h e sounds and s m e l l s ,

of t h e h a r i j a n s , t h e p i i l a i s , t h e c h e t t i y z r s and t h e

b rahmins of t h e v i l l a g e s of h i s n a t i v e T i r u n e l v e ' l i d i s t r i c t

w i t n e s s t o h i s powers of o b s e r v a t i o n

But t h e n we c a n n o t be b l i n d t o t h e s t r i k i n g

d i f f e r e n c e s between t h e two w r i t e r s . One h a s won an

i n t e r n a t i o n a l r e p u t a t i o n and t h e o t h e r h a s been v e r y

g r u d g i n g l y c o n f e r r e d o n l y a r e g i o n a l name. The s h o r t

s t o r i e s of J o y c e mark o n l y t h e f i r s t p h a s e of h i s c a r e e r

and he v e r y soon e v o l v e d i n t o a v e r y g r e a t a r t i s t and

r e a c h e d f a r g r e a t e r h e i g h t s i n The Portrait, U l y s s e s and

Pinnegans Wake, which a r e acknowledged monuments of

aesthetic achievement. There seems to have been no such

marked growth in Putumaippittan's career. The short story

was his forte and his attempts at writing a great novel

like those of his own artist-heroes must have proved

abortive. Joyce mastered many languages including Norwegian

and could have easily become a Professor of Romance

Languages at University College. Putumaippittan's knowledge

of Tamil was not very sound even though he could handle

without any flaw its dialects used in Tirunelvzli and

Madras. His acquaintance with Tamil literature was limited

d to a few works like KamparZma'y~am and a few stray poems

which he would have studied in his school and college days.

And we do not have evidence of his grounding in any

discipline other than literature. Perhaps the one

limitation of Joyce is that "his imagination is auditory

rather than visual" ,25 since he lived much of his life in

a state of semi-blindness. His prose must be read aloud to

be fully appreciated. Putumaippittan's adaptations of some

old Indian myths are to be found in stories like "Anr_u

Iravu" [That Night], "Akalyai" , and "Cgpa Vim5canam". Joyce

seems to have reserved this strategy for the novel.

According to Putumaippittan's disciple and

biographer, Ragunathan, he was fond of the writings of

Thomas Hardy, Emile Zola, Balzac, Mark Twain, Sinclair

Lewis , Henry M i l l e r , T o l s t o y , Dos toevsky and Chekhov. Even

though J o y c e is n o t i n c l u d e d i n t h i s l i s t , P u t u m a i p p i t t a n

pays a g l o w i n g t r i b u t e t o t h e I r i s h a r t i s t i n t h e p r e f a c e

t o t h e c o l l e c t i o n , ~iin"ca~.zi, c a l l i n g him " t h e l a s t g r e a t

f l ame" i n t h e h i s t o r y of E n g l i s h l i t e r a t ~ r e . ' ~ J u s t a s

Joyce was i n s p i r e d by t h e example of I b s e n , h i s

u n d e r g r a d u a t e i d o l , P u t u m a i p p i t t a n mus t have been i m p r e s s e d

w i t h J 0 y c e . s d e d i c a t i o n t o a r t . And what Lev in s a y s of t h e

I r i s h m a s t e r i s t r u e of t h e Tami l w r i t e r a l s o : " H i s example

of a e s t h e t i c i d e a l i s m , s e t by a b n e g a t i o n and a r t i s t r y , i s a

s t a n d i n g r ebuke t o f a c i l i t y and ~ e n a l i t y " . ~ ~

NOTES & REFERENCES

1 . Ra. Naa. Subramaniam c o n s i d e r s P u t t u m a i p p i t t a n t h e b e s t of t h e I n d i a n s h o r t s t o r y w r i t e r s .

2 . Darcy 0 ' B r i e n , The Conscience of James Joyce ( P r i n c e t o n : P r i n c e t o n U n i v e r s i t y P r e s s , 1 9 6 8 ) , p . 293 .

3 . Ha r ry L e v i n , e d . The Portable James Joyce (New York: Pengu in Books , 1 9 7 7 ) , p . 4 .

4 . The Portable James Joyce, pp .146 -8

5 . Darcy O ' B r i e n , p . 2 4 3 .

6 . P u t u m a i p p i t t a n , XTi,?cca;ai (Madura i -1 : Meenaksh i P u t t a k a Ni layam, 1 9 4 3 ) .

7 . Darcy O ' B r i e n , p . 1 5

8 . The Portable James Joyce, p . 8 1 .

9 . Ibid., p . 8 3 . 1 0 . Quoted i n Darcy O ' B r i e n , The Conscience of James

Joyce, P . 1 5 .

11. Quoted i n Darcy O ' B r i e n , p . 1 6 .

1 2 . Ibid., P . 1 6 .

13. Quoted i n Darcy O ' B r i e n , p . 2 4 5 .

1 4 . Ibid. , P . 241 .

15. P u t u m a i p p i t t a n , Putumaippittan Kataikal (Hadura i -1 : Heenaksh i P u t t a k a Nilayam, 1 9 x 0 ) , p . 2 2 1 .

I f i . Cluot.nrl i n T . H u r u g a r a t t i n a m . Putumaippitta~ Ci~ukataikkalai (Madura i -1 : 1976) ,p .1 '71 .

1 7 . P u t u m a i p p i t t a n , "NiyZyam", Putumaippittan Pataippuka! ( C h e n n a i : A i n t i n a i p p a t i p p a k a m , 1 9 8 7 ) , p . 141 .

1 8 . "VPlkka i" , Putumaippittan Pataippuka!, p . 318 .

19. "Tani Oruvanukku" , Pu tumaippittan Pataippuka f , p . 7 5 3 .

2 1 . "Kavanta2um Khmanurn" , Putumaippi ttaj! PaLaippukai, p . 3 2 4 .

22 . Har ry L e v i n , ( e d . ) The Portable James Joyce, p . 1 8

23. Harry L e v i n , p . 1 4 .

2 4 . Ibid., P. 11.

25 . Har ry L e v i n , p . 1 1 .

26 . P u t u m a i p p i t t a n , ~ ~ f c a ~ a i , p . 3 .

27 . Har ry L e v i n , p . 1 5 .