International Journal of The Frontiers of English Literature and The ...

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International Journal of The Frontiers of English Literature and The Patterns of ELT

January 2013

www.englishjournal.mgit.ac.in

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An Exploration of Language Used by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni to Express the Concept of Stream of Consciousness in Her Selected Novels

DR. PARVATHI.V Associate Professor & Head Department of H&SS College of Engineering, JNTUH, Hyderabad- 85.

Ms FARHAT FATIMA Research Scholar Department of H&SS College of Engineering, JNTUH, Hyderabad- 85.

Abstract Stream of Consciousness is a narrative device used in literature to show the characters’ flow of thoughts and feelings through the mind. The thoughts are not related or rather disconnected to each other, but they flow like a ‘river’ or ‘stream’, which are random, disorderly and jump from one area to another. It was William James who formulated the “Stream of Consciousness” in his Principles of Psychology (1890) and he offered the most widely accepted map of consciousness. According to him, mental processes are not always language-based because they emerge from sensations and are expressed through images and symbols.

Divakaruni, a contemporary

diasporic writer, uses the technique of ‘Stream of Consciousness” in her novels to portray the impediments she faces due to her Indian origin and cultural background amidst modern American values. She is conversant with the themes of migration, homelessness, exile, loss of identity, and rootlessness. By being away from her motherland, she realizes the vulnerability of her identity, which she expresses in many ways through the voice of her protagonists.

This

article aims at studying the language component used by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni to express the concept of Stream of Consciousness in her novels viz., “Mistress of Spices”( 1997) and “Queen of Dreams” (2004)

KEYWORDS

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Diasporic, Feelings, Figures of Speech, Images, Symbols, Thoughts.

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INTRODUCTION Stream of Consciousness is a narrative device used in literature to show the characters’ flow of thoughts and feelings through the mind. The thoughts are not related or rather disconnected to each other, but they flow like a ‘river’ or ‘stream’, which are random, disorderly and jump from one area to another. It was William James who formulated the “Stream of Consciousness” in his Principles of Psychology (1890) and he offered the most widely accepted map of consciousness. According to him, mental processes are not always language-based because they emerge from sensations and are expressed through images and symbols. Henry James, a famous writer, and, younger brother of William James, altered the aspects of the subconciousness from the field of Psychology to Literature. The most well known examples of Stream of Consciousness in literature are James Joyce’s novel, Ulysses and Virginia Woolf’s Mrs. Dalloway. According to William James, Mental processes are not always language – based because they emerge from sensations and are expressed through images and symbols… (James 152) 1 Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni is a contemporary, modern, writer who strives to explore the complicated identities of diasporic communities in her novels. She authored nearly twenty books. Most of her writings address issues pertaining to immigrants and the diaspora. She writes on common and cohesive experiences of South Asian Communities and a few of her themes are the culture shocks, transformations, concepts of home and self in a new land faced by immigrant people. She also writes on her own life reflections in her work and her style of writing is innovative which attracts readers’ attention. EXPLORATION OF LANGUAGE Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni portrays through her expressions and language how IndianAmericans living in America crave for their Indian culture through various contexts. These IndoAmericans have two set of minds. Neither, they can leave their Indian values and ethics nor they can accept the American culture completely. Most of her novels are closely linked to the memories of her childhood in India, and by being away from her motherland; she realizes the

Divakaruni to express the concept of Stream of Consciousness in her novels namely “Mistress of January 2013


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protagonists. This article aims at studying the language component used by Chitra Banerjee

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vulnerability of her identity, which she expresses in many ways through the voice of her


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Spices” and “Queen of Dreams”. She uses question tags, phrasal verbs, particular punctuation marks and figures of speech in her novels to express different thoughts. Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni’s work is illustrative of Stream of Consciousness technique; let us see an excerpt from her novel Mistress of Spices (1997) For a year – or was it two, or three? Time runs into itself at moments in my tale - I lived as queen, leading my pirates to fame and glory, so that bards sang their fearless exploits….(Divakaruni 19) In the above extract Divakaruni portrays the consciousness of the protagonist Tilotamma. In Tilo’s adolescent years, pirates storm into her home, plunder and murder her entire family and abduct her, taking her on board their ship as a prisoner. In time, Tilo overthrows the pirate captain to become the pirate queen, leading pirates to fame and glory, so that bards sang their fearless exploits. When we analyse this sentence firstly, there is no first – person narrative mode. Secondly, the focalization is on the inner world of Tilo, the Protagonist in the novel. Her thoughts are reflected in her works. Thirdly, the entire construction is just in one singular complex sentence. In Queen of Dreams too she has used Stream of Consciousness mode to express her narration, an excerpt follows to portray the same: Do not despair. Reach into the well of yourself and draw up the necessary meaning, for the meanings of all dreams are ultimately inside you, and not in the words I speak……(Divakaruni 78) The above words are spoken by Rakhi’s (protagonist) mother who is a dream interpreter. The

than yours. Even the religious books will not help you to deal with the situation .Than she says

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tells the reader, what will happen, when you are in a different country, whose culture is different

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lines emphasizes on sense perceptions. Divakaruni through the consciousness of the character


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do not mourn and try to find answer in your heart, for the answers are in you. This sentence has ambiguity because it speaks about adjustment problems of diasporic communities and it also has circular reasoning as Divakaruni tries to emphasize to work according to your heart. As Virginia Woolf rightly says: “Language is wine on the lips” The language used in Divakaruni’s novel Mistress of Spices is the cadence of a single woman, Tilo’s question to herself. It is a graceful combination of prose and poetry. It is a colorful depiction of today’s contemporary society. Each chapter is named after a spice, which in turn is related to the characters of the novel. Tilo (protagonist) dishes out spices from her store to people of her community. She solves their problems and gives them their heart’s desires. This novel is a contrast of east and west and conflict between old and new and is a powerful exploration of relationships. The language used in Queen of Dreams is brilliant, vivid and resplendent. The novel begins with the inner thoughts and feelings of Rakhi (protagonist) and her mother which is in stream of Consciousness Technique. It’s a figural narrative mode where the flow of thoughts is represented by means of long –winding, interconnected sentences. Divakaruni has used Metaphors at various places in The Mistress of Spices like, that Dissatisfaction old poison I thought I’d been cured of, bubbles up thick and viscious in me(71) and This is why I left the island where each day still is melted sugar and cinnamon.(7) In Queen of Dreams also she has used rich and colorful metaphors like: She turns hunted deer eyes to me(104) and My whisper voice raised its serpent head to remind me that I, too, was to blame.(111). Aristotle says in poetics that a genius writer will have an eye for resemblance and will have a command on his metaphors. By using metaphors Divakaruni has made a spell on the reader and gripped them in the fascinating tales of the novels, in the joys and sorrows of the characters. Similes are usually used by writers for the purpose of painting a picture in the mind of the reader. In her novel The mistress of Spices, Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni has used beautiful, tough and exquisite language with often similes incorporated in the sentences like Sunset skies brilliant as blood (3). Divakaruni has used this simile to tell about the spices available in India. While

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lentil flour, laddus like nugget of gold (4). In her novel Queen of Dreams Divakaruni has crafted a

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describing sweets she uses similes like Emerald green burfis, rasogollahs white as dawn, and, made from


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vivid dream, through her consciousness and by using similes like: His plated green skin shone like rainwater on banana plants in the garden plot we used to tend behind the dream caves (1) and The rain was warm, like human tears (82) and His eyes were red, like a night animal’s (125). Through these similes Divakaruni has described the beauty of a snake, rainfall of India and protagonist husband’s look and gave us beautiful comparison. We can imagine the things as if they are in front of us and we are able to see them and perceive. Divakaruni navigates her sentences beautifully with Antithesis in her novels. In Mistress of Spices she has used antithesis as Raven, tonight lay on my windowsill amritanjan, ointment that is like cold fire, hot ice (205). In Queen of Dreams Divakaruni has used marvelous combination of splendid words crafted beautifully into antithesis as Death ends things, but it can be a beginning, (3 too). Divakaruni has used Antithesis to express remarkable and glowing descriptions. She has used powerful phrases which have changed her style of thought, and added deviation, beautification and gilding to her literary work. Divakaruni also used the technique of personification in which human traits (qualities, feelings, action or characteristics) are given to non living objects (things, colors, qualities or ideas) such as The window winked at me. Divakaruni has personified few sentences elegantly in The Mistress of Spices like But today the light is pink-tinted like just –bloomed karabi flowers(81) and in Queen of Dreams too she has beautifully fabricated sentences as She felt panic ,dry and scaly ,slither through her body(123). Divakaruni has used personification to make her novels more interesting and to setup a certain mood. Further, she also uses personification to help the reader relate more to the idea that is personified as it is easier for the reader, to relate to something with human being attributes. Parenthesis is a word or phrase inserted as an explanation or afterthought into a passage which is grammatically complete without it. It is usually marked off by brackets. Some of Divakaruni’s sentences in The mistress of Spices are structured with parenthesis like My American’s feet, I decide, are beautiful. (And his face? Ah, already I have lost the distance needed to discern

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worst part was, he expected me to snap out of my bad mood (the bad mood he’d put me in) equally rapidly

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that.)(151) and in Queen of Dreams too Divakaruni has used parenthesis quite effectively as The

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(138). Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni uses parentheses into her text to fit certain words that normally wouldn’t fit into the flow of her text but she nonetheless want to include. Chitra Banerjee has used phrasal verbs in The Mistress of Spices at some occasions like throw off(115) but in Queen of Dreams she has used phrasal verbs at various places like gives up(172),swirl up(171),fall away(171,let up(74). Divakaruni uses phrasal verbs in her novels to show that her narration is informal in nature. In Mistress of Spices, Divakaruni has used words with hyphen like Perfect-fitted (4), Childlonging(16) to make her language classic and kaleidoscopic. In Queen of Dreams too Divakaruni has used poignant, marvelous hyphenated words like Ice –cream sellers (150), Chef-cum-peacemaker (159). By using these punctuation marks and figures of speech Divakaruni has created a spell of pure magic in her expressions and narration. Divakaruni uses graceful and artistic language to express her thoughts. At places she uses sayings in The Mistress of Spices like “Power is weakness” (174) and “Greatest happiness brings greatest loss” (174) to express wisdom and truth. In Queen of Dreams, Divakaruni uses question tags at various places such as: ‘You’re angry with me, aren’t you?’(115) and ‘You blame me, don’t you? (115) Divakaruni has used these question tags for a confirmation by Rakhi’s (protagonist) father to know whether Rakhi blames him for her mother’s accident. The question tag ‘That’s the real problem, isn’t it? (137) has been used by Rakhi’s husband to make a comment at Rakhi and to keep the conversation open. Devakaruni uses symbolism with Stream of Consciousness in her language. Her language is thick with culture fibre and Hindu myths in it. In both her novels The Mistress of Spices and Queen of Dreams she talks about the ‘snakes’. According to Hindu Mythology snakes are seen as entities of strength and renewal. They primarily represent rebirth, death and mortality. An excerpt from The Mistress of Spices Snakes. Oldest of creatures, closest to the earth mother, all sinew and glide against her breast.

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Always I have loved them…… (Divakaruni 21)

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The protagonist initially known as Nayan Tara used to play in heat-cracked fields behind her father’s house and when she used to be sweaty the land snakes used to shield her from sun .Later when she became a pirate she was called bhagyavati, at that time her life was saved by the snakes and they used to tell her stories of Nagraj. They were her friends; they used to whisper to her. Later when she became The Mistress of spices and was named as Tilotamma she used to feel their presence in her spice store. An excerpt from Queen of Dreams Last night the snake came to me…. (Divakaruni 1) This sentence is the beginning sentence of the novel where protagonist ‘Rakhi’s’ mother sees a snake in her dream. Her consciousness comes to her in the form of a snake and foretells her about a change in life. Maybe a death hence she should understand and redo the things which she has carried out badly. She ruminates about the snake telling her that death ends things but it can be a beginning in other ways. Dreams are a succession of images, sensations, ideas and emotions that occur involuntarily in mind during the sleep and dream interpretation is the assigning of meaning to the dreams. Divakaruni has emphasized on dreams in both her novels The Mistress of spices and Queen of Dreams through stream of consciousness. An excerpt from The Mistress of Spices I have dreamed the island often, but this is different (Divakaruni 92) Here the protagonist sees a dream where she is on her island in her class room where her mother is teaching how as a Mistress of Spices she should not break the delicate fabric of the balanced world. Tilo wakes up and interprets her dream as a forewarning from her mother. An excerpt from Queen of Dreams In the dream – she’s had it several timed now – she is in a walled garden (Divakaruni 103)

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woman by interpreting her dream. She says to Rakhi that a dream is a telegram from the hidden

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The protagonist Rakhi’s mother is a dream interpreter and in the above lines she is helping a


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world and a fool or illiterate person ignores it. Divakaruni gives various interpretation for various symbols seen in dreams like dreaming a closed door means gaining success, a dream of milk and you are about to fall ill, mirror stands for a false friend, monkey stands for facing challenges in business. Divakaruni also uses the image of fire which is the provider of heat and light and the source of life and growth plays an important role in various aspects of the Hindu Tradition. Divakaruni in The Mistress of Spices speaks about the myth of shampati bird that dives into flames and gets burnt and again arose from her own ash as a new life. Thus through the consciousness of Tilo, Divakaruni portrays how Tilo begins a new life in America after passing through shampati’s fire. In Queen of Dreams Rakhi, the protagonist consciousness shows that her café “Kurma House” was burnt due to the ill-will of the rival hotel manager. But due to the will power of Rakhi and her father it was again created. Thus Divakaruni states that fire can be a creator and destroyer of life. Divakaruni is a steadfast supporter of Ayurvedic medicine. It is a system of healing that originated in ancient India. Her dedicated support not only can be seen in her novel Mistress of Spices but also can be found in Queen of Dreams. In Mistress of Spices each chapter is dedicated to a spice like Turmeric, Cinnamon, Fenugreek, Asafoetida etc., and their significance. In Queen of Dreams just a mention of spices like cumin, red chilies, bay leaves, Fennel and Cinnamon and their odour is given.

Divakaruni has also attached special significance to certain spices

according to the days of the week. She dispenses spices from her store to people of her community according to their nature and solves their problems and gives them their hearts desires.

The spice Makaradwaj, according to myth is the conqueror of time. Tilo’s

consciousness speaks to the spice, Makaradwaj make me beautiful, and such beauty as on this earth never was. Spices speak to Tilo and they profess to love her. Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni by being away from her motherland realized the vulnerability of her identity, which she expresses in many ways through the voice of her protagonists. She has highlighted the problems faced by the Indian –Americans in America, though born and brought

talks about Dotbusters which was a hate group in Jersey City, in New Jersey. This group was

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her novels The Mistress of Spices as well as Queen of Dreams. In The Mistress of the Spices she

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up in America how vulnerable they are to racial discrimination and this she has depicted in both


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active from1987 to 1993 and its members attacked and threatened South Asians. The name Dotbusters originated from the fact that Hindu girls and women wear bindi or dot on their forehead and the racial slur given to them was dot head. Through the consciousness of the protagonist Tilo and her thoughts Divakaruni relates to the reader through her powerful expressions how insecure south –Asians feel when they are treated badly for wrong reasons. In Queen of Dreams Divakaruni narrates the repercussions of 9/11 attack on World Trade Centre. Divakaruni in her rich language sketched a picture of the protagonist Rakhi’s stream of consciousness. Like every Indian-American she felt distressed to see the destruction in America. Divakaruni also through the consciousness of Rakhi narrates how scared, angry and hurt the South Asians felt when they were unjustifiably blamed for what they have not done and were punished and told that they were not Americans. CONCLUSION Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni is a phenomenal writer of cultural exploration. She writes with a lyrical tone, using beautiful language expressions. In both the novels she brings some aspects of Hindu Mythology through the protagonist’s consciousness and thoughts. In The Mistress of Spices she portrays the tale of Shiva how in order to save the world; he drank the bitterest poison which was churned out by gods and demons.

In Queen of Dreams Divakaruni portrays the

character of Rakhi’s mother who is a dream interpreter and tells her husband to visit Shiva Vishnu temple. Her consciousness usually speaks with snakes. She helps people to solve their problems by interpreting their dreams. In this way Divakaruni is successful in using various language expressions namely question tags, punctuation marks, sayings etc., for the stream of consciousness technique. Thus, in both her novels, through the technique of Stream of consciousness, Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni tries to portray that a person who does well for others and tries to solve others problems selflessly will be blessed.

WORKS CITED Divakaruni, Chitra Banerjee The Mistress of Spices (1997) Black Swan publication 19 Print

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Divakaruni, Chitra Banerjee The Mistress of Spices (1997) Black Swan Publication 71 Print ….. 7

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--- , Chitra Banerjee Queen of Dreams (2004) Abacus publication 78 Print


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….. 3 ….. 4 ….. 205 ….. 81 …... 151 ….. 115 ….. 4 ….. 16 …..174 …. 21 ….. 92 Divakaruni, Chitra Banerjee Queen of Dreams (2004) Abacus Publication 104 Print ….. 111 ….. 1 ….. 82 ….. 125 …... 3 Divakaruni, Chitra Banerjee Queen of Dreams (2004) Abacus Publication 123 Print ….. 138 …... 172 ….. 171 ….. 74 …..150 …. 159

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…. 115

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….137


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…. 1 …. 103 William, James The Principles of Psychology (1890) 152-153 http://psychclassics.yorku.ca/James/Principles/ Web 30, October 2012. Woolf,Virginia http://www.macmillandictionaryblog.com/language-is-wine-upon-the-lips

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Web 3,November 2012 .

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