An account on Funny Boy

et in Sri Lankan reality during 1980`s Sham Selvadurai`s Funny Boy has evidently taken the grounds of Sri Lankan English literature critically and seriously analyzing the socio political agendas being manipulated as a result of the ethnic tension swept across the contemporary Sri Lankan society. Salvadurai brings forth the plights of ethnicity, class demarcations along side of the sexual quest of the protagonist, Arjie. The narrator foregrounds how the socio political sensibilities fused with inhumanity produce a crackling chapter in our country. In this essay we exemplify socio economical facets of the novel in the backdrop of political manifestation.

According to the voice of Salvadurai with the introduction of open economy in 1977 the conventional, traditional society turned up side down depicting the end of socialism. Though, it is said, that there were a sudden availability of imported goods for the convenience of the elite, rustic peasants faced immense chaos. Moreover, cocktail parties, dinner parties and dances made the serene social web perplexed solely due to their alien aspects. It is to be noted that American style super market concept harshly attacked the Sri Lankan economy. Even though the life became more comfortable ,the Sri Lankan indigenous, self sustained ways of living were slowly fading away from the society itself. In the voice of the narrator, the tourism, boasted by the open economy, spread its nasty tentacles on innocent children where they being sexually exploited in the hands of some foreigners. We are told that it is not just our luscious beaches that keep the tourist industry going. Meaning that there are ways in which the industry sucks the blood of our country as one giant leech. In addition, due to many social and political reasons, abuse of power can be seen through the lines of the text. The role of the police during chaos is a fine example. When questioned about Daryl uncle, they exactly knew that they were pointed: You think he was killed by the police? Subsequently, This notion of power is not isolated, but more hierarchical, and organized. In the course of the novel we are told that the Jaffna library was burnt nearly destroying the entire academic future of Tamil agency. It is widely believed that there were some unseen political hands behind the scenario. Salvadurai depicts that the contemporary government wanted badly to stay in

power, thus the referendum was ushered. Our writer states that his parents never got a chance to vote. The picture being portrayed by Selvadurai cannot be believable, yet it resonates through out the history. We even see how much fingering there is in the society by the political agents. Therefore the people needed to be three wise monkeys.see no evil, hear no evil and speak no evil According to him, politician are rascals. Salvadurai further states during the mobs police and army stood by watching Many questioned Why aren`t the police and army stopping the mobs? The only possible clue leaves behind the writer is that it has been planned in advance Through Daryl uncle we come to know the police and the army are very cruel in Jaffna Though not clearly proven this has made Sinhalese and Tamils sworn enemies. Moreover, Salvadurai depicts that the press remain silent, and even in the course of the mobs there was still no mention of the trouble. We are told that the freedom of the press was deliberately silenced. It seems that the death of Daryl uncle means that digging deeper is a way of waving the death and is a metaphor to the death of a famous journalist, Richard De Soyza,a brilliant poet whose voice still resonates in Sri Lankan English poetry . Another major issue in the novel is the youth unrest that ignites the counterpart of Sri Lankan civil war. The Tamil youth of Jaffna being sandwiched between Sri Lankan army and LTTE called themselves as Lanka Tamil Tigers` Elam which was rooted out by present government in 2009 ending 30 years of war. Jegan, A Tamil youth from Jaffna states that they were not to question anything they do, after one became a tiger It is told that the Tamil youth can be killed by the Sinhalese here in the heart of the Colombo, and they can be killed by the police or tigers there in Jaffna. Due to the dark uncertainty then every Tamil is a tiger, until proven otherwise, a pathetic and desperate situation. Technically Jegan is innocent, but the society declared death to all Tamil Pariah ,a heart breaking statement Sinhalese people made not knowing the consequences. In the novel Jegan left Colombo saying that there are other alternatives, meaning probably he would join LTTE eventually. Salvadurai poses a question to all the readers asking where would a desperate man turn when all the doors are closed? Furthermore, the picture highlights the corruption at school level where Salvadurai brings forth the inequalities in the place where equality should be. We are told Victoria Academy from the management to the bottom layer was divided into two factions. Being a snake in the grass, Lokubandara was a

political appointee, and he wanted to make Victoria academy to be a Buddhist School closing the doors to all Tamil students. This, of course, did not happen in the course of the novel, yet some how or other ethnicity had gone to the school class room. This Sinhala Tamil thing is further deepened: How come you are in a Sinhala class? We don`t want you here..go to the Tamil class This signifies that the future generation of Sri Lanka being brain washed to ponder upon the ethnic discrimination, there by the corruption at school level manifests the tragedy of the back bone of Sri Lanka Finally, we analyze how the poor being victimized in the hands of the powerful. Somarathna, a poor servant boy, was deliberately propelled to the position of the scapegoat for Daryl`s murder. What is more important is what Somarathna`s mother said: What do you know about our suffering?... Though not materialized his mother foresees the on coming danger being the lowest classes of the country: What will happen to Somarathna then?..Have you thought of? Even police looked at him as a culprit claiming that dishonesty is instinctive to for them. Truly speaking it is they who are dishonest, but they put the black mark on powerless. The idea further accelerates when the cream of the society, Colombo seven was not affected during the riots at all: so far that area has not been affected at all It is thus apparent that the poor, laboring class is always affected in the wars formed by the elite who lives in the air conditioned rooms. Therefore, Sham Selvadurai`s Funny Boy penetrates the Sri Lankan political ground realties of a time in the country that cannot be easily erased from the memory of Lankan people both Sinhalese and Tamils. We as sensitive readers, through the novel, remember a chapter of violent, blood stained history in Sri Lanka by which the whole country became one of the notorious backbreaking

battlefields in the world. The shadows of what Salvadurai foregrounds still emerge from time to time remembering 1983.

by
Chinthaka S.Wickramasinghe 08/November/2010