COTTON UNIVERSITY

DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH

ALONG THE HIGH ROAD AS A

SOCIAL NOVEL: A Reading

Submitted By:
Rajashree Das
Roll No.: 41
Enrollment No.: ENG1761052
Shamima Parbin Ahmed
Roll No.: 45
Enrollment No.: ENG1761048
Submitted on: 1st Nov 2017
 ABSTRACT:
This paper tries to explore the various issues of social life in the
pre-independent novel Along the High Road (1944).
Stereotypical attitude regarding the class, family and gender roles
are explored through the characters in the narrative of the plot. It
shows how people of different stratum behave in a particular way
influenced by the social structure. The paper also tries to show
how the issues of the pre-independent era are relevant in todays
context.

KEYWORDS- Society, class, gender, tradition, status, regional.

ALONG the HIGH ROAD as a SOCIAL NOVEL: A Reading

The Social Novel , generally deals with the representation of society and
culture at a given point of time. Social novelists are critical of the social
structures which maintain these social evils and struggles.Social is a broad
term covering all aspects of human activity that displays an awareness of others.
Simply speaking it is an extraordinary reach of understanding of social life. Social
novels probes into the nature and function of society, its various institutions and
traditions. It involves individual, social and cultural changes in all the spheres of
life with their intricacies, and nuances: facts relating to family, class, marriage,
politics, economy, morality, religion, and educational standards. It relates more
to social readjustments and social maladjustments.

Social novel includes social consciousness, experience and social insight. It

emphasizes the influence of the social and economic conditions of an era on
shaping characters and determining events.Its primary goal is not to amuse but to
convince the observer of the evils.

Birinchi Kumar Baruas Jivanar Batot (translated into English as Along the High
Road by Lalit Kumar Barua) deals mainly with the social realities of an agrarian
society. It abounds with the local colour, humour and pathos'.

The author speaks of a society caught in the pull of tradition and modernity at a
transitional period and reflects on the formation of an Assamese identity bound
to be more complex and fragmented than an organic one.

Prof. Bhaben Barua remarks that,

Jivanar Batat is unquestionably the finest creation in the whole range of

Assamese literature, and along with a very few other Indian novels belong to that
rare category in which embodiment of reality becomes a revelation of its inner
tendencies: the weight of the tradition it bears and the pull of the future it
registers

Outer complexities revealing the inner conflict, particularly in Tagar, B K Barua

introduces such possibilities in organizing many a diverse ingredient into a
multilayered narrative art. Tagar the main character of the novel, is a woman of
purer intent and deeper sensitivity than any other person in the novel ,yet the
character is not idealized from any aspect. After her broken engagement with
Kamalakanta , Bapuram Bora the father of the main character,Tagar was left in a
total distraught . And on the top of that Bora was incited by the loose comments
from mauzadars wife and having seen Dharani, the weaving teacher beside Tagar
in close contact while instructing her on the loom, Bapuram found a proof of
mutual allurement between them. He didnt wait for any further investigation and
gave his daughter in marriage to Dharani and he sets off to pilgrimage with a
wounded heart. And after her marriage her sorrows instead of getting diminished
gets increased cruelly. She gets scrutinized right at the entrance of the journey
towards Dharani's house as a bride. Much disturbing is the fact that her mother in
law, Ahini along with the other women of the village humiliates her on a regular
basis. Later their bitter relationship changes at one sweep with the birth of
Kamali, but this bliss is utterly shortlived as Ahini dies very soon when Tagar was
treasuring the affection showered by mother-in-law. Then there are many
unfortunate events that follows in quick succession in Tagar's life. She gives birth
to a still born child for which Dharani becomes more aloof towards his family
duties. Instead of supporting Tagar during the hard times he goes on to do charity
work by giving all the responsibilities on the shoulders of Tagar. initial fragility and
inefficacy of traditional values and ideas are the causes of Tagars tragedy and this
is well tested in almost all of the village women. Soon, Dharani is put behind bars
for participating in the Freedom Movement where Tagar has to face with the evil
agencies of alien rule. The police inspector threatens to crush her under his feet
for all her defiance . He was grossly intolerant to a defenseless woman. But she
was saved from facing an ultimate humiliation due to Dharanis appearance on
the scene. But in the end of the novel he takes his revenge by putting false charge
on the woman and humiliated her by raiding her house. After Dharani comes out
of jail , he suffers from tuberculosis and dies inspite of Tagar's devoted nursing
and treatment provided by a kind doctor. Tagar, now in need of a livlihood ,joins a
weavers' guild.

Tagars inner crisis reflects the growing complexities arising out of the cultural
conflict between traditional values and its rupture with modernity. The situation
is rather diffusive and subversive for the growth of humanity and social stability.
Some aspects of traditional worldview are proved to be utterly useless due to the
progressive complexity (as for example, rigidity of caste prohibiting inter-caste
mobility, question of gender inequality, lack of adaptability to new orientation,
accepting rumour as the infallible truth about human personality etc.) The author,
appears to be critical of the nouveau middle class represented by characters such
as Kamalakanta and the police inspector, Madhab Mahanta with the traits of
crude selfishness and lack of commitment towards social values and ethics.

In the light of the complexity of traditional views, B. K. Barua raises the issue of
inter-caste difference through the conversation between Dharani's mother and
his uncle Sunod who are discussing over the matter of Dharani's marriage to a girl
who is below their caste. Sunod decided to send Manohar to dissuade Dharani,
his cousin from getting married to a girl of Ahom community being treated as an
outcaste by the Kalitas.

The writer has also brought out the issue of gender inequality . Tagar being a
woman has been subjected to the hegemonic construction of patriarchal
conditioning. Unlike her husband Dharani, despite his apparent indifference and
unmindfulness towards what should have been his primary responsibility,is
showered accolades by the society for his performance in public sphere. Tagar,
being in a disturbed mental state after giving birth to a still born child, was
burdened with the responsibility of managing the house completely on her own.
Dharani was active only in social sphere because society measured man's
masculinity and success by what he does outside whereas woman's feminity and
respect lies in her management of household chores.

The impact and consequences of rumour cannot be denied in any class of society .
Tagar and even her child are victims of these malicious village gossips. Tagar stops
Kamali from sending to school just because someone told the child that Dr. Golap
Bora is her father, not Dharani. The police successfully spreads the rumour that
Tagar and Dr. Golap are having an illicit relationship and planned the theft of
jewellery and money. He also claimed that Golap killed Dharani by giving him
wrong injections. And these shows that people like him are the true embodiment
of social maladjustment.

He has also featured the steady rise of a middle class from its lower strata to the
upper segment of aristocracy. People of middle class could qualify itself for
responsible medical, administrative or judicial posts by virtue of academic
brilliance ; but their commitment to social values and justice is questionable. All
expectations of modernity and its social goal stand fragmented, and deviated
from the humanist perception. Kamlakanta could not remain honest and
committed to his proposal of marriage to Tagar. Initially, Kamalakanta has in him
the gentle influence of his innocent mother but as he grows up to be an adult he
had received the lesson of worldly advancement and middle class mentality from
his father.

Rai Bahadur Manik Hazarika, represents the sheer opportunism and hypocrisy of
the upper segment of aristocracy. The prospect of a good job in Kamalakanta
drew him closer to the family of Mahikanta Hazarika. His intention was to give his
only daughter Suprobha in marriage to Kamala Kanta, the son of a lower middle
class clerk. Education, money, status and a secured job has always been the target
of this growing middle class. The power and wealth of the middle class of Assam is
adequately revealed to contrast with the sufferings of the peasantry. An account
of Kamalakantas encountering the fineries of the interior of Rai Bahadur Manik
Hazarikas drawing room in Jivanar Batat beautifully focuses on the luxury of the
middle class.

Only a privileged person is usually asked to sit in the drawing room. The room has
curtains all around; the curtains were multi coloured like a rainbow. There is a red
carpet, soft like fur on the floor; it seems to raise ones feet softly as soon as one
steps upon it by walking. Many a fine chair with raised top, a fine sofa and small
tables are neatly placed; there are teapoys placed here and there covered with a
top of stained glass. There are framed photographs, ivory and brass replicas of
animal figures and on the wall are huge precious landscape paintings of oil in
canvas.. (41; in L K Baruas translation).

People like Dharani and Golap doctor stand in sharp contrast to the emerging
middle class mentality and they seem to have been inspired with the Gandhian
model of village reorganization. The village life depicted in the novel is one of
decay and decadence inflicted by old-fashioned cultivation and very marginal
return due to floods or draught. Dharani with the help of Manohar and a few
other young men of the village tried to help the affected farmers by supplying
free yarn and Dharani tried to mobilize the administrations support to the
villagers in addition to his request to the district congress president to supply
cotton and spinning wheel. And after Dharanis death ,his unfinished agenda of
empowering the woman folk is taken up by Golap Barua, the benevolent doctor,
and Tagar, Dharanis widow. They formed a cooperative society and involved the
weavers of Katanigaon to enliven the spirit of village organisation. Golap Barua
finds happiness by spending time in the weavers' guild and helps the distressed
women.
The portrayal of women in the novel may be seen as an accompanying
predicament reflecting patriarchal authority. There is no denying the fact that loss
of womanhood and dishonor to her inner self under patriarchy is not the only
interpretation of the texts. But a feminist reading of the narratives informs the
sociological perspective. Tagar alone can remind us how patriarchy put her life,
her purity of youth and up-bringing under constant trials and ordeal. She got
terribly bruised by the cruel norms of patriarchy. When Dharani towards the end
regrets his neglect and indifference to her in the din and fury of his public
engagement, Tagar replies in the light of traditional wisdom The wife will
devote entirely to household duties and keep the husband away from all the
turmoil. This is the law (Jivanar Batat, 221 in L K Baruas translation). In different
phases of her life, Tagar remains the target of Kamalakantas betrayal, her father
Bapurams neglect,and the police inspectors humiliation and so on.

Traditional morality and religiosity condemns Tagar to a life of mere sacrifice and
religious tolerance; painful memory of her early infatuation and treacherous
betrayal of youthful response to love remained a protracted burden and deprived
her innocent, pure, dignified womanhood of the pulsating beauty of life. The
greatness of the character of Tagar is in her capacity to feel the dignity and
innocence of life which returns to her in ruins but reveals her ingrained fortitude
to bear with them.

Inspite of being a pre-independent novel of typical Assamese flavour, the issues

mentioned in this novel are significantly relevant and universal in its appeal. In its
totality Along the High Road is a social novel delineated in realistic manner as it
shows how people situated at different settings act and behave which is relatable
to the readers to a great extent.
 Works Cited:
Baruah, Lalit Kumar. Along the High Road: published in 2013,
Assam Sahitya Sabha.

Kalita, Garima. Reading Indias North East - Literature, Land and

People: published in 2016, MRB publication.

Sarama, Gobinda Prasad. Upanyas aru Asomiya Upanyas.