Identity, Society, Performativity: The Construction of Identity in Aravind Adiga’s the White Tiger
Aravind Adiga’s debut novel, the White Tiger (2008) depicts the life of Barlam Halwai, a poor Indian village boy on his way to success. The novel, merging the issues of race and class in a unique way, offers new possibilities for investigation in the realms of identity and subjectivity in a postcolo...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Lasting Impressions Press
2018-06-01
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| Series: | International Journal of English Language and Translation Studies |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://www.eltsjournal.org/archive/value6%20issue2/20-6-2-18.pdf |
| _version_ | 1818750265851904000 |
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| author | Golchin Pourqoli Firouzeh Ameri |
| author_facet | Golchin Pourqoli Firouzeh Ameri |
| author_sort | Golchin Pourqoli |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Aravind Adiga’s debut novel, the White Tiger (2008) depicts the life of Barlam Halwai, a poor Indian village boy on his way to success. The novel, merging the issues of race and class in a unique way, offers new possibilities for investigation in the realms of identity and subjectivity in a postcolonial context. The present study, then, drawing on Judith Butler’s theory of performativity in its broad sense, examines the construction of subjectivities in this novel and attempts to depict the performative nature of the characters’ identities, especially, that of the protagonist of the novel, Balram Halwai. Thus, this paper, based on this theory of Butler and through the exploration of the subjectivities of the main characters of the novel, demonstrates how, rather than innate qualities, a sense of identity stems from a set of repeated acts regulated by the norms of society, which, in the case of this novel, is a postcolonial society. Furthermore, the paper depicts how, any failure of, or disruption in performative patterns in the lives of characters of the novel leads to the formation of new performative patterns, and therefore, opens a horizon for agency. Nonetheless, by exploring the main characters, the study asserts that agency is only achieved in uncontroversial aspects of identity. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-18T04:16:56Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-7724718df54e4954847e4850fab6d8d6 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2308-5460 2308-5460 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-18T04:16:56Z |
| publishDate | 2018-06-01 |
| publisher | Lasting Impressions Press |
| record_format | Article |
| series | International Journal of English Language and Translation Studies |
| spelling | doaj.art-7724718df54e4954847e4850fab6d8d62022-12-21T21:21:19ZengLasting Impressions PressInternational Journal of English Language and Translation Studies2308-54602308-54602018-06-010602172183Identity, Society, Performativity: The Construction of Identity in Aravind Adiga’s the White TigerGolchin Pourqoli0Firouzeh Ameri1Department of English Language and Literature Faculty of Persian Literature and Foreign Languages, the University of Tabriz Tabriz, IranDepartment of English Language and Literature Faculty of Persian Literature and Foreign Languages, the University of Tabriz Tabriz, IranAravind Adiga’s debut novel, the White Tiger (2008) depicts the life of Barlam Halwai, a poor Indian village boy on his way to success. The novel, merging the issues of race and class in a unique way, offers new possibilities for investigation in the realms of identity and subjectivity in a postcolonial context. The present study, then, drawing on Judith Butler’s theory of performativity in its broad sense, examines the construction of subjectivities in this novel and attempts to depict the performative nature of the characters’ identities, especially, that of the protagonist of the novel, Balram Halwai. Thus, this paper, based on this theory of Butler and through the exploration of the subjectivities of the main characters of the novel, demonstrates how, rather than innate qualities, a sense of identity stems from a set of repeated acts regulated by the norms of society, which, in the case of this novel, is a postcolonial society. Furthermore, the paper depicts how, any failure of, or disruption in performative patterns in the lives of characters of the novel leads to the formation of new performative patterns, and therefore, opens a horizon for agency. Nonetheless, by exploring the main characters, the study asserts that agency is only achieved in uncontroversial aspects of identity.http://www.eltsjournal.org/archive/value6%20issue2/20-6-2-18.pdfThe White TigerJudith ButlerPerformativityInterpellationSubversionAgency |
| spellingShingle | Golchin Pourqoli Firouzeh Ameri Identity, Society, Performativity: The Construction of Identity in Aravind Adiga’s the White Tiger International Journal of English Language and Translation Studies The White Tiger Judith Butler Performativity Interpellation Subversion Agency |
| title | Identity, Society, Performativity: The Construction of Identity in Aravind Adiga’s the White Tiger |
| title_full | Identity, Society, Performativity: The Construction of Identity in Aravind Adiga’s the White Tiger |
| title_fullStr | Identity, Society, Performativity: The Construction of Identity in Aravind Adiga’s the White Tiger |
| title_full_unstemmed | Identity, Society, Performativity: The Construction of Identity in Aravind Adiga’s the White Tiger |
| title_short | Identity, Society, Performativity: The Construction of Identity in Aravind Adiga’s the White Tiger |
| title_sort | identity society performativity the construction of identity in aravind adiga s the white tiger |
| topic | The White Tiger Judith Butler Performativity Interpellation Subversion Agency |
| url | http://www.eltsjournal.org/archive/value6%20issue2/20-6-2-18.pdf |
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