Mark Twain’s ‘The Prince and the Pauper’ is a romantic tale of mistaken identity and how the situation of the Prince, who is identical in appearance to the pauper, becomes miserable after the exchange. His romantic notion of freedom and liberty from the artifice and monotony of his existence turns out to be an irreversible affair until he is restored to his legitimate place at the last minute. Irony is at the heart of the novel. The poor pauper has to learn all the niceties of the court and the Prince who has led a life of luxury and comfort is forced to toil for his grub. But poverty strengthens the character of the Prince and helps him realize the gross inequality present in the social fabric of his country. The novel had a forerunner in its plot in Anthony Hope’s ‘The Prisoner of Zenda.’ In this novel Rudolf Rassendyl who is indistinguishable from the king in his persona is called upon by loyal servants of the king to support a façade as the king has been kidnapped by his evil brother and the King’s coronation must go on at any rate. The romantic interest with princess Flavia also forms a sub-plot. Although the novel belongs to the same genre, it lacks the ironical humor of Mark Twain’s novel and is more of a romantic adventure. When Rassendyl who is a common person, comes out of his royal impersonation, the days when he was king remain with him as an enchanting dream. The theme of identical persons with different temperaments exchanging places has been presented in many blockbuster films: Nadodimannan in Tamil (starring MGR), Raju-Peda in Telugu (starring NTR) are two films which drew straight inspiration from the novel ‘The Prince and the Pauper.’ Taking this theme and applying it to a social context, several successful films like Ramudu-Bheemudu, Ram aur Shyam and Sita aur Gita have been made in different languages.
Mark Twain’s steamboat days and his memoirs up and down the Mississippi are sketched with great fondness and humor in his book ‘Life on the Mississippi.’ He describes the boats men, stevedores, captains, crew members, adventurers and others in this book. His description of the meandering course of this gigantic river and how it cut the channels is exciting. The life of a steamboat captain during the days before the introduction of modern navigation techniques was one of peril, anxiety and tension. It needed people with courage, memory and judgment to steer a boat on the Mississippi. Mark Twain’s humor is a commentary on life. It is more or less like a Charlie Chaplin or Bustor Keaton film where the apparent comedy accentuates the hopelessness of the situation but leaves the readers in wonderful agreement with the author. In his novels humor takes on a different meaning: It is not just a comic situation but a genial reflection on a way of life.
My interaction with novels took a specific turn in the year 1996 when I was appointed as Lecturer in English in a Government Polytechnic college. I had only a few hours of teaching every day as language was taught only in the first year (An erroneous measure actually). The students were inclined towards the core subjects which carried more importance and were in fact going to be their bread and butter later on in life. With such a light load, I had ample time at my disposal and it was spent mostly in the library which had all kinds of books on Ceramic Engineering. My search for some Literature led me to an old and dusty stockpile of novels. The Librarian told me that people had nearly forgotten those books and congratulated me on my perseverance. I was very happy to have found this treasure. The pile contained nearly all the novels of R.K.Narayan. I would sit in the library after my solitary teaching session for the day and delve into the vivid, imaginary world called Malgudi. Although I had read a few short stories by the author, Engine trouble, Swami is expelled etc, I never had the opportunity to read all the novels at a go until then. I started with ‘The English Teacher’ and journeyed through Swami and his Friends, A Tiger for Malgudi, The Guide, The Financial Expert, The Talkative Man, Mr. Sampath, The Bachelor of Arts, The Vendor of Sweets, Under the Banyan Tree and Waiting for the Mahatma. I would say I could understand and reflect more about my ‘Indianness or South Indianness’ from the novels of R.K.Narayan than from other sources. His focus and insight into the fears, secrets, intricacies and idiosyncrasies of common folk is amazing and reminds me of Anton Chekov. Both writers could handle a theme with simplicity and irony. Humor in a tragic situation and irony which always grounds the characters strongly to their moorings characterize the writing of R.K.Narayan. More on specific instances from the novels in the next post. (To be continued)