Comment on the influence of English – the language and the way of life – on Indian life as reflected in the story. What is the narrator's attitude to English?
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ANSWER :
The narrator thinks that the English language and the English way of life have not made any good influence on Indian life. Those Indians who come to know a little of English develop a superiority complex. They want to make a display of their knowledge . They never care whether the person they are talking to understand them or not. They Profess to be quiet advance in their outlook yet they fail to get out of their traditional moorings. That is what happens in the story. Ranga professes to have quiet progressive views on marriage. But he is so charmed by the beauty of an 11 year old girl that he at once consents to marry her. Thus the narrator shows that the English language and the English way of life have made up hypocrites.
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The narrator says that dining the last ten years English language has made inroads into Indian countryside. Now there are many who know English. During the holidays, one comes across them on every street, talking in English. They bring in English words even while talking in Kannada. The narrator considers it disgraceful. He illustrates his point of view by giving an example. A bundle of firewood was bought at Rama Rao’s house. Rama Rao’s son asked the woman how much he should give her. When she said, “Four pice”, the boy told her that he did not have any “change” and asked her to come the next day. The poor woman did not understand the English word “change” and went away muttering to herself. Thus the use of English language before a native Kannada speaker caused confusion.
Ranga was influenced by the English way of life. Like them he wanted to marry a mature girl and not a young present-day bride. He told the narrator that he would marry when he grew a bit older. Secondly, he wanted to marry a girl he admired. He was not in favour of arranged marriages. This shows the influence of English way of life on modem young educated Indians. The narrator did not approve of it.