Reading Trauma in Arundhati Roy'sThe God of Small Things, A Story of ‘Quietness’ and ‘Emptiness’

Abstract

The God of Small Things, Arundhati Roy's debut novel, received the Booker Prize in 1997. Set in Ayemenem in Kerala, against the backdrop of social discrimination and communism, The God of Small Things tells the tale of Rahel, her fraternal twin brother Estha, and their divorced mother Ammu. This paper looks at The God of Small Things as a trauma narrative and argues that the characters Estha and Rahel can be seen as representations of victims of Post-traumatic Stress Disorder. The paper first analyses the novel's narrative style to understand how it resembles the narrative style of a trauma narrative. The paper then seeks to study the content of the novel and to understand the physical and psychological reasons for the trauma and its impact on the lives of Estha and Rahel. It also looks at the incestuous relationship of Estha and Rahel as a means of overcoming their emotional trauma. The paper finally attempts to study the novel as a critique of the way social, cultural, and economic structures perpetuate trauma.