Discuss the development of the twins in The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy. How does

Authors Avatar

Discuss the development of the twins in The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy. How does Roy use language to make a clear distinction between the twins before and after the death of Velutha?

In The God of Small Things the twin’s mother, Ammu, breaks the laws that lay down ‘who should be loved, and how and how much’ when she has an affair with Velutha (an Untouchable). A relationship with an Untouchable is inconceivable in India, even today, as a woman would be expelled from her Caste if she were to carry out such an undignified act. Before this occurs Ammu is already frowned upon for being a divorced woman, a common view in Indian society, and returns home with her children. She is therefore thought of as a hindrance. Estha and Rahel, the twins, manage to accept that they have no ‘Baba’ but are greatly affected when their mother’s affair is revealed and the heroic Untouchable is killed. Roy uses differentiated vocabulary and grammar to inform the reader of the obvious change to the twin’s relationship and alteration of their individual personalities before and after the death of Velutha.

It is very important to note the structural complexity of The God of Small Things. The events do not appear in chronological order except when the twins are described after Velutha’s death. Roy decides to use a linear structure for the twins after the death of Velutha, perhaps to indicate the progressive reconstruction of their relationship. Therefore by studying these sections of the novel where the twins are mature one can refer to elements of the twin’s childhood and Roy’s use of language to compare and contrast certain ideas whilst also giving a clear representation of how the twins begin to re-establish their relationship. It is also important to understand that the ‘fraternal twins’ have an ‘emotional connection to one another that is stronger than that of most siblings’ (Manorama Mathai). Therefore when Estha is sent away Rahel feels as though she is losing a part of herself and they both find it incredibly hard to maintain their fun-loving personalities and sense of security that they once felt.

Just after Estha has been sent away, following Velutha’s death, Rahel explains the hate that she feels towards her mother. An atmosphere of sadness and unease is conveyed by Roy’s use of direct and honest sentences that can be seen when Rahel is disgusted by the way her ill mother is behaving and ‘She thought of phlegm and nearly retched. She hated her mother then. Hated her.’ The italics used to emphasise Rahel’s feelings make the word harsh and passionate; showing just how despised Ammu was by her eleven-year-old ‘twin-egg’ child. The short sentences heighten this idea of Rahel’s anger and the monosyllabic words give a staccato and bitter feel to the phrase. This can be compared to the children’s view of Ammu before the death of Velutha when they are seven years old. Roy uses longer sentences, expressing a more relaxed and pleasurable mood, when she states that the twins ‘loved the fact that the brown of the backs of their hands was the exact brown of their mother’s stomach skin’. The children’s innocence of loving something so simple makes them seem beautifully naïve, full of pure and loving thoughts. Roy chooses to use their skin colour to represent their love for Ammu as it also gives the family a sense of unity; being proud to be exactly the same colour as their mother. Roy’s language is in no way subtle; she uses the words ‘hatred’ and ‘loved’ to create an obvious and sudden contrast of how the twins feel. This blatant use of language exaggerates the difference between the twins before and after the death of Velutha so the reader is therefore aware that the twins have altered.

Join now!

Before this description of Rahel, Rahel herself does not appear to be an angry and hateful person as there are no verbal signs of this hatred that she has developed. However she often wears her red, ‘Angry-coloured’ glasses and we also see the jealousy that she feels towards Sophie Mol (her cousin). This perhaps indicates that Rahel’s anger was a developing personality trait but the obvious and sudden atmospheric change between this section of the novel and the previous, light hearted description of Sophie Mol’s arrival, suggests otherwise. Roy uses similar ideas but in a different context to show ...

This is a preview of the whole essay