CLASS DISTINCTION AND PREJUDICE

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CLASS DISTINCTION AND PREJUDICE

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GOD OF SMALL THINGS AND PERSUASION

        Class distinction and prejudice in ‘The God of Small Things’ and ‘Persuasion’ are brought about  by  social, political and economical developments in the periods the novels are set.  These developments arise through “war”, “Revolution”, caste and class bias.  Firstly, in ’Persuasion’ the behaviour of Anne’s family is so vile that their bigoted opinions affect the moral, spiritual and cultural lives of their victims.  From the onset we become aware that It is either the family or people with the power to “persuade” who create divisions within the classes and sexes.  Austen’s  ‘Persuasion’ exposes the inequalities in Britain that existed.  In France the same divisions prompted the French Revolution of 1789.  The British Government, taking the events in France on board decided to initiate political and social policies before French history repeated itself in Britain.  These policies challenged the status of upper class families, like the Elliots, as the location of wealth and power in British society  was changing due to the  industrial revolution and “Napoleonic” wars.  Anne’s father, Sir Walter fears losing control over what he has acquired or inherited.  Sir Walter dismisses the rising classes at every opportunity, as he sees them as a threat to the aristocracy.  Sir Walter has a kindred spirit, Lady Russell, who aids him in the process of pushing his bigoted behaviour through to the next generation, in the hope that they will guard themselves against the common man‘s rise from rags to riches.  Sir Walter and Lady Russell only acquaint themselves with people who hold a certain “standard of good-breeding” and “rank” along with “consequence”.  Sir Walter is faced with the possibility of losing everything he has inherited.  He is vulnerable, has to go through the process of “retrenchment” or face bankruptcy.  If he doesn’t change his pattern of spending he will not be able to live in the manner he is accustomed to, and so be looked down on by his elite  “circle“.          In  ‘The God of Small Things, Ammu has fallen from her elite ‘caste‘, and has to act recklessly to secure her own sanity and safety. She breaks away from her restricted, abused and bullied life by marrying outside her caste and religion.  While in  ‘Persuasion’,  Anne arms her heart with a shield of dense melancholy.  Anne has had to reject the love of her life, Captain Wentworth, because her father, Sir Walter, considers Wentworth to be a “nobody”, not a “gentleman”, “without alliance”, and views the union between Anne and Wentworth to be a “degrading” affair.  Anne experiences emotional suffering. Ammu physical and mental abuse.  Ammu is erratic in dealing with her experiences, and Anne dignified, but both heroines are brave throughout their ordeals, as they obey the rules that are created by their ‘class’ or ‘caste’. The novels reflect the ‘heroines’ feelings in dealing  with prejudice and discrimination in relation to the choices they want to make.  Their fathers‘ have full control over them, as their choices are limited or ignored.  Ammu and Anne’s lives are arrested.  Trapped in the ’caste’ and ’class’ circle of discrimination and prejudice.   Arundahati Roy takes the private child memories of Rahel and explains them to us from an adult’s perspective.  The story spans the late sixties to early nineties. Memories are told in vivid and upsetting repetitive imagery.  Rahel flickers from her adult state to her child state with damaging or important events stressed with capital letters. The stressing of such words makes the reader aware of their significance to new and evolving horrors, situations or important people in Rahel’s family’s lives.  The novel relays India’s human despair in a ruthless, sexist caste society, which contribute to Ammu‘s psychological demise and eventually her premature death at the “viable, die-able age” of “thirty-one“.  

        There is a contrast in Ammu’s upbringing and Anne’s.  Ammu is abused by her father physically, and Anne psychologically. Sinister little remarks always seem to be made when Anne is present, about the man she loves, A “very degrading alliance”,  Sir Walter remarks on Wentworth and Anne‘s relationship.  Sir Walter makes it clear to Anne that her “connection”  with Wentworth is not acceptable and is frowned upon by all in their circle.    

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         Austen brings to our attention through the antagonist Anne, prejudice and class distinction in rural England in 1816.  Anne at the age of nineteen fell in love with Captain Wentworth, but her family considered him to be financially and socially too risky for her to marry.  This left Anne heart broken and forlorn, which took its toll on her looks.   At the beginning of the novel Anne is a  twenty-seven year old woman, and a shadow of her former self.   Captain Wentworth  notices that her looks have “wretchedly altered” to the point that it is hard to find ...

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