The Reflection of the Ramayana: ‘Sita Myth’ in Anita Desai’s Where Shall We Go This Summer?

Authors

  • Kanchan Pipaliya

Keywords:

Myth, Re-writing, Sita-Myth, Mythic Image, Ramayana

Abstract

The society promotes the most prevalent picture of Indian mythology that of Sita and
Savitri. Through their tales, these pictures of women illustrate the principles of Indian
civilization - the way Sita surrendered to Ram, accompanied him into the forest, and accepted
her exile in silence once again. There are echoes of Sita's rebellious voice in contemporary
texts, where one can finds a fresh interpretation of the ancient ‘Sita Myth’. In Anita Desai’s
Where Shall We Go This Summer? the protagonist Sita is a neurotic character who rebels
against male oppression; however, she eventually embraces the household tie. The present
paper examines how the ‘Sita Myth’ is reflected in the novel and how it is altered and recreated
in various circumstances.

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References

Altekar, A.S. The Position of Women in Hindu Civilization. Delhi: Motilal Banarasidass, 1962.

Altekar, G.S. Studies on Valmiki’s Ramayana. Poona: Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute,

Bhatnagar M.K. and Mittapalli R. The Novels of Anita Desai: A Critical Study. New Delhi:

Atlantic Publishers, 1982.

Desai, Anita. Where Shall We Go This Summer? New Delhi: Orient Paperbacks, 1982.

Naik, M. K. Perspectives on Indian Fiction in English. New Delhi: Abhinav Publications,

----. A History of Indian English Literature. Delhi: Sahitya Akademi, 1982.

Additional Files

Published

10-05-2020

How to Cite

Kanchan Pipaliya. (2020). The Reflection of the Ramayana: ‘Sita Myth’ in Anita Desai’s Where Shall We Go This Summer?. Vidhyayana - An International Multidisciplinary Peer-Reviewed E-Journal - ISSN 2454-8596, 5(5). Retrieved from http://j.vidhyayanaejournal.org/index.php/journal/article/view/240