Liz Anstee
asked:
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(view spoiler)[I've searched for online reviews (perhaps in denial!?) because I couldn't quite believe if I was reading too much into the last twin scene and whether they did actually sleep together? Is there any chance that this can simply mean something deeper and we all just think it means they sleep together? or do I have to face facts? I finished this book a few days ago now and it is still affecting me! Help? (hide spoiler)]
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- 10 years ago
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The God of Small Things,
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Gillian
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(view spoiler)[I have a theory that the author used incest to demonstrate to the western world how disgusting an inter-caste relationship would be to those ingrained in the caste system. If we were shocked and revolted by the twins, their whole society would have felt the same about Ammu and Velutha. Therefore the memorable quote about who should be loved and how. (hide spoiler)]
julie
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(view spoiler)[I think Gillian's theory is an interesting one; still, it casts the act in a somewhat symbolic light. I wondered, myself, if this scene was meant to be symbolic instead of literal. I also realized seeing it as such would make it far easier for me to acccept. I didn't want to let myself off the hook of delving into something that does, indeed, occur between siblings who are traumatized. What bothers me is that, in the Author Interview section of my edition of the novel, Roy states that every character in the novel is held accountable for his or her actions. Yet this incestuous act is portrayed in an acceptable manner. Where is the accountability for this incest? And while it is important to understand the psychological reasons why siblings might turn to each other in this way (it needs to be addressed as it is a sign of deep, emotional trouble)--it is ALSO important to realize that it is, nonetheless, wrong on many different levels.
Kaustav Kashyap cites an interview with Roy in which she denies the incestuous nature of the scene. For Roy to use the reasons why it occured as an explanation for why it was not incestuous is simply ignorant. Regardless of the trauma that leads to such an act, it is still incest. To abide by her argument, any siblings who were traumatized and unable to love anyone else would be justified in turning to each other sexually to heal one another. It would have been far more powerful if it the scene had been portrayed in an accurate light: as one more tragic consequence of what Estha and Rahel had endured earlier in their lives. To portray it as a healing experience is erroneous. (hide spoiler)]
Kaustav Kashyap cites an interview with Roy in which she denies the incestuous nature of the scene. For Roy to use the reasons why it occured as an explanation for why it was not incestuous is simply ignorant. Regardless of the trauma that leads to such an act, it is still incest. To abide by her argument, any siblings who were traumatized and unable to love anyone else would be justified in turning to each other sexually to heal one another. It would have been far more powerful if it the scene had been portrayed in an accurate light: as one more tragic consequence of what Estha and Rahel had endured earlier in their lives. To portray it as a healing experience is erroneous. (hide spoiler)]
Maria
Why do you feel that this is so "wrong on many different levels"? Don't you think that if two adult people have a consensual intercourse, it should be
Why do you feel that this is so "wrong on many different levels"? Don't you think that if two adult people have a consensual intercourse, it should be their business? Don't you think that you labelling this "wrong" is the same thing as labeling gay relationship "wrong"?
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Dec 16, 2020 10:20AM · flag
Dec 16, 2020 10:20AM · flag
Malvika
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(view spoiler)[I think Roy uses this (the sleeping together of the twins) to contrast with the romantic encounters between Velutha and Ammu. Both break the Love Laws, as the author herself puts it. One disgusts the western reader but the second disgusts the society more and Velutha pays for it with his life. What I'm trying to say here is that it isn't a matter of which is acceptable and which is not to the reader, but more about what the regressive society expects from people. Unfortunately the caste system even today remains deeply entrenched in the Indian society. (hide spoiler)]
Medh
Just wondering when you say "one disgusts the western reader"- are you implying that the twins having sex is more disgusting to western readers than t
Just wondering when you say "one disgusts the western reader"- are you implying that the twins having sex is more disgusting to western readers than to desis?
...more
Jun 08, 2024 08:44AM · flag
Jun 08, 2024 08:44AM · flag
Eliza Cotton
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(view spoiler)[That's what I understood when I read that part, but I thought that would be way too weird so I didn't believe it... But then I looked up a summary of that chapter and it said they really did sleep together! I don't understand why. I guess since throughout the book, they all have been breaking the "laws that lay down who should be loved and how," so maybe Roy just decided to end the story with one final "crime"? (hide spoiler)]
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Arundhati Roy (Goodreads Author)
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