Simile: A Noble Cow
The narrator is contrasting Moorthy and another young man, Dore, in the village, who is also a university graduate who comes to the village claiming to be a Gandhi-like man. The narrator does not appreciate his qualities because Gandhi followers are true freedom fighters who perform their duties generously and honestly. Moorthy possesses all the admirable qualities and none of the obnoxious ones. Rao writes, “He was not like Corner-House Moorthy, who had gone through life like a noble cow, quiet, generous, serene, deferent and brahmanic, a very prince, I tell you” (5).
Metaphor: Gandhi
This description of Gandhi—"...so he goes from village to village to slay the serpent of foreign rule" (12)—is a powerful metaphor. It depicts Gandhi as a warrior, a saint, a righteous figure who slays the serpent, which is a traditional symbol of evil and duplicity, in this case referencing British rule. He seems elevated beyond a human man as he fights for justice and freedom and self-rule.
Metaphor: Gandhism
Bhatta is fundamentally opposed to Moorthy's spreading of the Gandhi gospel, and one of the tools in his arsenal is the Swami's disapprobation and threats of excommunication. He says, "The Swami is worried over this Pariah movement, and he wants to crush it in its seed, before its cactus roots have spread far and wide" (27). This metaphor paints Gandhism as a cactus plant in its seed phase, and necessitating being destroyed before the seeds can take roots. A cactus is a prickly, hardy plant as well, which adds to the putative danger of Gandhism to those opposing better treatment of the Pariahs.
Metaphor: Enemies
Moorthy uses a nature metaphor to explain enemies and friends: "Every enemy you create is like pulling out a lantana bush in your back yard. The more you pull out, the wider you spread the seeds, and the thicker becomes the lantana growth. But every friend you create is like a jasmine hedge. You plant it, and it is there and bears flowers and you offer them to the gods, and the gods give them back to you and your women put them into their hair" (69). You should not try to eradicate your enemy, because if you destroy him, he is like a bush whose seeds will continue to spread. Friends are compared to beautiful jasmine flowers, who will bear fruit by pleasing the gods and creating harmony. Thus, Moorthy counsels that it is better to turn your enemy into a friend rather than to try to destroy him.
Simile: Moorthy
One of the village women, Nanjundia, says of Moorthy: "Our Moorthy is like gold—the more you heat it the purer it comes from the crucible" (93). It is an apt simile, suggesting that the more trials and tribulations Moorthy faces—the backlash, the fasting, the violence, the hard work—the stronger and more convinced of the rightness and justness of his cause he becomes.
