The Average Indian in R.K.Narayan's Stories Megha Ghosh College

R.K. Narayan, one of the most famous Indo-Anglican writers, author of Mr. Sampath and The Guide, is famous in the western world more for his novels than for his short stories or for other forms of literature that he has tried. Narayan has written quite a large number of short stories which have been collected and published in six volumes— Dodu and other Stories, Malgudi Days, Cyclone and other Stories, Lawley Road and other Stories, Astrologer''s Day and other Stories, A Horse and Two Goats.

It would appear that the critical accounts of R. K. Narayan, the writer, are made only on the basis of his novels. Such an estimate can at best be one-sided. R. K. Narayan’ s short stories are artistically as eminent as his novels, and in any general estimate of his writings they cannot be ignored. In fact, one might go so far as to say that Narayan is essentially a short story teller and the one element that stands out even in his novels is the story element. These stories belong to the Indian soil and are evocative of its culture. In the main they represent South Indian life and clearly expressing Narayan's view of the world and those who live in it. Simple but captivating plot, sparkling characterization, strict economy of narration and...