A Dialectic Reading Of V.S. Naipaul's The Enigma Of Arrival

This dissertation adopts dialectic reading as the framework to explore the dimensions of arrival in V. S. Naipaul's masterpiece, The Enigma of Arrival. It consists of four chapters between an introduction and the conclusion.The introduction gives a general review of the Naipaul scholarship on The Enigma of Arrival to explain the significance of the present project; the definition of dialectic is also provided to explain how such an umbrella-term can reveal the depth and range of the major themes of the masterpiece.The first chapter focuses on the philosophical dimension of the book. The dialectic between destruction and creation is examined to conform to the existential notion that choosing to act and create is the only thing that enables a man to live. This philosophy of taking up is merged with Naipaul's Hindu notion of the coming side by side of destruction and creation, the view of life as an illusion. For Naipaul, this illusion has to be transformed into a faith even though what is done can be undone. The other philosophical aspect this dissertation focuses on is the dialectic between the individuality and community. By joining the community, Naipaul asserts the dignity in ordinary people when they engage themselves in the world. The integration of philosophical notions in this book arouses the concern about the universal civilization, which is an inevitable thinking in the era of mass migration and globalization.In the second chapter, the dialectic on topography is discussed. The land in Wiltshire gives meaning to his life, and the mere space is converted into his sense of meaningful place: this is the dialectic between space and place. At the same time, the mere space has been transformed into the place in the literary creations: this is the dialectic of self and story. At the same time while the attachment to the land and the natural setting of the manor is delineated, the mutability of landscape is given equal rendering, which makes The Enigma of Arrival different from pastoral or environmental writing. The dialectic between space and place thus needs the constant engagement in the environment to handle the change of topography. The dialectic between space and literary place is demonstrated through this book's intertexuality and subversion of Thomas Hardy, the representative writer of Wiltshire. The mood of being in tune with the landscape and the process of creating a place out of a space implicate Naipaul's partially taking root in England.The third chapter examines Naipaul's concern for writing as both an artistic process and an evolution of self. The dialectic between the man and the writer reveals being true to oneself is crucial for an original writing. A colonial writer will be reduced to a mimic of the imperial writers if he keeps himself and the writing self apart. That Naipaul has been learning to write in a constructive way makes The Enigma of Arrival a celebration of a colonial writer's arrival at an English writer making English his own. When two writers of the England native soil are depicted as failures as they can not bring themselves to face the real self and the real world, Naipaul is raising the sense of cultural consciousness. For Naipaul, the inheritance of English literature and culture is not entitled but lies with those who consciously and studiedly seek originality and advancement in literary and cultural activities.The fourth chapter investigates the dialectic on technique. The form of The Enigma of Arrival best backs up the themes of the work and it also conveys the fate of exile in this era of mass migration. The dialectic between the autobiography and fiction seems a natural extension of Naipaul's pursuit of true self and of his philosophy while the dialectic between repetition and revision extends from Naipaul's principle of knowing the world through learning and unlearning. At the same time, the interplay of these tensions makes the form circular, thus adding a touch of intertwining enigma to the form. Naipaul's arrival at an integration of different genres and at the circular form provokes our thinking about English literary tradition.The conclusion offers a brief summary of the major arguments of the dissertation and briefly expounds how the cultural consciousness is crucial for the development of culture and the identity of immigrants. It further points out that the dialectic reading of The Enigma of Arrival may be extended to decode Naipaul oeuvre and to interpret other literary works.