A Study Of The Subaltern's Struggle For Survival In V.S. Naipaul's In A Free State

This thesis analyzes the theme of the subaltern's struggle for survival from the perspective of Subaltern Studies through a probe into the sufferings of the protagonists and their ways to get out of the existential predicament in the two sections “One out of Many” and “Tell me Who to Kill” in In a Free State.By presenting the reasons why the subaltern can't get integrated into the mainstream society,the thesis reveals that in the western metropolis where xenophobia and racial discrimination are rampant,it is impossible for the subaltern to get access to the upward social mobility.Though the subalterns make efforts,they cannot integrate themselves into the mainstream society through hard work,mimicry and identity negotiation.They also fail to make their voices heard.Having being influenced by colonialism for a long time,the subalterns have developed a sense of cultural inferiority and could not build self-identity and self-confidence.The subalterns are always treated as the outsider and the “other”.On the one hand,as an immigrant writer,Naipaul reveals the plight of the subaltern and gives them voice.On the other hand,he also identifies with the western culture,which shows Naipaul's ambivalence and complex emotions towards the subaltern.