A SPATIAL READING OF ARUNDHATI ROY’S THE MINISTRY OF UTMOST HAPPINESS

Abstract

The research paper aims to describe how the graveyard is used as a space of resistance for marginalized people in Arundhati Roy's novel The Ministry of Utmost Happiness. Additionally, the study explores how the graveyard in the novel empowers people who are excluded from mainstream society. The analysis also discusses how it shapes our understanding of space and place. The study is qualitative in nature as some extracts from the novel are selected for in-depth analysis on the graveyard as a symbol of resistance for marginalized people in contemporary India. It is argued that using the graveyard as a space of resistance, highlight issues of caste, gender, and class-based discrimination in contemporary India. Even unlikely places can be sites of resistance and empowerment. The paper ends with the suggestion that the marginalized people often take shelter in lonely places in order to protect themselves and show resistance. Future research can probe into how the places like graveyard can provide peace, care and welfare for those who are treated others. Spatial Analysis can be explored in other genres of literature e. g. drama, poetry, and short stories. It is important to know how some specific place affects the characters' identities. The study underscores the relevance of this concept in the present era.