Tuesday, October 23, 2012

A SMOOTH JOURNEY FROM HOGWARTS TO PAGFORD... FROM HARRY TO BARRY... FROM THE WORLD OF MAGIC TO THE REAL WORLD... [ J.K. ROWLING'S THE CASUAL VACANCY ]




Hardly a month has been passed after the launch of the most awaited novel of this year, J.K. Rowling’s The Casual Vacancy, and the dust has been settled with a variety of mixed opinions about the entry of one of the greatest child novelist of all times into the adult arena. By and large, what remains the fact is that, J.K. Rowling remains the most promising story teller what ever the subject she takes in her hand. I too have read this novel, and I am registering my thoughts in this post.


Firstly, shortly after the launch of this book, I came across a number of critics in electronic and print media about the comparison of this book with Harry Potter series, which made me to think what is the point of comparing two sets of works, which has altogether a different genre and appeal? Why these people are not willing to exist in a world without wizards, wands, charms and magic?  And here, I am going to commit the same mistake for I have realized later that, Harry Potter Series remains the bench mark of J.K. Rowling, and will likely to be the reference point for any other future works of her, being the simple fact that the 7 Harry Potter Series coupled with 8 block buster movies almost remained a fantasy for a decade, and there are people including me who wants to live in the world of magic for ever.

Secondly, The Casual Vacancy is a novel on contemporary British society, by and large recognized as “dark humored tragic literature”. This novel goes into the depths of human folly and weakness on the lines Machiavellian notion of human nature as selfish, weak, opportunistic driven by the passions for money, lust, power, devoid of reason. J. K. Rowling has ventured into the world of down trodden sections of society riddled with neglect, drug addiction, drug abuse, rehabilitation, racial hatred, prostitution, rape and domestic violence. She has very well exposed the social tensions that exist in a society comprising of the haves and have-nots with an element of local politics lying at the top. The author’s insight and description of the behavior and fantasies of teenage adolescents is highly mind captivating and definitely deserves a special applause. And above all, the author has explored the Art of Gossiping, as the novel slowly unfolds as a sequence of gossips between the families of Pagford, mired in a socio-political tangle, which deeply reminds me of Jane Austen’s all times best “ Pride and Prejudice”.

Thirdly, the novel is a portrayal of a set of events that take place after the uneven death of “Barry Fairbrother”, the councilor of local Pagford Parish council, which sets in motion a cold war of power mongering among various sections of Pagford, to capture the vacant seat left by the former, and to decide the fate of “Fields” and “Bell chapel Addiction Clinic” inhabited/utilised by the socially down trodden sections of Pagford, which the cynic rich considers as a drain on public resources. How the lives of families of Mollisons, Fairbrothers, Jawandas, Walls, Weedons, Prices and Bawdens are intertwined in the fragile societal setup of Pagford provides the momentum. The charcters of Fats wall, Krystal weedon, Andrew Price and Shukwindar Jawanda are beautifully spun and well portarayed. The most entertaining part of the novel is about how the little, dirty, nasty secrets of the contestants of the electoral battle for the post of Pagford Parish council gets revealed in a hacked website, by none other than the very son/daughter of the respective contestants, and the impact in the mindset and future events of the Pagford. At last, J.K.Rowling strikes the core with the death of a neglected three year old infant boy (Robbie weedon) and the suicide of his exploited teenage sister (Krystal weedon), that makes a tragic impact on the mindset of readers about the underlying social manifesto of the necessity of the affordable sections of society to take care of the minimal needs of the down trodden.

J.K.Rowling has proved her grit and mettle by venturing into a different genre. The fan base will slowly and eventually migrate from Hogwarts to Pagford for the times to come. What is more enthusiastic is that the characters of The Casual Vacancy are so beautifully spun to the extent that they have no resemblance to any of the characters in Harry Potter series. Above all, the portrayal of the Sikhism and Indian Sikh family of Jawandas (unlike the minimal role of Patil sisters in Harry potter series), at the centre stage of Pagford limelight is a welcome step. Last but not least, The Casual Vacancy is a must read.