india author m 1- a-nan - University of Wollongong

frequently. The labyrinth is associated with the mysterious Anuradha, "a labyrinthine woman,
at once young and old."
ROSS, ROBERT. "The Clash of Opposites in Arun Joshi's The Last Labvrinth." The Literary
Criterion 25.2 (1990): 1-9.
In each of novels, Joshi creates an anti-hero who, like his Western counterpart, stands
overlooking the abyss of his time and place. But his protagonists have to come to terms not
only with the native heritage, but also the Western influence on it, the clash of opposing
traditions. Joshi's achievement in The Last Labyrinth lies in bringing together the disparate
parts of the hero's experiences. This clash of opposites finally imprisons Som Bhaskar in the
labyrinth of his own mind.
SHARMA, D.R. "Arun Joshi and his Reflective Insiders" Literature East and West 21.1-4
(1977):100-111.
SHARMA, D.R. "The Fictional World of Arun Joshi" The Indian P.E.N. 43.9&10 (1977):1-
5.
SHARMA, D. R. "The Fictional World of Arun Joshi." The Indian P.E.N. 43, no.9/10
(September-October 1977): 1-5.
It is not correct to treat Joshi's heroes as the Indian kinsmen of the Western
existentialist "outsiders". In their persistent quest for decent alternatives in an amoral world,
Joshi's protagonists are reflective insiders. Joshi resembles Manohar Malgonkar in his social
satire and fictional technique, the major difference being that Malgonkar's action is "out there",
while the action in Joshi is primarily in the psychic arena of his characters. Joshi's protagonists
strive for an enduring dialogue with life. Sindi of The Foreigner realises that detachment
"consisted in getting involved with the world." In The Strange Case of Billy Biswas, Billy opts
out of the prevailing social order when he finds it impossible to change it. Joshi's third novel,
The Apprentice, is a confessional novel, which explores the evil in the protagonist as well as
the horror of an imperfect social order.
SHARMA, D R. "Arun Joshi and His Reflective Insiders." Literature East and West no. 21
(1977): 100-109.
Somewhat amplified version of "The Fictional World of Arun Joshi" (see item).
SHETTIGARA, TINA. "Arun Joshi's The Foreigner: The Protagonist in Search of Meaning."
In Cultural Reflections, edited by Paul Sharrad, Honolulu: East West Centre, 1981: pp.50-58.
The central characters of Joshi's novels are all individuals in some way alienated from
the world around them. The protagonist of The Strange Case of Billy Biswas is the most
extraordinary of Joshi's heroes; Billy, an anthropologist, is overcome by his primordial urge to
be free of the veneer of urban society, and disappears. Ratan Rathor, of The Apprentice, is
"Mr Ordinary" who is corrupted by the material world. Som Bhaskar, a rich businessman, the
protagonist of Joshi's fourth novel, The Last Labyrinth, is subject to the craving of a nameless
desire. He is obsessed by Anuradha, a mysterious character in this novel of enigmas. The
novel's structure is as labyrinthine as the processes of Som Bhaskar's mind. Though the
treatment is growingly sophisticated, Joshi's interest has always been the alienated individual,
present as Sindi Oberoi, the protagonist-narrator of his first novel, The Foreigner. The
Foreigner is constructed on two cross-cutting time spans, in America and in New Delhi. Sindi
observes with objectivity the culture of both societies, but the novel should not be treatbd as