Material Eco-criticism in Kanthapura by Raja Rao: An Exploration of the Vitality of Non-human Entities

Abstract

This research contends that, in novel Kanthapura by Raja Rao, human and man-made environment possesses the capacity to shape and influence identity, politics and social relations of human beings. The aim of this study is to demonstrate the connectedness between environment and the humans and to manifest how nature takes part in shaping social and historical change. The objectives of this paper are to explore the ways non-human material and natural entities such as rain, village and landscape influence political activities in the novel Kanthapur and in what ways man-made and natural environment affect caste relations, daily lives and labor hierarchies of the villagers of Kanthapura and similarly effects of vibrant non-human forces on the relations of villagers with their traditions and their sense of identity amid cultural and colonial change in Kanthapura. This research will draw on Jane Bennett theory of vibrant matter explicated by her in her book Vibrant Matter: A Political Ecology of Things. This theory asserts that all matter has agency, vitality and capacity to impact events. This research is unique because it examines Kanthapura from the perspective of material eco-criticism, a dimension that is still untapped and unexplored in this novel. This research will stimulate interest in broader interdisciplinary fields such as cultural studies, environmental humanities and political ecology to comprehend how non-human agency influence humans in various perspectives in literature and real life.