J. Appl. Environ. Biol. Sci., 4(9S)123-129, 2014
© 2014, TextRoad Publication
ISSN: 2090-4274
Journal of Applied Environmental
and Biological Sciences
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* Corresponding Author: Dr. Muhammad Usman Ghani, Department of English (FLL) IIU H-10 Islamabad. Faculty
of Higher Studies National Univ. of Modern Languages H-9 Islamabad.
usman.ghani@iiu.edu.pk
Synonym-izing Globalization and Ecological Imperialism through
God of Small Things
Muhammad Usman Ghani, Sadia Rehman
Department of English (FLL) IIU H-10 Islamabad
Faculty of Higher Studies National Univ. of Modern Languages H-9 Islamabad
Received: September 12, 2014
Accepted: November 23, 2014
ABSTRACT
This paper is based on the broader spectrum of globalization which entails assimilation of culture and
politics. Globalization ‘innocently’ suggests bridging all gulfs between the diverse cultures and landscapes
for greater ‘good’. Refuting the claims of the globalists, this paper argues that globalization has merely
brought about the financial, cultural, psychological, emotional and environmental degeneration in the
developing countries. Roy’s God of Small Things is used here as a vehicle of this argument as it portrays
the cost of the dream of globalization for the countries on the margin. Roy is at her best attempting to
subvert the impacts of Western imperialism in the form of globalization on countries like India and
Pakistan. The aim here is to investigate how Roy relates the (dis)integration of indigenous people’s lives
with the globalization and ecological imperialism. For a clear theoretical understanding of the issue,
Appadhuri’s perspective on Globalization and Crosby’s notion of Ecological Imperialism are used to
relate our point of view with that of Roy. Content analysis and close-reading are used as techniques to
interpret Roy’s novel. This paper would be useful to understand how the powerful states maintain their
hegemony through globalization.
KEY WORDS: God of Small Things; Globalization; Ecological Imperialism; Colonialism; South Asia;
India; Pakistan
1 INTRODUCTION
Roy’s God of Small Things (1996) is the realistic depiction of the hidden tactics of the imperialistic
(mostly Western) world which scavenges on the developing countries draining them massively not only of
their natural resources but also the cultural values. Roy, through her straightforwardly blunt style, makes no
bones about uncovering the hidden motives behind the slogans of globalization which aims to homogenize
the Indian culture by turning the world into a global village. The aim through this paper is two-fold. On the
one hand, it relates colonialism and globalization with ecological imperialism tracing its side effects; on the
other hand, it analyses the disintegration of an Indian family unity and values due to its hybridity and
proximity with the foreign culture.
Globalization is aptly called imperial in its nature as it clearly reflects the motives of the international
imperialist forces also reflecting the response of the local communities (colonized states) in adopting the
ways of the ruling states. It is evident of the same unequal power relations prevalent at the time of
colonization. The difference, however, is only to the extent that it was when the rules were physically and
forcibly there to control the colonized nations; but now it is achieved by supplying the ways and tools of
so-called modernity. History is repeated in the same dimension but with different scheme. So globalization
and the colonization are the two sides of the same coin still controlling and hegemonising world’s people
and resources. It seems that the movers and the shakers of the world, after the decolonization, found other
ways to control the developing countries, i.e., the fastest communication network, ‘supra-national
operations of economics’ and cultural ‘commodification’. Globalization is not a straightway of controlling
the masses as it had been in vogue in the times of direct colonization. Rather it is systematic, complex and
indirect way of maintaining the domination. Globalization did not emerge all of a sudden rather it
developed as a result of European industrialization, scientism and as an offshoot of imperialism. It decodes
the colonial rhetoric.
Before going into the details of textual evidence it is important to understand the connotation of the term
“Globalization” and its connection with colonial and ecological imperialism.
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