An Empirical Analysis of Tribal Identity in Indian Literature

Abstract

Homogenizing the heterogeneous Indian tribes might be unfair. However, as large groups of tribal families are the subjects of study, the word ‘tribes’ was adopted as a grab for the underprivileged people, regardless of geographical location or cultural moorings. The current study analyse the significance of ethnographic novels that specifically evoke cultural experiences and the efficiency of their strategies in depicting people via the analysis of the two books such as Paraja (authored in Oriya in 1945) by Gopinath Mohanty and translated by Bikram K. Das in 2001, and Chotti Munda and His Arrow (Bangla title is Chotti Munda ebang Tar Tir, 1980) by Mahasweta Devi and translated by Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak in 2002. The current study emphasizes the shifting paradigms of centre–right binarism by using fictional works by well-known writers Mahasweta Devi and Gopinath Mohanty who have done literary works that spoke about the rights of tribal community.