Probable Title- A Psychological Ghar Wapsi in “A Season of No Return”: Space and dentity in Gurdial Singh!s "pony#ous "pony#ous Short story n this this pape paperr argu argue$ e$ the the chara charact cter er of %auri %auri in “A Season of No Return” &'ritten in nineteen si(ties by Gurdial Singh) underta*es a real as 'ell as a #ythic +ourney fro# the ,illage to the city n her psycho-geographical +ourney$ %auri negotiates the re+ection of the “,illage” 'hich is outli,ing its utility - a part of %auri!s self She struggles to e#brace the city space$ 'hich sy#boli.es for her the “non,illage” n order to substantiate #y argu#ent$ 'ill e(pound the thoughts and actions of %auri as narrated in the short story “A Season of No Return.” n Return.” n addition$ atte#pt to ,ie' %auri!s internal conflict in the light of Ashis Nandy!s for#ulation of the +ourney as a #etaphor for “an e(pedition to the borders of the self” &Preface/ ()$ elaborated in the boo* “An A#biguous 0ourney to the 1ity” in 'hich he theori.es the for# for#ati ation on of the the self self in #ode #odern rn ndi ndiaa thro throug ugh h a re-re re-read adin ing g of 2reu 2reud! d!ss psych psychic ic apparatus of the d$ "go and Super-"go n #y reading of Ashis Nandy!s “An A#biguous 0ourney to the city”$ the ,illage is seen as a repository of both d and the Super-"go- “pri#ordial passion and author authorita itarian rian conscienc conscience”e”- and the “self” “self” associa associated ted 'ith 'ith the city is seen to be organi.ed around an ego “so autono#ous that it yields agency to nothing outside itself” Nandy argues that the indi,idualis# at the heart of the self associated 'ith the city$ sheltered at its center “not the classical potentially e#ancipatory ego but an o,ertly o,ertly gilded gilded ego” ego” n this this sense$ sense$ Nandy Nandy is not i#posi i#posing ng the 2reudi 2reudian an psychi psychicc apparatus in toto to e(pound the sel,es associated 'ith the city and the ,illage$ but rather proble#ati.es it 3e propounds that the autono#ous 2reudian "go is replaced
by a ne' pri#ordiality- “the crac* pot rationality and ob+ecti,ity of the #odern public self” located in the city &Preface/ ,iii) n the short story$ “A Season of No Return” follo'ing Nandy$ 'ould argue that %auri indulges in a “controlled regression” to the ,illage$ 'hich can be read “as a for# of play 'ith ,isions that chal* out another possible point of departure for the city” &preface/ i() n effect$ atte#pt to propose that in %auri!s tussle bet'een the ,illage and the city at the le,el of her i#agination$ a neurotic condition e#erges in her Through %auri!s thoughts and action in the short story$ detect the sy#pto#s of #elancholia as for#ulated by 2reud$ and posit that this physical #anifestation of the loss of the ,illage enables the re,elation of the #ythic +ourney fro# the ,illage to the city %auri$ the central character of “A Season of No Return” is geographically uprooted fro# the ,illage to the city in order to ta*e care of Santo*h!s &her son) 'ife during her pregnancy and to si#ultaneously learn about her daughter-in-la'$ 'ho Santo*h #arried of his o'n 'ill Reluctantly acco#panying her son$ %auri had a blurred ,ision of “the foreign land” as a space “thousand #iles a'ay” &456) nitially$ the urban space “appeared to be so#e *ind of a paradise” as her son and daughter-inla' too* care of all her needs 3o'e,er$ 'ith the passage of ti#e$ %auri beco#es “resti,e” and indifferent to'ards her daughter-in-la'!s s'eet 'ords and to all the lu(ury and #aterial co#fort that is pro,ided to her n light of Ashis Nandy!s argu#ent$ the daughter-in-la' can be seen as the representati,e of the “self” 'ho identifies 'ith the city to such an e(tent that it constructs an autono#ous ego in her $ 'hich “yields agency to nothing outside itself” This autono#ous 2reudian "go located in the city is replaced by d &“crac*pot rationality and ob+ecti,ity”) in the daughter-in-la' - by her desire to ,ie' e,erything
rationally and ob+ecti,ely so #uch so that the con,ersations bet'een her and %auri are only at the le,el of #aterial needs or of chores related to rearing %a*a 2or instance$ “A Season of No Return” opens 'ith the daughter-in-la' entering %auri!s roo# 'ith a cup of tea in her hand and repeating “the ,ery sa#e 'ords in her characteristic s'eet ,oice 'hich %auri had been hearing for the past one year$ 7aa+i$ pranaa#8 t!s si( o!cloc* Please ha,e you tea” &499) 3o'e,er$ the narrator infor#s that the daughter-in-la' does not 'ait for %auri!s response$ in #uch the sa#e 'ay as the id de#ands an instant gratification of the desires fro# there and doesn!t engage in a dialogue regarding the sa#e t should also be noted that does %auri 'ish to respond to the daughter-in-la'!s arbitrarily i#posed routine n addition$ %auri!s husband can be seen as the Super-"go for Santo*h- the “authoritarian conscience” e#bedded in the ,illage 3o'e,er$ in the process of #a*ing the decision to #arry a 'o#an outside their “biradari” and thereby disregarding the decision of his parents$ Santo*h disassociates hi#self fro# the Super-"go This disassociation can be seen not only at the le,el of dis#issing his father!s 'ish but also in his act of pyscho-geographically displacing %auri for his o'n personal benefit This is e,ident 'hen Santo*h!s father sarcastically co##ents on his decision of ta*ing %auri to the city: “hai$ you do 'hate,er you 'ish to As if you ha,e e,er sought #y ad,ice on 'hate,er you!,e done so far;
%auri to the #argins of her “self” She constantly “#ourns” the idea of co##unity that the ,illage sy#boli.ed for her Sig#und 2reud in his essay “7ourning and 7elancholia” &>?>9) posits that #ourning is “the reaction to the loss of a lo,ed person$ or to the loss of so#e abstraction 'hich has ta*en the place of one” &@4) According to 2reud$ #elancholia is the pathologic #anifestation of #ourning and he catalogues its #ental features as: “profoundly painful de+ection$ cessation of interest in the outside 'orld$ loss of the capacity to lo,e$ inhibition of all acti,ity$ and a lo'ering of the self-regardB” &@) 3o'e,er$ in #elancholia the sub+ect fails to identify the “ob+ect-loss” and e,en if the “ob+ect-loss” is identified$ the sub+ect is unable to identify 'hat “about it” e,o*es a painful de+ection 7oreo,er$ 7elancholia also has an influence in the so#atic real#: the sub+ect is unable to consu#e and digest food and encounters difficulty in sleeping &inso#nia) These sy#pto#s enlisted by 2reud can be detected in %auri fro# the outset of the story: t had been “al#ost a 'ee* no'$ Cthat %auri did not *no'DB'hat sound sleep 'as” &499) nso#nia$ thereby$ is the first #edical condition that can be detected by the reader As the story progresses$ the reader learns that %auri has been assigned to de,ote her full ti#e and attention to *a*a$ her grandson 'ho is handed o,er to her daily at “e(actly thirty #inutes past si(” by Santo*h
&That strange #o#ent a strange dread could be seen lur*ing in her eyes) Suddenly she felt a 'a,e of nausea s'eeping o,er herB &A Season of No Return/ 495) %auri!s “painful de+ection” can be seen as a result of her an(iety- the fear of being left alone in the enclosed go,ern#ent =uarter 3er act of #ourning the loss of ,illage life and the disco#fort 'ith her entrap#ent in an absurd circularity plays out in %auri!s actions 'hen she is gi,en the bottle of #il* by the daughter-in-la' and si#ultaneously re,eals her inhibition to'ards this daily tas*: “ CThe daughter-in-la'D repeated the sa#e sentence she has been spouting at that hour for the past three #onth no'$ “Please 7aa+i$ gi,e *a*a his feed” Perhaps it 'as the first ti#e in three #onths that %auri had not responded 'ith her usual 'ar#th saying$ “Gi,e it to #e$ child” &A Season of No Return/ 495-49?) The reader is also pro,ided 'ith a gli#pse of %auri!s “cessation of interest in the outside 'orld”: 'hen the Gu+arati 'o#an$ her neighbor greets her fro# the ,erandah$ “so#ething cross&es) C%auri!sD #ind that she decide&s) not to respond” Another instance 'hich un,eils %auri!s ,e(ation and restlessness is 'hen Santo*h returns fro# his office 'ith a fe' friends: “She could constantly hear the sounds of the peeling laughter and the tip-tapping of her daughter-in-la'!s chappals co#ing in fro# the li,ing roo# t felt as through their neighbor!s son 'as firing shots 'ith his gun This 'as enough to #a*e her restless all o,er again” &45E) As noted abo,e$ 2reud clai#s #elancholia also has an influence in the so#atic real# of the sub+ect This clai# holds true in %auri!s case as she is not only unable to sleep- “not ha,ing had a 'in* of sleep the pre,ious night” &45E)- but also faces difficulty consu#ing food- “With great difficulty$ she #anaged to finish half the
paranthaB a sudden pain stabbed her bac* and she lay do'n to'ards *a*a!s feet” &456) Although %auri!s actions and thoughts e(pose her #elancholic condition$ 'hich is infor#ed by the “loss” of the sense of co##unity located in the ,illage$ she consecuti,ely indulges in a “controlled regression” to the ,illage t!s a controlled regression as This can be seen in her regular ,isits to the gurud'ara 'here she could #eet se,eral Pun+abi 'o#en n addition$ the par* outside the gurud'ara enabled %auri to reconstruct the sense of co##unity She #ade a special bond 'ith a 'o#an fro# 0alandar 'ith 'ho# she 'ould share all her grie,es and sorro's This constructed space of the par* in the ci,ic society ser,es as the “#ahaula” of the ,illage- a space 'here “people 'ould #a*e either ne' ac=uaintances or rene' the old ones” &45>) 3o'e,er$ her unconscious atte#pts at recreating the ,illage in the city space 'ere not effecti,e 2ro# her con,ersations 'ith the 'o#an fro# 0alandar in the par*$ rearing *a*a to tal*ing to the #aid$ %auri achie,ed relief only te#porarily There 'as constantly a feeling of restless that lur*ed in her Se,eral ti#es she ,oiced her desire to return bac* to the ,illage: “%a*a$ please ta*e #e bac* to the ,illage” 3o'e,er$ her son al'ays shunned her desire 'ith the sa#e rhetorical =uestion: “are you being incon,enienced here in any'ays;” &45@) Thereby$ %auri!s desire to return to the ,illage- “the #o#ents 'hen her nostalgia for ho#e 'ould gro' into a nagging obsession” she 'ould resort to the act of drea#ing about her ,illage in the night: “The open courtyard of the house and the children frolic*ing about thereBtheir hands dripping 'ith fresh co' dungBbursting into loud guffa's as they chased each other” &A Season of No Return/ 45@)
%auri!s drea# brings to the forefront the “open” space of the ,illage that 'as rooted in Gandhi!s ethical and cultural dictu#- an agricultural co##unity 'hich li,ed a pure 'ay of life that 'as close to the nature The depiction of the ,illage life in %auri!s drea# then$ can be seen in star* contrast- both spatially and #orally- to the urban city lifestyle 'hich replaced Gandhi!s dictu# 'ith gri# instru#entality and precepts of reason This instru#entality can be seen in the relationship of %auri and her daughter-in-la' 'here the earlier filial bond of #other and daughter-in-la' &albeit go,erned by the patriarchal positioning of saas-bahu in a 3indu household) has been replaced by ne' labour e=uation No'$ %auri 'ould beco#e a burden to the fa#ily if she doesn!t ser,e her role of babysitter in the household$ she follo's the instru#ental logic 'hich gi,es force to the nuclear fa#ily in the cityspace$ as opposed to the +oint fa#ily in the ,illage space When Santo*h and his 'ife$ finally decide to send %auri bac* to the ,illage: “n a co#posed #anner$ he 'as trying to e(plain it to his 'ife$ FWhat is the 'ay out no'; B ",en can see the proble#s it!ll create/ but 'e!ll engage in a #aid”
This “replace#ent” occurred due to a ne' conceptuali.ation of the ti#e-space in the #odern entity of the nation-state$ follo'ing the establish#ent of colonial rule and the e#ergence of ndian nationalis# in the nineteenth century Wedding the tenets of Gandhianis# 'ith Nehru,ian socialis#$ the nationalist #o,e#ent sought authenticity and
identity
through
the
self-sufficient
rural
co##unities
&http:'''#*gandhiorgre,i,al,illage) and propounded a ,ision of progress for the agricultural co##unity This 'as supposed to go hand in hand 'ith ndia!s e#ergence as an industrial po'er$ a de,elop#ent that 'as supposed to happen 'ith assistance fro# the ritish and Russian nation-states 3o'e,er$ these ides of the nation state did
not #atch 'ith the political realis# of the nation after independence$ 'hich in the conte(t of Pun+ab entailed a coping 'ith the tas* of rehabilitation post-partition and also the e#ergence of the A*ali
?E6sLpun+abKsourceIblKotsIebRM N9EE"KsigIn+tNb5*Mf7JWA*3e(hoOWG'(gKhlIenKsaIK,edI6ahQ%"' iP9P%>5AhP0%3W,As1h?E6s @6pun+abKfIfalse) 'as synony#ous 'ith the rise of the A*ali
=uestions e#erging fro# the li#itations of #y #ethodology- ho' do 'e psychoanalyse the #anifest content of %auri!s recurring drea# of children playing 'ith co'dung in an e#pty courtyard$ 'hen 'e ha,e +ust one re-telling of the drea# in the scope of the narrati,e; s it the repressed desire to access the non-producti,e co##unitarian space of the ,illage 'hich finds 'ish-fulfill#ent in the drea# 'orld; ",en if read Nandy!s di,ision of psychic apparatus in the sel,es associated 'ith the ,illage and the city$ 'hat pri#ordial passions thri,e in the space of the ,illage$ 'hich 'ill be replaced 'ith the urban pri#ordiality of rationality and ob+ecti,ity; 2inally$ if not the “controlled regression” that %auri indulges in negotiating the sel,es associated 'ith the ,illage and the city$ 'hat syste#ic changes need to be brought about 'hich undoes the binary bet'een ,illage and city apart fro# the iberali.atio-Pri,ati.ationGlobali.ation #easures 'hich gi,e birth to the proble#atic concept of the glocal or e,en global ,illage;
