R. K. Narayan, The Financial Expert

Joshua Grasso (East Central University)

The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 10.3.1.03: Indian Writing and Culture: Post-colonial, 1947-present.
Vol. editors: Claire Gallien (Université Paul Valéry Montpellier 3), Pavan Kumar Malreddy (J W Goethe University of Frankfurt), Delphine Munos (Université de Liège)

Dates

First circulation or publication 1952

Places

India (Country of Origin)

Genres and Modes

Novel

Resources

The Financial Expert (1952) was one of a pair of novels written in quick succession immediately after India’s independence, the other being Mr. Sampath, The Printer of Malgudi (1949). As Lakshmi Holstrom notes in The Novels of R.K. Narayan (1973), his novels, “like classical Tamil literature, fall into two main divisions: ‘akam’ (the home) and ‘puram’ (the outside—power, wealth, politics)” (35).

This ‘puram’ stage of his career saw Narayan expanding his ambitions as a writer from the gentle, autobiographical comedy of his early works (The Dark Room excepted) to novels with the scope and satire of Fielding’s Tom Jones (…

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2103 words

Citation: Grasso, Joshua. "The Financial Expert". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 19 February 2022 [https://staging.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=869, accessed 24 November 2024.]

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