Humanistic Vision in the Select Novels of Sudha Murty

Abstract

Sudha Murty is a prolific Indian author, philanthropist and social worker whose storytelling, which is simple and profound, is grounded in humanistic values, placing her in a unique place of contemporary Indian English literature. This paper discusses the humanistic themes that are embedded in four of Murty's novels: the themes of compassion, empathy, social responsibility, and moral integrity as displayed in the daily life of people. Themes of Dollar Bahu, Mahashweta, House of Cards, and The Old Man and His God explore issues of human suffering, dignity, gender discrimination, class disparity, and the redemptive power of kindness. She has simple stories which are easy to read, but have a great depth of philosophy and concern for human welfare and social justice. The research in this work has revealed that Murty was not only a good storyteller but also an ethical one, and in his fiction he challenges materialism, self-centeredness and social bigotry, and urges the reader to search for a different moral alternative: humility, generosity and connectedness. By analyzing the challenges and changes faced by her characters and their subsequent development, this paper reveals Murty's humanism and her subordination of the particular to the universal, placing her among the humanistic works of literature, which are grounded in an Indian cultural ethos.