Narrating The Self: Identity Quests in Linda Grant's Novels

Chandni Begum¹, Karunesh Jha²

¹Research Scholar, Department of English, A.P.S. University, Rewa, (M.P)

²Professor and Head of English Dept., Pandit S.N. Shukla University, Shahdol, (M.P)

*Corresponding Author E-mail: chandnibegum192@gmail.com

ABSTRACT:

This research paper focuses on identity quests in Linda Grant’s novels. This paper explores the complex web of identity development that Linda Grant's novels weave together. With an emphasis on the subtle stories that shed light on the characters' travels, the study makes its way across the tricky terrain of self-discovery found in Grant's literary works. The study deconstructs the complex layers of identity quests that Grant's protagonists undertake through a close reading of important works, such as "The Clothes on Their Backs" and "When I Lived in Modern Times." The investigation covers how the characters' perceptions of themselves are shaped by the interaction of their personal histories, cultural surroundings, and societal forces. The study explains how Grant's books function as rich canvases on which the characters paint their stories of identity by drawing on a variety of theoretical frameworks. Grant's protagonists go on significant self-discovery journeys that connect with readers universally, whether they are navigating the complexities of personal relationships, dealing with the legacy of family, or facing historical upheavals. By closely analysing narrative strategies, character growth, and thematic motifs, this study seeks to advance knowledge of how Linda Grant uses the novel to delve into the complexities of the human psyche. By doing this, it illuminates the author's unique storytelling style, in which the search for identity serves as a major theme and encourages readers to consider their own paths of self-discovery. In the end, this investigation aims to present Linda Grant's works as engrossing and perceptive analyses of the nuances present in the process of forming and describing the self.

KEYWORDS: Identity, Self, Societal influences, Reflection.

INTRODUCTION:

Linda Grant was born in Liverpool in 1951. Her first novel The Cast Iron Shore won the David Higham Prize for Fiction in 1996 and was shortlisted for the Guardian Fiction Prize. She’s the author of seven further novels, including When I Lived in Modern Times, winner of the 2000 Orange Prize for Fiction and shortlisted for the Jewish QuarterlyWingate Literary Prize, The Clothes on Their Backs, shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize in 2008 and winner of the South Bank Show Literature Award,

The Dark Circle, shortlisted for the Women’s Prize for Fiction in 2017, and A Stranger City (2019). Her non-fiction books include her memoir Remind Me Who I Am Again, winner of both the Mind and Age Concern Book of the Year awards, Sexting the Millennium, The People on the Street: A Writer’s View of Israel winner of the Lettre Ulysses Prize for Literary Reportage, and The Thoughtful Dresser. She is a fellow of the Royal Society of Literature and lives in London.

Renowned author Linda Grant has made a name for herself by writing stories that deftly explore the complexities of the human psyche. This essay seeks to dissect the novels' subtle examination of identity, examining the complex aspects of selfhood in the face of societal change. The main characters in Grant's works set off on introspective trips that frequently reflect the changing landscapes of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries.

I. Historical and Cultural Context:

Grant's works have a strong cultural and historical influence on the regions in which they are set. In the novels of Grant, the temporal and spatial background of the story, explaining how historical occurrences and cultural changes influence the characters' search for their identities. Grant's characters grapple with their sense of self as they navigate the currents of change, be it the difficulties of modern society or the upheavals of post-war Britain.

II. The Individual and Society:

Grant's investigation of identity goes beyond the individual to examine the intricate interactions that take place between the self and society. Linda Grant’s works aims to dissect how society expectations, conventions, and prejudices affect how identity is constructed by examining the relationships and interactions of her characters within their social context. Grant's stories show the conflict between originality and conformity and offer a complex picture of the fight for authenticity in the face of social constraints.

III. Gender and Identity:

The investigation of gender roles and their impact on identity formation is a recurring issue in Grant's works. Her works examines the gendered aspects of identity quests, revealing the ways in which her characters struggle with conventional notions of femininity and masculinity. Through Grant's depiction of gender dynamics, one may examine how gender identity changes over time and intersects with many aspects of selfhood.

IV. The Search for Authenticity:

The protagonists' quest for authenticity in a world full of falsehoods lies at the heart of Grant's works. Grant explores the existential aspects of identity quests by looking at the inner conflicts, revelations, and struggles of the characters. Her novels reveal the author's thematic concerns with authenticity and self-realization by examining the narrative techniques used by Grant to portray the characters' quest for true selfhood.

In one of the novel of Linda Grant “When I Lived in Modern Times”, Eveln is presented as a diasporic character who is not assure of where she belongs. She is caught in in-betweens. She asserts:

When I am with the British and they treat me as if I’m British I feel British, not a Jew at all. If I have a passport in the name of this Priscilla Jones, who’s to say I ’m someone else apart from myself. I mean if I suffered from some form of amnesia and forget completely that I was Evelyn Sert who would I be then? (140)

It shows the situation of Jews who are living their own country Palestine but treated as a foreigners and deprived of fundamental rights. It portrays the real picture of Palestine and the contemporary condition of the people in the nation.

In the novels of Grant, she shares her experiences through her works. It becomes hard to forget her childhood and her experience of past.

Evelyn's lies expose her tendency to hide her identity and provide people with a false or duplicate one in order to gain respect and a job. Evelyn feels more connected to her native country as a result of all the events. She struggles to adapt in Palestine and cannot let go of her lifestyle on British country. We can find Johnny in addition to Evelyn; he is a clone character that Evelyn backs. Evelyn's boyfriend is a Zionist who enjoys disguising her identity. Evelyn believes her partner has taken advantage of her. Here in the text:

‘Who are you? You owe me that.’ ‘Well, my name is not exactly Levi Aharoni as it is not exactly Johnny but a name means nothing. A name is just something on a document. It tells you nothing. To you I ‘m Johnny and that’s as it should be. You don’t need to know my real name as long as you know me. What else? (155)

It demonstrates how Evelyn and her partner learn to deal with hardship by lying and appearing to be together. Sert is having a hard time adjusting to her new environment while also dealing with the awful grief of her family and past. Since Palestine is a foreign location to Evelyn, she is having trouble there. Regarding the theme of Grant's When I Lived in Modern Times, the book is composed of discussion and debate concerning identity, alienation, and how to reconcile the past with the present.

CONCLUSION:

The novels written by Linda Grant are intricate tapestries with themes of identity exploration weaved throughout. This research study has attempted to analyse the historical, cultural, gendered, and existential aspects of identity quests in order to peel back the layers of complexity found in her works. Because of Grant's skillful writing and acute understanding of the human condition, her novels serve as excellent resources for academic research on the complex web of self-discovery. Readers are encouraged to reflect on the endless search for authenticity and the universal problems of identity as they travel with her characters.

REFERENCES:

1. "Linda Grant". Themanbookerprize.com. Booker Prize Foundation. Archived from the original on 9 November 2016. Retrieved 8 November 2016.

2. Axel Stähler, “Antisemitism and Israel in British Jewish fiction: perspectives on Clive Sinclair’s Blood Libels (1985) and Howard Jacobson’s The Finkler Question (2010)”.

3. Beckerman, Hannah (6 November 2016). "The Dark Circle by Linda Grant review–insurrection in the sanatorium". The Observer. London. Retrieved 8 November 2016.

4. Brah, Avtah. “Thinking through the concept of Diaspora”. The Post-Colonial Studies Reader. Ed. Bill Ashcraft et.al 2nd ed. London and New York: Routledge, 2006.443-46.

5. Grant, Linda (2 May 2019). A Stranger City. Virago. ISBN 978-0349010502.

6. Grant, Linda (5 November 2016). "My writing day: Linda Grant: 'I can't write after lunch, in a public place, or when anyone is in the house'". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 13 March 2017.

7. Grant, Linda. -“When I Lived in Modern Times, London: Granta Publication, 2000.

8. Parker, Emma (July 2008). "FEATURES: Interview with Booker-shortlisted novelist Linda Grant". le.ac.uk. University of Leicester. Retrieved 12 March 2017.

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10. Stuart Hall, “Cultural Identity and Diaspora” Contemporary Postcolonial Theory. Ed. Padmini. Mangia, Delhi: OUP,1997

11. Suzanne Ruta, ‘The Newest Place in the World’ The New York Times, 28/01/2001, last accessed 06/02/2017.

Received on 01.01.2024 Modified on 21.01.2024

Res. J. Humanities and Social Sciences. 2024;15(1)87-89.

DOI: 10.52711/2321-5828.2024.00013