December '12 / Nobel Prize Winners Reading: A House For Mr Biswas

[Scheherazade]

In December we will be reading A House for Mr Biswas by Naipaul.

Please share your comments and questions in this thread.

[neilgee]

Mr Biswas lives in a poor country where houses are shared between many people, to own his own house is a big deal to Mr Biswas at the beginning of the novel (where I am), but there doesn't look like he has a cat in hell's chance of ever achieving that. The novel is the tale of how he does achieve that (as far as I can tell from reviews I've read) and VS Naipaul is a master story teller so it should be worth reading.

[Dark Muse]

This is my second book by V.S. Naipaul. The first was A Bend in the River which I quite enjoyed.

The narrative for this book is quite different in style and nature than in A Bend in the River, and though I have not gotten that far in my reading yet so far I am enjoying it. This book does very much remind me of some of the Indian writers I have read in the way the story is presented and the flow of it, as well as some of the more somewhat bizarre moments that occur in the story.

[neilgee]

I read A bend in the river too, as well as a couple of others, and it is extraordinary the ability that Naipaul has to reinvent himself as an author, his range of styles. I always find him very readable though.

Incidentally, something I meant to get in the first post, did you know that Naipaul has never worked as anything other than a writer?

He was that good from his first offerings that he has never had to take any other job!

Lucky sod!

[Dark Muse]

I read A bend in the river too, as well as a couple of others, and it is extraordinary the ability that Naipaul has to reinvent himself as an author, his range of styles. I always find him very readable though.

Incidentally, something I meant to get in the first post, did you know that Naipaul has never worked as anything other than a writer?

He was that good from his first offerings that he has never had to take any other job!

Lucky sod!


Oh no I did not know that. Haha that is lucky

[Dark Muse]

The book itself I am really enjoy reading. It is a very engaging story I find, as well as being wonderfully written. It flows quite well and keeps my interest, but I find I am conflicted about the character of Mr. Biswiss, I just do not really know what to make of him at this point. In spite of the many unfortunate events he has thus far suffered I cannot quite find him to be an altogether sympathetic character. There is a certain aspect of his personality makes him come off as a bit unlikable I think. I think there might be an air of self-pity about him that can be a bit off-putting. There are moments where I do feel badly for how others treated him, and thus far I do not think he is a bad person, just not one I really feel myself getting behind and rooting for at this point.

[neilgee]

The book itself I am really enjoy reading. It is a very engaging story I find, as well as being wonderfully written. It flows quite well and keeps my interest, but I find I am conflicted about the character of Mr. Biswiss, I just do not really know what to make of him at this point. In spite of the many unfortunate events he has thus far suffered I cannot quite find him to be an altogether sympathetic character. There is a certain aspect of his personality makes him come off as a bit unlikable I think. I think there might be an air of self-pity about him that can be a bit off-putting. There are moments where I do feel badly for how others treated him, and thus far I do not think he is a bad person, just not one I really feel myself getting behind and rooting for at this point.

I have to agree with you here. There's an arrogance, a certain ingratitude in Mr Biswas's attitude that makes you feel he brings some of his misfortune on himself. You have to put that alongside the things that his society imposes on him, the way he is married of to the first girl he really takes any notice of or makes any approach to for example, and I did feel sorry for him when the naming of his first child is taken completely out of his hands, but then he's back to his usual self without a good word for anybody.

I'm just passed the 200 page mark, it's slow going basically because of the time of the year, but I'll try to get a move on.

[Dark Muse]

I have to agree with you here. There's an arrogance, a certain ingratitude in Mr Biswas's attitude that makes you feel he brings some of his misfortune on himself. You have to put that alongside the things that his society imposes on him, the way he is married of to the first girl he really takes any notice of or makes any approach to for example, and I did feel sorry for him when the naming of his first child is taken completely out of his hands, but then he's back to his usual self without a good word for anybody.

I'm just passed the 200 page mark, it's slow going basically because of the time of the year, but I'll try to get a move on.

Yes arrogance is a good word for it. I was thinking there seems to be something almost self-important about his attitude that is what turns me off. I can see where on the one hand there are things of which happen to him that are quite out of his control but at the same time, he does seem to give up rather quickly and go fleeing back home and than sit around and complain about his lot in life and in some ways some of his own actions do seem to lead to some of his problems.

Also at times he seems to take such a passive role in his own life but than wants to complain about what happens when he just sort of sat on his hands and did nothing about it, such as in the case with the girl Shama

I myself am behind in my reading of the book because of trying to catch up on other books, and other things going on that are distracting me.

[neilgee]

Well I've not read much more but it did include this extraordinary episode (to me) with the "crab catcher" jestcumgoad, my, Mr Biswas doesn't believe in letting anyone off lightly once he has something to tease them about, even after they seem to have made friends he still kept bringing it up!

The other thing I wanted to mention is I have an Indian friend on the forum who told me that it is the custom over there for older relatives to choose a baby's name. Although Mr Biswas is in Trinidad for the novel he seems to be an Indian Hindu by racial descent. What I'm wondering is if this is an accepted custom how come Mr Biswas doesn't seem to have heard of it?

It's Christmas Eve here so not likely to get much more read until the festivities are over.

[neilgee]

Read another 100 pages or so so here goes:

Mr Biswas's hostility towards Hanuman House is extraordinary, even after they take him in because he's had some sort of breakdown the hostility remains, despite the fact that they bring up his children for him as toddlers all he wants is to look down on the people there. "Hanuman" sounds like a play on the word human, so maybe Naipaul is letting us know which side he is on by giving the house that name.

I find myself feeling more and more sorry for Mr Biswas's wife, she really does get a raw deal in this novel, but she is so much more accepting of her lot than Mr Biswas ever is.

Naipaul as a writer doesn't go too deeply into the psyche's of his characters, the flow of the story always seems to be paramount, but he does do just enough to make them realistic portrayals of people, which is an admirable skill, I think, not many writers can strike the balance between character and story as smoothely as Naipaul does.

That's all I can think of for now, I know it's late in the month but please remember that this thread wasn't posted until over a week through the month and take into account the busy time of year.

[Dark Muse]

I have fallen a bit behind in my reading, but I am trying to get caught back up again. I think that is an interesting remark about Hanuman House. In a way it does seem that Mr. Biswis is set against the human race as a whole. He sees all other people he meets as being in some way in opposition against him, and than by his own actions and his hostility he presents himself in an off putting way.

I wonder of Shama's greater ability to tolerate and accept her lot in life is in part because she was a woman living in a culture in which women were often given very little say in their own lives and were expected to be obedient to their husbands. Though Mr. Biswis is more progressive in his views/treatment towards women as it is stated that he is in fact looked upon as being weak because he does not beat his wife. But she is raised in a world in which women were expected to endure.

[neilgee]

Ah, you have fallen behind and I have lost my copy of the book! A great pair we are! Actually I'm exaggerating slightly as I have now found it again (about five minutes ago) and I did read some more before it went missing. I loved the description of the Asian migrants - Mr Biswas included - as the examinations approach for the children (the boy-children, I should qualify that in keeping with your remarks about the difficulties of being a woman in Asian culture) . That is so well written and fits with all I know about Asians, but I'd never encountered it so graphically written about like that before so it was like an expected eye-opener (if there's such a thing).

I have just over one hundred pages left to read so I should finish it sometime this month... :lol:

[neilgee]

I finished the novel yesterday, must admit the last 100 or so pages didn't give me much that I would like to add to the thread.

I think it would be interesting to add a quote from the Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_House_for_Mr_Biswas) notes on the novel however, the level of superstition flowing through the novel rather by-passed me because "the pundit" is such a ridiculous character in the novel and everything he "blesses" seems to go wrong:


His birth is considered inauspicious as he is born "in the wrong way" and with an extra finger. A pandit prophesies that the newly born Mr Biswas "will be a lecher and a spendthrift. Possibly a liar as well", and that he will "eat up his mother and father". The pundit further advises that the boy be kept "away from trees and water. Particularly water". A few years later, Mohun leads a neighbour's calf, which he is tending, to a stream. The boy, who has never seen water "in its natural form", becomes distracted watching the fish and allows the calf to wander off. Mohun hides in fear of punishment. His father, believing his son to be in the water, drowns in an attempt to save him, thus in part fulfilling the pundit's prophecy.

Also, seeing as there were only two people contributing to the thread maybe it would be interesting to quote the blurb from the back of my copy as it gives a point of view that myself and Dark Muse have not concurred with, presenting Mr Biswas as almost heroic. The blurb ends with : "He marries into the domineering Tulsi family, on whom he becomes indignantly dependent, but rebels and takes on a succession of occupations in an arduous struggle to weaken their hold over him and purchase a house of his own".

I don't think Naipaul intended Mohun to be heroic. His death is certainly not described heroically.

[Dark Muse]

I am still hopelessly behind but still plodding ahead, so I cannot say too much now, but in regards to the comment about Mr. Biswis as being seen as a hero, while I cannot say I find him heroic, one thing I will comment upon that idea is, that perhaps because we do see things so much through his own point of view, even while I found him to be generally pathetic, and not particularly likable I also found it difficult not to sort of side with him and maybe sympathize with him a bit in regards to the Tulsi's.

I found myself at times as viewing them as truly being this oppressing and domineering force in his life, and I would cheer his efforts in rebellion against him and see the Tulsi's in a sort of villainous light. At times I would become annoyed with Shama for seeming to take the side of the Tulsi's over that of her husband and I would have to try and force myself to step back so to speak and try and view things from a non-bias point of view and see the ways in which Mr. Biswis was acting unreasonable and how he brought upon his own ill fate, and understand how bleak an existence The Chase must have been for Shama, and how unpleasant living with Mr. Biswis would be.

So while I do not think he is a heroic figure I can see how one could sort of get drawn into his point of view and see him as this underdog who is struggling to try and make his own way in life while dealing with this over bearing force that keeps intruding themselves in his life, and trying to keep a hold on him, disrespecting him, and treading him with hostility or simply as if he was completely inconsequential and non-existent.

If indeed Hanuman House is representative of human and or humanity, than it can be seen as Mr. Biswis against the world.

[neilgee]

Yes it's the old dilemma of wanting to trust the narrative but wondering how firmly Naipaul has his tongue in his cheek as he writes.