Abstract:
At the third edition of the Bangalore Literature Festival, the writer Dhruba
Hazarika from Assam claimed that most publishers prioritise printing those Northeast
Indian English novels which depict the ongoing armed insurgency in specific parts of
the region. If Hazarika’s assertion is true, many writers appear to have acceded to the
publishing world’s preference because their books, at least on the surface, portray a
comprehensive engagement with the socio-political turmoil characterised by hostility
and bloodshed. However, some Northeast Indian English authors seem to be more
absorbed in offering a novelistic critique of the society’s tendency to promptly
denounce the use of violence, while simultaneously refraining from extolling nonviolence
as a moral virtue. The present study deploys a genealogical analysis to
ascertain if the select novels of Mitra Phukan, Easterine Kire, Ankush Saikia, Dhruba
Hazarika, and Siddhartha Deb reflect Friedrich Nietzsche’s insight on the transitory
nature of morality. These authors appear to have devised plots that refuse to accord a
‘transcendental signified’ to moral values, thereby duly recognising the historical
process involved in instating specific socio-cultural values as righteous while
denouncing others. This genealogical inquiry foregrounds two crucial aspects of the
society’s traditional view on violence that physically or psychologically tortures
individuals. First, it highlights the dynamic sociological politics that induces most
people to develop a favourable opinion on or, at least, not condemn particular violent
acts. Second, this genealogical approach links the civilisational necessity for violence
to Sigmund Freud’s influential concept of the superego (the morality principle). This
linkage points to the fact that the society is tacitly supporting those violent activities
that sustain civilisation without overtly contradicting the dominant moral norms. Significantly, the Northeast Indian English writers uncover the complexities involved
in using violence to influence or aid specific people in leading a life that neither
threatens nor undermines the prevailing traditional culture and customs.
