Bondage of Time and Human Bondage in Anita Desai's Clear Light of Day

Abstract

The aliveness of nonexistent persons and their associations to those who exist are the themes that are dealt with in Anita Desai's Clear Light of Day. The present study endeavours to pass through the consequences of time in the spheres of familiar and familial life. The history of the nation puts a collateral impact on the story of the characters of the novel. In Clear Light of Day, it is pictured that the Partition Movement and communal rioting of the nation coincidentally dissipate the Das family. The only person who has stayed home is Bim who has nursed her memories and grudges, but who had been left behind by all who chose the exit doors and ultimately, she lets go of her resentments by finding the strength of bondage in herself for her siblings and relatives. Her house is the embodiment of kinship and love and she fosters this sort of appreciation all through her life in a metaphorical way. Eventually, time as a preserver emerges as triumphant and time as a destroyer is pushed into the background. Time, the Preserver, unites the family and the essential bonding of the members persists finally.