Post-Independence Themes in Arun Joshi’s Novel: The Apprentice

Abstract

Ratan Rathor is the main character of Arun Joshi's third book, The Apprentice (1974). He is an original soul caught in a materialistic and urbanized society. The hero’s self-analysis is the focus of the novel. Ultimately, he finds solace in daily devotion to the devotees, which serves as atonement for his actions. Gandhi's teachings, as well as those of Western and Indian philosophers, influences Arun Joshi. The novel’s central theme is a post-independence letdown. The unavoidable nature of evil returning to the evil-doer is the subject of the other dynamic leitmotif. Despite the perplexing surroundings, the focus always remains on the individual, who calculatingly chooses evil and then repents. Ratan looks like a victim of the contemporary world. This paper examines the notion of attempting to sort through the confusion that pervades modern life.