Ethical Dimensions in Anita Desai’s Fire On The Mountain

Abstract

The paper explores the moral, ethical dilemmas brought on by the conflict between consciousness of one’s roles and responsibilities towards others and personal convictions about one’s duty towards oneself in Anita Desai’s Fire on the Mountain. The concept of Dharma (ethics) - whether as a set of moral principles/value systems that we have internalized or as the right ways of living which have bearing on human behavior - has multiple dimensions in the society and in literary works which fundamentally reflect various aspects of a society. In this paper an honest endeavor has been made to address various issues through two elderly women characters such as - When consciousness of moral laws come into conflict with individual liberty and preservation of happiness, what ought to be one’s course of action?