R.K. Narayan
Write 3 questions for each of the following
words, in which the word is the answer to your
questions.
+ Muni
+ The statue
+ The American
+ Kritam
+ To understand, analyse and critically review
the short story,
+ To express a personal opinion.
+ To write a formal essay in an analytical and
academic register.
+ Match the vocabulary terms from the story to the
correct definition
+ Winning pair will get chocolate cupcakes tomorrow
baked by me 
R.K. Narayan (Rasipuram Krishnaswami Iyer Narayanaswam)
lived from October 10, 1906 to May 13 2001. He was an
Indian author, who was famed for his fictional works of
literature. Narayan was born in Chennai, an Indian city,
formerly known as Madras. He grew up partly with his father,
who was a headmaster from whom Narayan gained some
knowledge from, and partly with his grandmother as his
father was constantly moving jobs. It was from his
grandmother, that Narayan learnt arithmetic, mythology,
classical Indian music and Sanskrit. When he was slightly
older, Narayan and his family moved to Mysore, where his
father worked at the Maharajah's Collegiate High School. It
was here that Narayan found his passion for reading and
writing. Narayan was able to finish high school, however failed
his university entrance exam.
+ A year later, in 1926, he retook this exam, and passed,
therefore was granted permission to attend Maharaja
College of Mysore. Narayan obtained his Bachelor’s
degree four years later and for a short time he worked
as a teacher. However, Narayan realised that his true
calling was in literature, therefore he started his career
with writing a book review on ‘Development of
Maritime Laws of 17th-Century England’, which was his
first published work. Narayan also began writing
articles for English newspapers and magazines, which
allowed him to earn a sufficient but not prosperous
living. However, he was content. His first novel was
written in 1930, ‘Swami and Friends’ which was
mocked and rejected by many publishers.
Narayan continued writing, and in 1933, married
Rajam, a girl from his neighbourhood. Narayan’s
novel ‘Swami and Friends’ was finally published in
1935, with the help of his friend Graham Greene,
in Oxford. Narayan was widowed in 1939, as his
wife died from typhoid. This death bought on
Narayan’s next novel, ‘The English Teacher’,
which was a tribute to his late wife. Narayan
continued to write and published many books
including, ‘A Tiger for Malgudi’, ‘Talkative Man’
and his final novel ‘Grandmother’s Tale’, which
was published in 1990. Narayan became
hospitalised during May 2001, at the age of 94,
and passed away in Chennai, that same month.
English, do you speak
English?
Slice of life
Barren couple
I sold the goats!
R.K. Naryan’s, ‘A Horse and Two Goats’, is set in Kritam, a tiny village located on the edge of India. The main
character and protagonist of the story, Muni, is shown as poor and deprived old man, who previously led a
prosperous life, which has gone downhill, leading to him and his wife living in poverty. Muni and his wife are
taunted by the villagers as a ‘barren couple’ as they have no children, and are frowned upon, because even
though they are childless and must only support themselves, they still live a rundown life. This ‘slice of life’
story shows what begins as a typical day in Muni’s life, and ends very unpredictably. The story begins with Muni
begging his wife to make him a breakfast of ‘drumsticks’. She decides to make this breakfast as long as Muni is
able to find the other ingredients needed. Muni’s wife does not have these ingredients in the house, nor the
money to buy them, therefore she sends her husband off, telling him that a day of fasting ‘will do (you) good’.
Disappointed, Muni sets out with his two goats, to ask the local shopkeeper, for the items that his wife needs to
cook him the breakfast he is craving. However, Muni is sent away by the shopkeeper, as he already owes the
shopkeeper a large debt. Again, Muni is let down, and continues to his usual spot, underneath a large clay
statue of a horse and warrior, where he rests, as his goats graze. Unexpectedly, Muni is approached by an
American man, who has just pulled over in a station wagon. Muni becomes frightened as the man’s ‘khaki’
coloured clothing, has mislead Muni to believe the foreigner is a soldier or police officer. Muni tries to run
away, however his old age restricts him and he is unable to move. The stranger approaches Muni and greets
him in Tamil, then continues the conversation in English, as his knowledge of Tamil is very little. Muni replies
with ‘Yes, no’. These two words are as far as Muni’s English vocabulary reaches. The foreigner, who in reality is a
businessman from New York, pulls out a cigarette, lights it and offers it to Muni. Muni accepts this offer, and
the American man then pulls out a business card. Muni becomes startled at this action, as he believes that this
is a warrant of some kind, therefore starts blabbering of his innocence and how he has not committed any
crime. The American man asks Muni questions about the ‘marvellous’ horse statue, which he believes belongs
to Muni. Both men “converse”, though neither understands what the other is saying. This language barrier
leads to Muni, reminiscing about his past, the statue and his childhood, while the American explains to Muni
how he will be rearranging his furniture back in New York, to accommodate the statue. Finally after this strange
conversation, the foreigner places a 100 rupee note into Muni’s hand. Muni believes he has just sold his goats,
while the American believes he has just purchased the statue. The American makes his leave with the horse
statue towed in his station wagon, while Muni returns home to his wife. When he arrives home and explains to
his wife that the money has come from their sold goats, she is infuriated and does not believe him. Muni is left
confused, and the story ends with the wife threatening him to go ‘back to her parents’.
+ Although the story is short there are frequent
references to Indian mythology and a strong presence
of irony.
+ Analyse the story in 3 sections:
1. The Statue and the Village
2. The transaction
3. The outcome
DO NOW: Write a brief summary of events in each
section.
EXTENSION: What does each section represent? Eg
statue and village are symbolic of what? Transaction is
symbolic? Outcome is tragi-comic, why?
+ Examine the state of the statue and the village in which
+
+
+
+
it is situated (1st paragraph of the story).
Comment on the way the village and the statue are
presented by the writer.
The village, “apex of the world” , on the other hand a
“tiny dot on even the most detailed map”.
The statue was magnificent because of its bright
colours, its texture is little more than “blobs of mud”,
being ravaged by the sun and rain. Where do readers
learn that there are many statues like this?
Overall – descriptions present former grandeur, India is
no longer what it used to be.
+ The protagonists don’t have the slightest idea
of what the other is talking about – mutual
mystification.
+ Use the handout to fill in the speech bubbles
– speculate on what each of the characters
could be thinking while the other is speaking.
+ What leads Muni to think that the American wants to buy his
goats?
The American strokes them. Muni has looked after them, so they are
in fairly good condition and are therefore worth buying.
+ What makes the American so sure that he has bought the statue?
As Muni was sitting near the statue, the American automatically
assumes that it must belong to him. He cannot conceive of an
object not belonging to anybody. He gives Muni Money, so believes
a transaction must have taken place and he is now in possession of
the statue.
+ How does the narrator make use of comic irony to describe the
situation?
Neither of the protagonists knows what the other is talking about:
The American does not know that he now owns the goats and not
the statue, while Muni does not realize that he now has 120 rupees
but still has his goats.
+ Mutual Mystification – speech bubbles task
+ Forms of Characterisation – Re-read the story
carefully and take notes on how the two
protagonists are characterised.
i) What they say
ii) What they do
iii) What the author is telling us
“They had known him in the
days of affluence when he
lorded over a flock of fleecy
sheep, not the miserable
gawky goats that he had
today.”
Her temper was undependable in the
morning but improved by evening
time. She was sure to go out and
work – grind corn in the Big House,
sweep or scrub somewhere, and earn
enough to buy foodstuff and keep a
dinner ready for him in the evening.”
“The red faced man
wore khaki clothes –
evidently a policeman
or soldier.”
+ Muni, an old(unsure about his age) and desperately poor man, is the
protagonist of the story. Once he was prosperous, with a large flock of
sheep, but a series of misfortunes have left him with only two scrawny
goats. He and his wife have almost no income and no children to help take
care of them. He lives a simple life, and likes to pretend that he has a
daughter, despite the fact that they are a “barren couple”. Every day, Muni
takes the goats out to graze on the scarce grass outside of town, while his
wife pulls something together for an evening meal. As he watches the
goats from the shade of a large statue, he remembers his younger days
when the work was hard but there was enough to eat, when he could not
attend school because he was not of the right caste, and when he
imagined that he would one day have children. Like many poor and
struggling people, he fears authority figures, and so he fears the American
who steps out of a strange car wearing khaki clothes. While the man tries
to talk with him about the statue, Muni babbles on about a recent murder
and the end of the world. He finds solace in the horse statue. It is a place
to rest but also where he is comfortable. At the end he seems to have
temporarily escaped his money troubles, but his bad luck continues when
his wife suspects him of thievery and threatens to leave.
Muni’s wife, who remains unnamed throughout the story
has spent some sixty years with him (neither of them is
sure about their ages), through prosperity and poverty.
Although she is gruff with him now, she is willing to
indulge his request for a special meal. She is shown to
be temperamental and does all the domestic chores.
She has the ‘upper hand’ in the relationship. She works
as hard as he does, or harder, getting up at dawn to fix
his morning meal, and taking odd jobs at the Big House
when their stores are low. But poverty has worn her
down: her first reaction when she sees the hundred
rupees is to accuse Muni of stealing.
The man comes riding into the story in a yellow station wagon. A
businessman who works in New York and commutes from
Connecticut, he is dressed in khaki clothing worn by American
tourists. He came to India as he experienced a power cut in his
office in the Empire State Building and felt the need to experience
and visit other civilisations. He typifies the “Ugly American”: he
speaks only English, but is surprised and a little annoyed to find that
Muni can only speak Tamil, and although he is in the tiniest village in
India, he expects to find a fas station and English-speaking
goatherds. Once he sees the statue, he wants it for his living room
without any thought as to what the statue might mean to the
people of Kritam. He exemplifies, that even though the language
can’t speak, money can and buys the horse for himself without any
real thought or consideration. The communication barrier between
Muni and the American man causes a misunderstanding when it
comes to the horse statue. The American man thinks it belongs to
Muni and attempts to buy it while Muni thinks that his misfortune is
coming to an end and the scrawny goats are being sold.
Cultural diversity
Wealth & Poverty
Insensitivity
Colonialism (Ignorance)
Narration
And
Point
Of
View
Setting Kritam
Realism
Humour
+ The location itself is irrelevant –it could be anywhere in
southern India (Tamil is spoken in south-eastern India):
outside a village so tiny that it cannot be found on any atlas,
but guarded by the ancient statue of a horse and a warrior.
Here, Muni looks after his goats, resting ‘in the shade of a
nearby cactus’. The detailed description of the statue
contrasts with the vagueness of the location: the formerly
awe-inspiring statue dominates and guards the scene
(‘massive’, ‘brightly coloured’, ‘prancing’, ‘tail looped up’,
‘bulging eyes’) and conveys the impression of movement as
opposed to the calm and peaceful situation around it. The
exotic element which the description contains is further
emphasised by the explanations of its religious significance
given by the old man, which are totally lost on the American.
+ However, it is Narayan’s humourous and ironic description of
the setting, his use of language which sets the scene for the
reader, hinting at elemental human weaknesses, as is ‘the way
of the world’.
SUMMARY: Narayan has written numerous novels and short
stories, many of them set in Malgudi, a fictional but typical small
Indian town. His characters are invariably ordinary people finding
their route through Indian life. Although A Horse and Two Goats
makes no reference to Malgudi itself, it is typical of these stories,
as Muni tries to live and ease the burden of his poverty. The story
is narrated with the non-judgemental understanding and gentle
humour typical of Narayan’s writing.
The narration emphasises the insignificance of the village, and by
implication the insignificance of its central character, who is coping
with poverty and domestic struggle and seeks to ease his way by
deceit and invention. The big deceit of the story, though, happens
through misunderstanding and without Muni’s volition, Narayan
creating comedy through the two parallel lines of attempted
dialogue between Muni and the American tourist. Within the
comedy, though, Narayan shows the different values of the two,
the American’s dialogue concerned with acquisition and
possessions, while Muni is concerned with history and spirituality.
+ In pairs, complete a detailed, crafted and
workable sequence breakdown which will adapt
this story into a short film.
+ Sequence Breakdown = ordered/arranged events
within the plot – you will have to think carefully
about how to divide the scenes up.
+ Video notes = Mise-en-scene (everything in the
scene), costume, setting, lighting, acting,
props/objects.
+ Audio notes – Music/Soundtrack, Script,
ambience, sound effects, diagetic sounds.
Wider reading
+ The Guide (novel) and Malgudi Days (short stories) by RK
Narayan
+ Kanthapura by Raja Rao
Compare with
+ Games at Twilight by Anita Desai
+ Of White Hairs and Cricket by Rohinton Mistry
Online
+ Information about RK Narayan is available at:
+ http://www.eng.fju.edu.tw/worldlit/india/narayan.html
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=8759633237701250144#