ROOTS-20UMAT379-Agnes Tom

 Roots, a short story written by Ismat Chughtai, is a fictional take on the impact of the Partition on interpersonal relationships, memory as well as the idea of ‘home’ and ‘community’. The narrative, which is seen from the perspective of an aged woman ‘Amma’, is an insight into how women experienced the Partition.The language of the story is simple and beautiful. It encapusalutes the partition weaving a beautiful plot around the relationship between a hindu and a muslim family.

The story is set in Marwar, just before the declaration of Independence of India and Pakistan, where migrations have already begun taking place. However, despite constant persuasion by her family members, Amma refuses to pack up her belongings and set off for another land.The agony of having to leave one's birthplace, culture Amma does not want to cut off he from roots.She doesn’t want to leave her house for newly formed Pakistan. However, the reader gains an insight into the brutality of the experience as she experiences the pain and anguish of separation from her family members. At this point, her neighbors, Roopchand and his wife are a source of solace and comfort for her. Roopchand, seeing Amma's pain, decides to go to the station and bring Amma’s family back to their home. The story is an artful depiction of the resilience of love and mutual respect among persons, which survived a Partition that sought to create differences and divides.The author used  a lot of figure of speech to make the story beautiful.

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1. "India was operated upon the clumsy hands and blunt knives that thousands of arteries were left open"

 In this stanza colonial British power is personified as clumsy hands which is used to hurt the Indians by the arrival of partition.

2. "The luggage seemed to have legs and danced through the house"

Here the luggages and personified to show that all the family members expect amma has packed their belongings to move out. 

 

3. " But even a lamp whose oil has run out shudders before it's final gasp."

Here's  lamb symbolises Amma , She is drained of all her strength. 

4. "Time passed on, but Amma stayed steadfast in here position like a banyan tree that stands upright through storms and blizzards."

Here all other family members expect Amma moves towards newly formed pakistan but she refuses to be uprooted and stubbornly stays so author personified her as a banyan tree.

5. "The house on the other side seemed as far removed as a fleeting cloud in the distant sky."

    After the partition it ruptured the two families bond to an extent that even though the house was nearby  amma felt as it's too far away.