The Representation of Social Inequality in the Novels of Mulk Raj Anand

Abstract

Mulk Raj Anand (1905–2004) stands as one of the most significant figures in Indian English literature, distinguished by his unflinching portrayal of the oppressed, the marginalized, and the dehumanized in colonial and early post-colonial India. His novels constitute a sustained literary engagement with the systemic injustices embedded in Indian society — caste discrimination, class exploitation, gender subjugation, and the brutalizing effects of colonial rule. Drawing upon his socialist convictions, his exposure to Marxist thought during his years in England, and his personal witnessing of poverty and oppression, Anand transformed the English novel into a vehicle for radical social critique. This research paper undertakes a comprehensive examination of the representation of social inequality in Anand's fiction, with particular focus on his landmark novels Untouchable (1935), Coolie (1936), Two Leaves and a Bud (1937), and The Village (1939). The paper analyses how Anand employs narrative technique, characterization, language, and symbolism to expose the violent hierarchies of caste, class, and colonial power. It argues that Anand's novels are not mere sociological documents but deeply humanistic works that reconfigure the politics of sympathy and demand structural transformation. The paper further situates Anand's literary project within the broader contexts of Marxist aesthetics, Gandhian social reform, and the global anti-colonial movement of the twentieth century.