Hostland and Reception in Esther David's Book of Esther, Book of Rachel and Shalom India Housing Society
Ms Doyir Ete1,Dr Sravani Biswas2
Citation :Ms Doyir Ete,Sravani Biswas, Hostland and Reception in Esther David's Book of Esther, Book of Rachel and Shalom India Housing Society International Journal on Studies in English Language and Literature 2017,5(12) : 49-55
Stereotyping of the Jews has been a common phenomenon in the West and Europe which has been reflected in major canonical texts like The Merchant of Venice, The Jew of Malta, Ivanhoe and Oliver Twist. However in India, their experience has been to a great extent positive. They were free to live according to their own volition and contribute to the economy of the nation. This paper will address questions like; how were the Indian Jews received in the sub-continent? Were they received with favour or were they perceived as threat by their neighbours? How much of the interface that took place influenced by the difference/similarities in their cultural, religious and other ways of life?The primary texts include Book of Esther, Book of Rachel and Shalom India Housing Society(SIHS) by prominent Indian Jewish writer Esther David who is also the recipient of the Sahitya Akademy for English literature 2010. Locating the Bene Israel within a large multicultural setting like India is one of her primary concerns. A very important question in this regard is the definition of a nation for a minority community and what does nationalism mean to them? The paper addresses all these issues as it is observed in the novels of the writer.