Vulnerability and Resilience: Childhood as perceived in Young Adult Fiction by Paro Anand and Ranjit Lal

Childhood is a phase of life in which an individual is vulnerable due to various factors like age,  level of maturity, level of agency, and physiological attributes. But also giving credit to these  very factors, children prove to be resilient. This article acts like an appeal to the adults who  have an inhibition about introducing difficult taboos to children and young adults. It is  important to create safe spaces for children to discuss difficult topics without judgement, which  can be done through books. This article discusses works by Paro Anand and Ranjit Lal as a  sample to show how Indian authors have been consciously dealing with difficult themes  through their fiction for young adults. Teachers and parents can use children’s literature to  facilitate these discussions in a sensitive manner. 

Usually written by adults, children’s literature tries to act like a manual for children.  Adults try to control the kind of information that reaches children in the name of protecting  their innocence. In doing so, adults forget that children are not their binary opposites but individuals who have enough access to the world and can make their own inferences. Over the  last few years, literature has evolved from being just moralistic to purely entertaining or  educational. Even within the latter, publishers and writers have been working on difficult topics  and presenting them in a palatable manner. Authors are consciously carving character identities  at the “intersections of caste, class, and gender to highlight the injustice and marginalisation of  underprivileged characters (Harshitha and Srinivasan 4).

It is noteworthy that while authors and publishers are open to publishing more inclusive  stories, there remains a resistance against such inclusions. In an article with IANS, authors— Paro Anand, Ranjit Lal, and Himanjari Sankar, mention that it is the elders (parents, teachers,  school management) who find it difficult to discuss such themes with children, and thus they  avoid talking about them all together. However, the authors feel that children are exposed to violence and experiences which leads to vulnerable situations through life or the internet. It is  impossible to hide these issues from children. When dealt with correctly, reading about these  issues will help children prepare for life. Amanda Melilli opines that, writing about such topics  is significant “because books have the power to make us feel less alone, to help us make sense  of a confusing world, and to help us understand the lived experiences of others (qtd. in  Kennedy). This article acts like an appeal to the elders who have an inhibition about introducing  difficult taboos to children and young adults. This article analysis a few texts which are doing  a great job dealing with difficult, yet important themes, in a sensitive manner. Subsequently, it  also shows that children are resilient despite or because of the factors that make us vulnerable.

Adults are the agency that decides the content that reach children. This is mainly  because children are not considered independent enough to decide for themselves. Childhood  is a phase of life in which an individual is vulnerable due to various factors like age, level of  maturity, level of agency, physiological attributes, and so on. But also giving credit to these  very factors, children prove to be resilient and find a way to face their challenges. Concepts of  vulnerability and resilience are used to theoretical bind the argument that it is essential to  address sensitive matters with children and young adults to help them navigate the challenges  skilfully. The aim of this article is to convince adults that children’s literature has been dealing  with difficult topics sensitively. They can use such literature to create safe-spaces for children  to discuss taboo topics, without any judgement and work towards empowering them to  handling challenges.

This article takes a qualitative approach and uses textual analysis to examine the  contribution of Paro Anand’s The Other: Stories of Difference and Ranjit Lal’s Faces in the  Water. While the article is limited to discussing these two texts, please note that both the authors  have written many books making conscious efforts to deal with difficult themes like disability,  violence, death, sexual orientation, and so on through their fiction for young adults. Even  though there are other authors doing similar work, these names stand out because of their  simple language and wide acceptance. The selected texts act like samples from a vast treasure, aiding to the fact that we have such work available by Indian authors, who write about stories  which are much more relatable to the Indian children.

Many Indian authors and publishers are breaking new ground by embracing difficult themes in  literature for children and young adults. Amongst them, Paro Anand’s short story collection  The Others and Ranjit Lal’s novella Faces in the Water are used as primary text to examine  how children are crafted to be resilient individuals in the times when they are otherwise  perceived to be vulnerable.  

Paro Anand’s The Other: Stories of Difference is a collection of nine stories about  children who are considered as “others.” These stories include children with disabilities,  children who wish to make a change but are unable to take a stand against the big world,  someone who was abused by a close one, someone who witnesses a stranger get abused, and  someone whose best friend opens about his sexuality. These stories are about loss, grief,  helplessness but also about love, respect, and courage. These stories are set in the contemporary  time and encourage readers to think. 

Ranjit Lal’s Faces in the Water is a novella about the Diwanchand family. The elders  in the family pride over two things, first the fact that they have only sons in the family and  second the magical well in their farmland that brings them good health and fortune. When  Gurmi, one of the sons, is forced to stay in the farmhouse, he ventures into the grounds in  search of this magical well. This well becomes a portal to an alternate reality, which changes  the lives of all the members of the Diwanchand family. This story deals with themes such as  family, sibling relations, female infanticide, acceptance, and forgiveness. This contemporary  fiction holds the readers with its magical realism, while making them ponder over some very  important questions about patriarchy. 

Analysis

Physical Appearance: Many children become self-conscious about not fitting into the standards set by the  society. It usually starts within the family through the elders, even parents and siblings. When  the child starts interacting with others, strangers or peers make these differences obvious. The colour of one’s skin, height, or weight are included in simplest of conversations which has  lasting effects on the child’s mindset. However, the world is trying to be politically correct, and  there is awareness about various genetic deformities. Individuals may be polite enough to not  use inappropriate words, but they forget about their expressions. In “So, Cinderella” ugly sister  no. 2 mentions: “When they saw us, there was a look of ‘oh my god, where did that creature  crawl out of?’ on their faces” (Anand 43). The narrator of the story is one of the twin sisters  born with dwarfism. She mentions her pretty sister’s name, but calls herself and her twin sister  as ugly sister no 1 and 2. She emphasises that people make it obvious that they are not interested  in knowing them beyond their dwarfism, not even their names.  

These stories also highlight that such children are expected to compensate for not fitting into the set beauty standards. In the same story, the narrator situates her argument with an  anecdote of the swan and the cuckoo: “The swan needs no extra talent…Fair equals lovely.  And lovely equals love and popularity. However, the cuckoo must sing to compensate for its  blackness!” (Anand 48). In “She Walks Between Raindrops” the boy who is Special (with a  capital S) discusses the high expectations elders have from him. He sees it in their eyes: “Look, you need to be brilliant in your mind, because you have to make up for your body” (Anand 7).  This boy is fragile, wears thick glasses and carries a urine bag outside his body; making others  uncomfortable around him. He refers to Stephen Hawkin and is aware that he is not as smart. Unfortunately, his problem is not severe enough to certify him to have ADD. He wishes he had  an intellectual disorder, so elders would stop expecting him to do great things.

Age and Violence: Children are considered vulnerable because they are too young to comprehend cruelty.  Children are shown an alternate reality, which is almost utopian, and are overprotected. But  what happens when such children witness an act of violence? “Inner Circle, Outer Circle” is  about a young girl who witnesses another woman being assaulted and killed in the middle of  the road in broad day light. Restless, she justifies her inaction: “I have never been taught, in  school, at home, to stick up for the one who is vulnerable, to step forward and right a  wrong…Instead, we are taught to protect our own skin, to look out for ourselves” (Anand 69- 70). She discusses with her parents about what is right and wrong. They discuss various ways  in which the child can take action to help someone in the future—she can encourage others to  shout together and she can call the police or women’s helpline. This story empowers children  to act despite their young age, while also not putting themselves in danger. 

If a child is too young to protect, how come a child is never too young to be a victim?  “Learning to Love Again” is a story about a girl who is a victim of sexual assault (SA) by her  own maternal uncle. The story gives glimpses of various viewpoints to depict what happens  when something like this occurs: Shamoli- the child, her parents, her grandmother, her teacher,  and her friends. Her parents are guilty for not being able to protect their child, but question her  the concept of safety. The grandmother questions her own parenting, she wonders if she let her  son believe that it was okay to act the way he did. The teacher thinks about different ways in  which she could help her. The best friend, struggles with her own trauma, but tries to make Shamoli feel like herself again. The story encourages people to have conversations about SA  empowering the victim.  

The adults in Ranjit Lal’s Faces in the Water commit female infanticide, and claim they  birth only sons in the family. “Through the Diwanchands, Lal shows that when feticide  becomes unavailable, this leads to female infanticide, signalling that the issue of child murder  due to sex bias remains an issue in India despite the 1994 act” (Hagen 78). The parents are  forced to kill three girls in the name of family tradition. But they do not wish to raise girls as  they are considered a liability and they would be wasting their money on education and dowry.  While the boys are an asset who will be taking care of them even in old age (Lal 88). In this  text, girls are not given a chance at life, because the elders think of them as a burden. 

Taking a Stand: Children are capable of thinking for themselves, and building their own perception of  what is right and wrong, and are strong enough to take a stand. “Getting off Grid” is about a  young girl who tries to protect a puppy from bullies but faces ridicule instead. She questions  her parents for putting such high expectations and responsibility on her tiny shoulders. They  first listen to her and then try to explain that for a long-time people let bad things happen  because they were accepted, but there was one person who stood up and soon people realised  that there were many who silently faced the wrong because they did not know they could take  a stand.  

Others is full of stories where a child is shown capable of taking a stand. One girl who  decides to treat ‘the boy with a pee bag’ normally. This small act not just changes how others  view him, but also helps him look at himself differently. A young girl who witnesses a violence on the road, decides to start a campaign to help other women who have suffered similarly. One  girl decides to learn about transgenders so that she can support her friend in the best way  possible. Taking a stand does not always entail marching out on the streets, it can be one simple  act of kindness.  

Lal creates a parallel universe for the girls. Gurmi echoes the same attitude towards  girls as the elders in the beginning. The girls do not choose revenge. Instead, they motivate  Gurmi and his parents change their perception by showing them what it would be like to have  daughters and sisters by creating an alternate reality. When the other elders try to kill Gurmi’s  new born twin sisters, he saves them and takes a stand for his sisters, forcing the parents to take  a position in the matter. 

Sexuality and innocence: Children are usually considered asexual or too young to understand topics related to  sexuality (Ingram and Allen 180). While the adults believe such topics should not be discussed  with children to protect their innocence, experience shows that discussing these topics with  children as they enter puberty will help them navigate these topics in an informed manner. In  Lal’s Faces in the Water, Lovleen is crafted as a character who is bold in her expressions of  love. She kisses Gurmi frequently, and Gurmi welcomes it. Stories in Others depict how  children develop romantic emotions. It may be infatuation in the eyes of the adult, but the child  views it to be something deeper. Four out of nine stories in Others have mentions of such  inclinations. Two characters are physically challenged, one is a transgender, and one is the  victim of sexual assault. Characters with physical challenges are expected to not have any  romantic desires. This affects their emotional health as they are painfully yet hopelessly in love  with someone who may never respond to them. They still hope that someday they will “fall in  love with [their] own Prince Notsocharming” (Anand 61). Being different they accept that no  “normal” person is ever going to fall in love with them, so they settle in their imagination with  a “fellow pee-bagger” or “prince notsocharming.” “Learning to Love Again” discusses how  Shamoli (SA victim) wonders if she will ever be able to love someone.  

Mental Health: Being vulnerable and not having the experience to deal with difficult challenges,  children are open to mental health issues. Shamoli fights with her own mental health after being  assaulted, but also carries the burden of what her parents are going through. The dwarf sisters,  who were made aware of their difference because of their beautiful younger sister, fight an  emotional battle each day. “Grief” is a story about a girl who is coping from her mother’s death,  wondering if she will ever feel normal again. This story asks powerful questions about mental  health and the role of others. One story is about a child who fights and loses a battle against  himself each time he gives into drugs. Another story is about a child whose mother sends her  to an international school hoping against her financial condition to give her child a better life. However, she is being bullied for being from an economically weaker section of the society.  These stories give voice to many children facing similar issues and creates awareness about the  mental health challenges a child may be facing. Bullying due to economical differences and  difference in physical appearance are common in this country. These stories can act like  mediators to create a safe space to discuss these issues within schools and homes. 

Conclusion

Children’s literature, when handled sensitively, can aid generations of readers to become aware  and accepting of the social and cultural changes that take place in this already diverse culture.  Paro Anand and Ranjit Lal consciously engage the readers to think about the changes that have  taken place in the society and how these changes have affected children from various  backgrounds. While Paro Anand explores variety of characters and themes in her Others, Lal  focuses on one main social issue which is female infanticide in his Faces in the Water. Both,  in their own ways, depict how children are resilient and can be empowered to uplift the society  as they are strong, open to change, and more accepting than their adult counterparts. They  reconstruct childhood and children and show how children are capable of having their own  agency as they are highly resilient despite their vulnerabilities. If such difficult topics are  introduced to children through such stories, they will have a space to discuss them in a safe  environment instead of finding about them through harsh experiences. With proper guidance,  children can cultivate civic-mindedness to empower not just their own future, but also that of  others.

Note: This is an excerpt from the original research article by Dr. Smita Vivek Jakkani. The full paper is not published here. Readers interested in accessing the complete article may contact the author directly on LinkedIn.