Podian - the scapegoat’s slaughter and myriar of meanings

Abstract

Manuka Wijesinghe’s Monsoons and Potholes unfolds an autobiographical account of a girl, Manuka, growing up during a turbulent time in Sri Lanka. This paper attempts to explore Manuka Wijesinghe’s characterization of Podian in Monsoons and Potholes. Podian is a plantation Tamil. He is a small, black, versatile man. In the novel, Podian is given no name. He is simply called as Podian. In Sinhala the word ‘podian’ means a boy. Podian works for a long time as a driver for a family in Mount Lavania. Later on when this family leaves for England, Podian starts to work for Manuka’s family. His honesty, candour and faithfulness to his employers and their family show the goodness of his heart. Though he is depicted as one of the minor characters in the novel he creates an indelible impression on the readers’ minds. Therefore, the paper intends to unearth the pathetic plight of Podian and his position vis-à-vis the Sri Lankan state.