Abstract:
Marginalization is experienced in different forms by many people
around the world, due to several reasons such as language, religion, ethnicity,
sexuality etc. The point from which the power is exerted is unknown and
hidden, however it is hovering above, making the marginalized, powerless,
and struggling. This critical literature review, which is part of an on-going critical
discourse analysis based on Norman Fairclough’s three-dimensional model,
examines the studies carried out on Funny Boy and aims to discover how the
critics have recognized marginalization embedded in the discourse of the
novel. Shyam Selvadurai in Funny Boy presents the story of “Arjie”, a young
boy who goes through a journey to find out his own sexuality, while facing the
reality of the world in a war-torn country and the story transcends to portray
how war as well as societal norms can shake the life of an individual. An ample
number of studies carried out on the novel were reviewed to identify how the
discourse of Funny Boy portrays marginalization. Findings of the review
indicate that many critics consider the novel as portraying multiple
marginalization; the protagonist being marginalized and exiled from many
social spheres due to sexual identity and ethnicity. This review concludes that
Shyam Selvadurai’s Funny Boy is viewed in studies as a piece of discourse
that presents multiple marginalization experienced by the protagonist.
