A Study of the Historical Novels in Assamese as well as English Perspective
The earliest Assamese novels were written in prose narrative form at the behest of the Ahom kings who ruled Assam for six hundred years. These novels were published in the last decade of the nineteen century, known as the prose chronicles (Buranji) of the Ahom court. In the Ahom court, historical chronicles were at first composed in their original Tibetan-Chinese language, but when the Ahom rulers adopted Assamese as the court language, historical chronicles began to write in Assamese. From the beginning of the seventeenth century onwards, court chronicles were written in large numbers. These chronicles or Buranjis, as the Ahoms called them, broke away from the style of the religious writers. The language is essentially modern except for slight alterations in grammar and spelling.
To substantiate the phase value of these chronicles, Tilottama Misra observed that the opinion of the noted historian S.K.Bhuyan who has rightly mentioned the significance of these Buranjis as storehouse of a large mass of folklore containing the oral tradition to trace back the origin of the Asamiya historical novels. The fictional prose narrative was relatively introduced in a new form, which came to existence in Assamese literature soon after the British annexation of the region, by the treaty of Yandaboo in 1826. This treaty made between the East India Company and the Burmese invaders placed Assam in British hands. Assamese literature before this period largely comprised devotional literature inspired by the neo-Vaisnavite movement of the late fifteen-early sixteenthcenturies Assamese versions and translation of sacred texts and the epics, and the buranjis or chronicles kept by the Ahom rulers.Henceforth, the British entry into the region is considered the kind of blessing for the Assamese people to flourish their own language, which reinstated in 1873 as the state language instead of Bengali, which the British introduced it soon after the state occupied by them in 1826.
The formal writing of Assamese language and literature began with the publication of the Bible in Assamese prose by the American Baptist Missionaries in 1819. The currently prevalent standard Asomiya has its roots in the Sibs agar dialect of Eastern Assam. The American Baptist Missionaries were the first to use this dialect in translating the Bible in 1813. These Missionaries established the first printing press in Sibsagar in 1836 and started using the local Asomiya dialect for writing purposes. In 1846, they started a monthly periodical called Arunodoi, and in 1848, Nathan Brown published the first book on Assamese Grammar. The Missionaries published the first Assamese-English Dictionary compiled by M. Bronson in 1867. One of the major contributions of the American Baptist Missionary is the reintroduction of Assamese as the official language in Assam.
The period of modern Assamese literature begun with the publication of the Assamese journal, Jonakiin 1889 and this introduced the short stories form by Laxminath Bezbarua.This era known as the Age of Romanticism in Assamese Literature. The age had long faded in English literature, the Romantic ideal and appeal was most applicable to writers of this emergent literature.The “Romantic”itself is used by Assamese writers implied the same approach to literature as it does in English literature. The writers of this age did not imitate the English Romanticists; rather they were strongly influenced by the Romantic sensibilities of the English writers of the time. During this period, Assam was untouched by industrialization and urbanization; the natural landscapes held much scope for literary exploration and the literary climate was full of promise and possibilities. The central theme and concept changed from devotion to God to devotion to the world, its beauties and man as a reflection of the supernatural. However, this was still a literature of the early twentieth century could not be totally divorced from modernity. The acceleration of the freedom movement and the socio-cultural reformation movement in West Bengal and other parts of the country influenced it and made it also a literature that examined social and national issues.In 1917, the Axom Xahitya Xabha formed as a guardian of the Assamese society and the forum has started activities for the development of Asomiya language and literature. The Axom Xahitya Xabha facilitated the exchange of ideas, popularized Assamese literature, art and culture, and provided a forum for literary debate and discussion through its conventions, journals and publications.
The true essence of writing Assamese novel began towards the end of the eighteen century with the publication of Padumkuwanri (1891) by Laxminath Bezbaruand Bhanumoti (1890)and Lahori (1892) by Padmanath Gohain Baruah. The three novels were strikingly similar in many ways and this is reflective of the similarity of economic, social and educational background of the two writers as well as their social beliefs. The settings of these three novels aresituated in the historical past and have the central themes of secret love in between the hero and heroine.The endings of Bhanumoti and Pdum Konwori are tragic while Lahori ends with marital bliss. All the three heroes are without homes or parents and are adopted either formally or informally by the parents of the heroines. This interesting fact seems to point to a social problem faced by the two authors. The authors faced the difficulties of creating a situation where a young boy can meet a girl who is not related to him and fall in love with her. Hence, the young heroes of both Bezbarua and Gohain Barua’snovels are placed in a convenient situation within the heroines’ housewhere they can exchange furtive glances with the heroines, sees an opportunity to speak a few words or exchange love letter. The hero is always calm, hesitates to take the first step and somewhat detached. It is the heroine who is passionate, aggressiveand ready to die. When faced with problem of the impending marriage of the girl with a groom selected by her father, the hero in each of the three novels remains passive or runs away and leaving the beloved to brave the storm alone. It is obvious that the authors are unable to handle such a situation themselves without violating the codes of middle-class morality. So, Kamal, the hero of Lahori, tries to make a tame retreat when the impending separation looms ahead. The solution he gives is typically within the bounds of conventional morality. He pleads that romantic love is temporary fantasy which must be given up in time in order to lead a happy family life. Throughout the novel Lahori reacts in a manner all weak women are supposed to do. Consequently, the story of Kamal and Lahori takes an unexpected turn and the two are happily married. The three stages of woman’s life- daughter, daughter-in-law and wife are traditionally experienced by the heroine with development of the plot of the novel. Lahori considers her husband as true God and worship him as one. She is well aware of the proper duty of a wife to bring up her children, build their moral character and to give them good education. She never fails in performing these duties conscientiously.
The inability of the early novelists in Assam to go beyond the bounds of their class and caste boundaries and to present the bold and realistic picture of the lives of ordinary folks is thus the greatest weakness of these novelists. Assamese literature of the time displays a strong tradition of novel and short story writing. Their novels are extremely conscious of its social function and political responsibilities, and takes as its subjects and events surrounding the last stages of the independence struggle and the shifting social and economic condition of modern India. The condition of the modern world forced the novelists to turn to realism and naturalism and adopt a cynical attitude towards man and society.
Of course, both of them are not seen looking forward to pay adequate interest to write more novels to enrich the granary of Assamese prose writing. Directly or indirectly, they were reeling under several problems like lacking ground level sources and events for their story. Hence, they diverted their attention from this field to other literary activities during this period. Gohain Baruah wrote only two novels and Bezbarua has single historical novel to his credit.Both of them took up Assamese figures
Laxminath Bezbarua (1865-1914)
of recent history as their subjects especially figures who symbolizes resistance to British rule. They adopted the main plot from history and the historical figures are characterized in their works. So, the main feature of their novels is reformative in its sum and substance. The sources and approaches were carefully chosen from historical events giving the action a complete whole. According to critics and biographers,Laxminath Bezbarua was the Victor Hugo of modern Assamese literature. Bezbarua had the Dickensian ability to combine serious social commentary within humorous depiction. People call him the gifted essayist has to his credit one historical novel and three historical plays which are considered a breath of fresh air in the stagnant world of Assamese modern literature of the time. In fact, his writing took Assamese literature on to the road of modernity. His historical works laced with the romantic idealism of history creating a world of new faith and confidence among the people of Assam.
Keeping pace with the advent of modernity in Assamese literature, Padmanath Gohain Baruahcontributed a great deal to the history ofAssamese novel.He has left an imprint on Assamese literary world as a founder of modern Assamese novel.His novel Lahori, published in 1892 is regarded as the first Assamese novel. Though a number of his predecessors wrote few novels in Assamese but from literary point of view Lahori is regarded as the first Assamese novel. Taking a glorious chapter of Assam history he wrote another novel Bhanumoti first published serially in Bijulee, a monthly Assamese magazine edited by Krishnaprasad Duwara. He also proved his dexterity as a poet and Lila kabya, Jurani and Phular Sanekiwhich bore testimony to his caliber.
Padmanath Gohain Barua (1871-1946)
As a playwright Padmanath was comparable to none in Assamese drama and theatre. He wrote a number of dramas on local plots and events. Picking up a number of glorious chapters from Assam history he wrote historical dramas like Joymoti, Gadadhar, Lachit Borphukan and Sadhani. On the basis of the legendary love story of Usha and Aniruddha he wrote a mythological drama called Ban Raja. In his social drama Gaonburha he neatly described the economic condition of Assamese people under the British rule. His comedy Teton Tamuli and Bhoot Ne Bhram created spontaneous overflow of laughter among the readers and audiences. According to renowned critic Dr Mahendra Bora, Gohain Baruah’s Sri Krishna is an epic drama, novel as well as an autobiography. No other writer in any part of the world so lucidly wrote a book on a legendary person like Sri Krishna.
In the last part of the ninetieth century Assamese novel took inception in the hand of Padmanath Gohain Barua, Lakshminath Bezbarua and it reached in perfection by the keen efforts of Rajanikanta Bordoloi, known as Scott in Assamese literature.Rajanikanta Bordoloi, the great novelist of Assam wrote his first novel ‘Miri Jiori’ basing on the Missing tribes of Assam. The life style of Missing people has been depicted here in a very faithfull manner. The story, character and setting have become appealing to the reader because of its proper treatment against backdrop of proper setting. A love story of a pair of lovers of Missing community has been described with a pathetic strain. The misery occurred in the life of these two lovers come as a result of tribal beliefs and customs. Along with the story, the different festivals of the Missing people find an artistic expression in the hand of this great novelist
However, Rajanikanta Bardoloi contributed as many as nine novels enriching the treasure house of Assamese literature.In 1894, Rajanikanta Bordoloi published the first Assamese novel Mirijiyoree that earmarked the history of Assamese literature in real sense of the term. Assamese literature today cannot be characterized as having a single, common vision or belonging to a particular school. The ready availability of newly published works from around the world, the advent of technology and mass media, and the easy access to travel and study across the world all influenced writers in various ways. Ideologically, it reflects a post-Freudian, post-Marxist, postmodern world. Furthermore, recent political upheavals in the country and the state, the breakdown of public morals, and economic progress continue to affect present-day writers. Literature today includes a wide range of poetry, novels, short stories, dramas, and subgenres such as folklore, science fiction, children's literature, biographies, and translations. Thus, a short survey cannot do real justice to, nor encompass, a continuing literature.
Modern poetry reveals personal reflections and focus on the immediate shifting trends of modern life, often within urban settings. The poetry that evokes natural, Romantic imagery, too, brings to these images a modern perspective. Modern poetry takes many forms; some poets still use traditional lyric forms and rhymes, whereas others use blank and free verse in ordinary, rather than poetic, language. Some of these trends had been displayed in the poetry of the 1940s. Though contemporary poetry displays a cynicism and dismay at modern conditions, it is not as vehement as the poetry of the 1940s, nor does it contain that revolutionary zeal. Modern poetry is both symbolic and realistic.
Historical novel is an oxymoron, a curious mix of fact and fiction. Aristotle resolves this conundrum once for all in his Poetics. He states that the poet’s (read the author’s) function is to describe not the thing that has happened (that is the work of the historian), but to describe the kind of thing which might happen, that is, being probable or necessary. History deals with the actual. But poetry (read novel or historical novel) deals with the universal. The difference between history and historical novel is the difference between Plutarch and Shakespeare or between a documentary film and a feature film based on the same subject. As F.A.Backer rightly points out in his now classic History of the English Novel that “to present and interpret facts is the historian’s business, to summon up a past epoch to show men and women alive in it and behaving as they must have behaved in the circumstances, is the labour and joy of the life of the genuine historical novelist”.
Historical fiction, then, is the artistic form that springs from the impulse to give a shape to the past. But it’s not just to give a shape to the past. It is to bring part of the past alive into the present. Stephen Crane, the author of the American Civil War classic The Red Badge of Courage, was once asked why he had chosen to write his book as fiction rather than history. The reason, he said, was because he wanted to feel the situations of the War as a protagonist, not from the outside. And it was only by writing a novel that he could do this.
And this is what all historical fiction does. It makes us feel, as a protagonist, what otherwise would be dead and lost to us. It transports us into the past. And the very best historical fiction presents to us a truth of the past that is not the truth of the history books, but a bigger truth, a more important truth – a truth of the heart.
The most distinguished Assamese historical novelist of our times, TroilokyaBhattacharjya’s career as a writer spans over half a century.Bhattacharjya’s output is weighty: more than ten novels, over 250 short stories, innumerable non-fictional prose works mostly uncollected and scattered in magazines and newspapers, few plays for stage, and some plays for radio. His range is rare: historical novel, biographical novel, autobiographical novel, mythological novel, social novel, novellas, short stories, columns, causeries, skits, and features for radio, editorials, and an autobiography; even edited a weekly newspaper called SadiniaSambad for long seven years.
Bhattacharjya’s novels can be classified into three basic traditions/groups: social, historical and the mythological. The second category of novels which stemmed from the author’s deep sense of respect for heritage and fierce patriotism provides a real insight into his dedication, creativity and possibly into deep crevices of his pride Assamese mind.