Islamophobia in literature : the misrepresentation of muslim rule in V.S. Naipaul`s discourse on the history of India

Abstract

This study investigates V.S. Naipaul's depiction of Muslim rule in the Indian subcontinent. It focuses on three of his books: An Area of Darkness, India: A Wounded Civilization and India: A Million Mutinies Now, which constitute Naipaul's narrative on India. It also delves into sections pertaining to the Indian subcontinent in his travelogues, Among The Believers and Beyond Belief, as well as some of his essays and interviews directly related to the subject and traces the development of both British and Hindu nationalist historiography of Muslim rule in India. It introduces the figure of Naipaul, the formative influences in his life and the global milieu that shapes his perception of himself, his quest for a homeland and his increasing identification with India as the 'land of his forefathers', given his birthplace is Trinidad. This dissertation probes Naipaul's two travelogues into non-Arab Muslim countries, in order to identify his general theses on Islam and their philosophical underpinnings. This enables us to gauge numerous misinterpretations in his biased assessment of Islam and its manifestation in non-Arab countries, in general, and in India, in particular. Naipaul's three books that form a trilogy on India are further covered to identify the historical instances put forward by him to construct his negative representation of Muslim rule in the sub-continent. The historical accuracy of the claims made is also analyzed and alternative historical narratives are provided to Naipaul's singular conception of Muslim rule in India by delving into recent research in the field of historiography there. This research can dispel some of the confusion Muslims in Pakistan have experienced due to literature such as that of Naipaul's in regards to the conception of their historical roots and the negative image of their role in Indian history. The thesis shows that Naipaul's discourse about Muslim rule in India is political; it is ensconced within a general Islamophobic narrative perpetuated by some modern historiography of India. The study makes certain recommendations about the production of evidence-based literature on Muslim rule in India.