Anil
Anil's Ghost, is set during a war, the enemy is difficult to identify in the bloody ethnic war between Buddhists and Hindus that ripped Sri Lanka apart in the 1980s and '90s. The protagonist, Anil Tissera, a native Sri Lankan, left her homeland at 18 and returns to it 15 years later only as part of an international human rights fact-finding mission. In the intervening years she has become a forensic anthropologist. She works with the government to investigate human rights abuses in partnership with an archaeologist,Sarath Diyasena , who is a Sri Lankan representative. His political affiliation is difficult to identify.Together they uncover evidence of a government-sponsored murder in the shape of a skeleton they nickname Sailor. But as Anil begins her investigation into the events surrounding Sailor's death, she finds herself caught in a web of politics, paranoia, and tragedy. In the end the government takes all the data Anil has collected. Within 24 hours she writes a new report of Sailor's death and his former life. Then she returns to US. Sarath is a victim of a political murder.The novel includes also the story of many relationships in Anil's life, in the lives of other people whom she meets, an
Third person omniscient narrator >objective, not personally involved in what happens > is not a real or fictional person > knows everything >trustworthy, reliableB. Words the author uses >from the field of archaeology > creates authenticity (especially in the investigations)4. Changes between the narration and direct speech of the charactersShiftsA. CharactersAnil Tissera: - 33 years old > was born in Sri Lanka (Colombo) >speaks still a little bit Sinhala - was educated in England and America - has been sent to Sri Lanka by an international human rights group - curious/ distrustful / ambitiousSarath Diyasena: - 49 years old - he's a passionate archaeologist > has been selected by the government to be teamed with Anil in the investigations - he has got a younger brother -> Gamini - his political affiliation is unclear - distrustful - his wife committed suicideGamini Diyasena: - 40 years old > doctor > works in the hospital in the North Central Province - younger brother of Sarath - takes care of the victims> takes pills to cope with the situation (war) - he's against war and violence Palipana: - about 80 years old - a successful epigraphist - taught Sarath - lost his fame because there was no real evidence for the existence of texts he interpreted - he's got glaucoma > an eye disease which made him lose his sight> he's blind - lives in the Grove of Ascetics (in earlier times this place was inhabited by monks who opposed rituals and luxuries) > his lifestyle is minimal (ascetic) >his brother was a monk - keeps secrets > helps Anil and Sarath by recommending Ananda to them Ananda Udugama: - in former times he worked as an eye-painter (was very popular) > now he works in the gem-pits - he's an alcoholic >his wife was killed in the war - rebuilds Sailor's headSailor (the skeleton): - was 28 years old > victim of a political murder - was buried twice > dead for five years - the skeleton was partially burned - was found in the Bandrawela region together with three other prehistoric skeletons> outside one of the Bandrawela caves (government restricted area) - his actual name was : Ruwan Kumara, he had been working in a mine3. There were bloody armed conflicts, as response the government sent out squads to hunt down the separatists and the insurgents. Numerous people were killed during the crisis. Three essential groups were involved: the government (predominated by Sinhaleses), the insurgents in the south and the seperatists in the north (Tamils). They both declared war on the government. From the mid-1980s to the early 1990s, Sri Lanka found itself in a conflict. Today the war in Sri Lanka continues in a different form. The author gives background information in italicized parts of the book - this technique helps the reader to understand the context because the italicized parts will be important later on in the book C. The book is divided into 8 chapters, each one has a headlineB. Information about the authorBiography- Michael Ondaatje was born in Colombo, Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) on September 12, 1943- in 1954 he moved to England with his mother - he emigrated to Canada in 1962 - he attended University of Toronto and received a Bachelor of Arts in 1965- then he attended Queens University, in Kingston, Ontario, where he received a Master's degree in 1967- Ondaatje taught at the University of Western Ontario from 1967 - 1971- since 1971 he has been a member of the Department of English at Glendon College, York University in Toronto, Ontario - He currently resides in Toronto with his wife, novelist/editor Linda Spalding, where they edit "Literary Magazine"Awards- President's Medal from the University of Ontario in 1967 - Canadian Governor-General's Award for Literature in 1971 and again in 1980 - Canada-Australia price (also in 1980)- Booker McConnell Prize (England's highest honor for fiction) for his novel "The English Patient" Also by Michael OndaatjeProse: Running in the Family (memoir- biographical account of his life in Ceylon) (1982) In the Skin of a Lion (1987) /The English Patient (1992) Poetry The Collected Works of Billy the Kid (1970) /There's a Trick with a Knife I'm Learning to Do (1979) /The Cinnamon Peeler (1991)/ Handwriting : Poems (1998).
Common topics in this essay:
Sri Lanka,
Ananda Udugama,
Sailor Anil,
Sri Lankan,
Province Sarath,
Ruwan Kumara,
View Third,
Sarath Diyasena,
Style Imagery,
Grove Ascetics,
sri lanka,
sri lankan,
human rights,
international human rights,
international human,
english patient,
anil tissera,
victim political,
michael ondaatje,
ontario 1967,
university toronto,
victim political murder,
|
Acceptance Essays
