1. Narrative Style of three stories
by R.K. Narayan
Name :Mahesh Dholiya
Roll No. – 06
Part II, semester IV
Year 2010 – 2011
Paper: A Study of Special
Author: R.K. Narayan as a Writer
1. The Watchman
2. The Snake in the grass
3. The Mute Companions

2. 1. Informative and Subjective
1. The Watchman (Narayan, 39)
2. The Snake in the Grass (93)
3. The Mute Companions (149)
• Probability and Possibility

3. 2. Omniscient Narrative
• The narrative style sounds like the
narrator knows everything about the
character. He must be familiar with the
main character and the surrounding area
that prepares proper setting.
• The narrative dialogues mentioned in the
story holds an opinion that characters act
according the narration.

4. • Neither serious nor comic, live
narrative but suspicious in
disguise
• Repetition makes readers
concentrates on what just the
characters have spoken.
• Analogical description
- Shifting from one character’s
sorrow to other character’s.

5. • Parable narrative
- The narrator goes on an intention of
providing some moral message.
• Complicating the matter and developing the
narrative part: Blame- Mechanism in the
story like The Snake in the Grass wherein
the neighbours blame Dasa instead of
suggesting him what to do to catch the
cobra.
• Half narration of the three stories always
bring the state of confusion to sketch the
characters.

6. Accidently encounter and departure – Best
ornament to intensify the narrative style
• In The Watchman, the character himself accidently
encounters with an unknown lady at the time of night.
At the end, after many years, he encounter with the
lady with children and her husband (probability).
• In The Snake in the Grass, the family members
unknowingly meet with dangerous cobra in their
compound and at last they again encounter with that
creature.
• In The Mute Companions, Sami, like a clown,
entertaining the people of the village with his
companion monkey, meets accidently at the corner of
the Town Hall and loses him unknowingly.

7. Tone of the narrative
• Skeptic tone makes language as well
as the narrative twisting. It is plot
twister.
• Abrupt words but say a lot and give
many interpretations at a time. It may
also bring debate or discussion
among the learners.

8. References

9. •Thanking you,
Guide: Dr. Gijan Sir