Multilingualism and Identity in Postcolonial Literature: A Study of Indian English Novels

Abstract

Multilingualism enjoys a dominant place in the postcolonial literary discourse, especially in Indian English novels, in which language is not just a means of expression, but also an identity, source of power, as well as a negotiation of culture. In this paper, the author will explore the multifaceted nature of the connection between multilingualism and identity formation in the selected Indian English novels created during the postcolonial era. Based on postcolonial theory and sociolinguistic views, the paper examines how authors tactfully use indigenous language, code switching, untranslated words, and expressions which convey cultural expressions in English texts to express hybrid identities, influenced by the colonial past and the modern social truths.

The study takes a qualitative textual approach to the representative novels by the leading Indian English authors, in terms of narrative voice, character development, and diction. The results indicate that multilingualism is a literary device to fight the language homogenization at the colonial English and also to rebrand English as a local and plural language. With language mixture, authors depict characters who balance the traditional and modern, region and nation, and individual memory and national history.

Also, the paper identifies the problem of multilingual narration that disrupts the hegemonic Western literary standards through foregrounding native epistemologies and cultural backgrounds. Language turns into a place of self-identification, and it allows marginalized voices to reestablish control and express the experiences based on a particular socio-cultural place. According to the argument of the paper, the Indian English novels are not just echoing the multilingual realities but they are constructing new literary identity, beyond the strict language borders.

By placing multilingualism at the center of the postcolonial identity formation, the given research will aid in the further comprehension of the Indian English literature as a space of interaction between cultures, language creation, and identity reinforcement in the postcolonial world.