Fire on the Mountain: Analysis of Major Characters
"Fire on the Mountain" explores the complex relationships and emotional turmoil of its major characters, primarily focusing on Nanda Kaul, an elderly widow living in isolation. Once the center of a vibrant family life, she now seeks solitude in her mountain home, Carignano, and is resistant to the intrusion of her great-granddaughter, Raka, who arrives for the summer. Raka is a troubled girl, marked by her traumatic family history, who prefers to retreat into her own world rather than engage with Nanda. The narrative deepens with the tragic fate of Ila Das, a lonely friend of Nanda’s, whose brutal murder forces Nanda to confront her own repressed memories and feelings of alienation, leading to a psychological breakdown. Ram Lal, the caretaker, serves as a bridge between the two generations, sharing tales of the surrounding wilderness and offering companionship to Raka. This interplay of characters highlights themes of loneliness, generational disconnect, and the impacts of trauma, making the story a poignant reflection on isolation and the search for connection amidst personal histories.
Fire on the Mountain: Analysis of Major Characters
Author: Anita Desai
First published: 1977
Genre: Novel
Locale: Kasauli, India
Plot: Domestic realism
Time: The 1970's
Nanda Kaul, the aged protagonist. The widow of a university vice chancellor and once at the hub of a large, demanding family and a hectic social life, she now lives in seclusion in Carignano, a desolate old house on the ridge of a mountain in Kasauli. Aloof, indifferent, and irritable, she frequently lapses into a reminiscent mood and wants no intrusion or distraction to violate her privacy. Her cloistered life is upset when her great-granddaughter Raka is sent to spend the summer with her. Tired of a long life of duties and responsibilities, Nanda wants to be left alone; therefore, she does not pay much attention to the child. She manages to stay detached until she observes that the child, instinctively withdrawn into a world of her own, completely ignores her great-grandmother. Challenged by Raka's indifference, Nanda reluctantly comes out of her self-imposed quietude and makes a desperate, though futile, attempt to attract the child to her by telling her fantastic stories about her own childhood. In a final climactic moment, when she hears the news of the rape and death of her longtime friend Ila Das, her psychological defenses suddenly break down. Before she collapses, she splutters the truth that all the stories she told Raka were fabricated, that her husband never loved her and had carried on a lifelong affair with a Christian woman whom he loved but could not marry, that she always felt alienated from her children, and that she was forced into this life of self-exile.
Raka, Nanda's great-granddaughter who arrives at Carignano to spend the summer. A recluse by nature, this frail, convalescent, crop-haired girl with protruding ears and enormous eyes has the knack of slipping away into her own private world, ignoring her great-grandmother completely. Haunted by the nightmarish memories of a drunken, violent father and an unhappy, battered mother, she shuns human company and spends her time roaming the desolate hills and ravines like a bird or a lizard. When she hears the news of her mother's mysterious illness, the old horrors revive and she feels a strong urge to visit the burned house. After that, she steals some matches and sets the forest on fire, thus bringing the story to a climax.
Ila Das, Nanda's longtime friend, a lonely, unmarried woman. Formerly a lecturer in home science at Mr. Kaul's university, she now works as a welfare officer in the Kasauli area. An awkward, clumsy, deformed, and shriveled old woman, with a shrill and hideous voice, she is the object of ridicule and derision from everyone in society, including schoolchildren. During her brief visit to Carignano for tea, she nostalgically evokes memories of Nanda's seemingly glamorous past as the vice chancellor's wife. On her way home, she is raped and murdered. The shocking news of her tragic end shatters Nanda.
Ram Lal, the old cook and caretaker at Carignano. He becomes Raka's friend, provides her with information about the surrounding area, warns her against visiting the burned house on the hill alone, and tells her stories about witches and ghosts to ignite her imagination.