Cry The Peacock Character Analysis

Mrs. Desai skillfully explores different aspects of feminine psyche which also includes man-woman relationships. Cry, the Peacock is a family story mainly concerned with the theme of marital discord between husband Gautama and wife, Maya. The novelist not only portrays the feminine psyche of a common woman but also the sub - normal bordering on abnormal woman. The very first woman who comes to our mind is Maya who is hyper sensitive and because of her alienation she is almost a mental wreck. H. M. Williams aptly says that “Cry, the Peacock is a disturbing first novel, mostly takes the form of interior monologue delineating the tragic mental breakdown of a young Indian woman, Maya “ (Williams 88) One critic by name Ann Lowry Weir rightly assesses the character of Maya in terms of man- woman relationship, through Indian ethos and culture and he aptly but critically suggests:
“Maya is an Indian, and her

“That is all they ask of you – a little friendliness”. When he takes her to the zoo, several children from the family accompany them much to the relief of their mothers. Monisha has no faith, no alternative to her ‘confused despair’. She leads a life dedicated to nothing and she concludes, “Ay, yes, yes, then it is a choice between death and mean existence, and that, surely, is not a difficult choice”. She leads “a life of utter humiliation and desolation…. Life for her is only a conundrum” (Batra 43) Amla puts it very sharply when she asks,” Aunt, why did they marry”?(VC 198). This paradigm presents an acute complication and heart-crushing agony. Monisha’s winding journey towards her horrible ending paints her physical and psychical diversion in black, mourning colours. From a simple, silent, sensitive, beautiful sterile, insane, diary-writing woman: “Her head ….was like that of a stuffed ragdoll with a very white face, nodding insecurely on its neck, its eyebrows and mouth painted unnaturally dark”