The Cat And Shakespeare Analysis

J. P. Tripathi finally discusses on the vision of life as expressed in The Cat and Shakespeare. As the novel deals with the path of devotion of Ramanuja, naturally it presents a different perspective. Tripathi studies the vision of life in five subheadings: (1) Religion and God, (2) Devotion or Bhaktiyoga, (3) Moral Ethics and Code, (4) Love and Marriage, and (5) Social Realism. In the present novel religion, religious practices, values, and emblems have been eulogized. Religion is not merely a set of rules and principles but something to be put into practice and translated in life. The lives of the two major characters, Govindan Nair and Ramakrishna Pai, show that they embody religious values. The superstitious belief of appeasing the Gods by offering gold and silver artifacts or doing philanthropy out of the money earned through malpractices in merchandise or offices expose the dark side of religion. God as a superhuman power shaping the destinies and lives of people is everywhere. He may be Shiva below the Bilva tree, pleased by the unknowing dropping of leaves by the hunter. He may be the mother cat watching the kittens walk dexterously on the wall or catching the kittens by the scruff and carrying them where she wants. He may be the cat in the courtroom exposing truth. And He may be the cat becoming instrumental to show the beatific vision to devoted man. Though a good deal in the novel may be mystical and metaphysical, yet the centrality of the novel is devotion to