The White Tiger Analysis

Aravind Adiga’s novel, The White Tiger, narrates the story of Balram Halwai, the boy who climbed the social ladder by destroying all the higher powers and forces over him, including his oppressors. The novel itself is a picaresque novel which features the ups and downs faced by Balram Halwai in his life. He was an Indian man who was born in the village of Laxmangarh and belonged to a very poor and extended family. The entire novel is narrated through letters written by him to the Premier of China, Wen Jiabao, who would soon be visiting India.

The early life of Balram is largely a tale of poverty and oppression. His whole family was controlled by his grandmother, Kusum who also raised him up since his mother passed away when he was of a very young age. His father, a rickshaw driver, had to work hard to make ends meet with his business as he was the only bread earner of the family. Throughout his childhood, Balram’s poverty-stricken family lived under the rules of four landlords, referred as “The Animals”: The Raven, The Stork, The Buffalo, and The Wild Boar. The entire village of Laxmangarh and its poor inhabitants were dominated by these landlords. Despite the difficulties and the hardships Balram was born into, growing up, he was considered as a gifted and an intelligent child. He excelled in school and his academic progression and integrity surpassed from that of his classmates. This caught the attention of a visiting school inspector who nicknamed Balram as ‘White Tiger’,