Concord and Conflict in Anita Desai’s ‘A Devoted Son’

Abstract

This paper throws light on the concord prevailed between the protagonist Rakesh and his father Varma and how the concord had derailed and transformed into conflict in Anita Desai’s short story ‘A Devoted Son’. A psychological conflict sprouts within Varma himself and it leads to the conflict between Varma and his son Rakesh which makes them blind to see each other’s good intention and true love. This paper has two parts one highlighting the harmony existed between the protagonist Rakesh and other characters of the story, the other one reveals how the harmony deteriorated into disharmony and spotlights the turnabouts in the story.