''Thottiyude Makan'' (''തോട്ടിയുടെ മകൻ, English: Scavenger's Son'') is a 1947

Malayalam Malayalam (; , ) is a Dravidian language spoken in the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry (Mahé district) by the Malayali people. It is one of 22 scheduled languages of India. Malayalam was des ...

novel written by

Thakazhi Sivasankara Pillai Thakazhi Sivasankara Pillai (17 April 1912 – 10 April 1999), popularly known as Thakazhi after his place of birth, was an Indian novelist and short story writer of Malayalam literature. He wrote over 30 novels and novellas and over 7 shor ...

. The novel portrays three generations of a working-class family engaged in

Alleppey Alappuzha or Alleppey () is the administrative headquarters of Alappuzha district in state of Kerala, India. The Backwaters of Alappuzha are one of the most popular tourist attractions in India which attracts millions of domestic and internat ...

as scavengers. When it first appeared in India in 1947, the novel caused great controversy in its portrayal of the untouchables as people with real feelings.

Plot summary

In the novel ''Thottiyude Makan'', we witness the story of three generations of ''thottis'', cleaners of

night soil Night soil is a historically used euphemism for human excreta collected from cesspools, privies, pail closets, pit latrines, privy middens, septic tanks, etc. This material was removed from the immediate area, usually at night, by workers employ ...

. The first two generations struggle to attain individuality; they suffer and die unfulfilled, oppressed and ostracised, but their struggles enable Mohanan, the third-generation ''thotti'', to assert his individual dignity and lead his fellow untouchables to rise against oppression and prejudice.

Background

After completing his law, Thakazhi joined ''Keralakesari'' (a magazine run by

Kesari Balakrishna Pillai Akathoot Balakrishna Pillai (1889–1960), better known as Kesari Balakrishna Pillai, was a Malayalam writer, art and literary critic and journalist, considered by many as one of the most influential thinkers of modern Kerala. He was the eponymous ...

) as journalist. He also practiced under P. Parameshwaran Pillai in

Ambalapuzha Ambalappuzha is a small town in the Alappuzha district of Kerala state, India. It is located south of Alappuzha which is the district headquarters. Ambalappuzha is divided into the two panchayats of Ambalapuzha North and Ambalapuzha South. D ...

Munsiff court. During this period he met with people's problem which was the inspiration to write ''Thottiyude Makan''.

Translations

The novel was translated into English by R. E. Asher under the title ''Scavenger's Son''. Tamil author

Sundara Ramasami Sundara Ramaswamy (30 May 1931 – 15 October 2005) was an Indian novelist, poet, translator and literary critic, widely considered to be a pre-eminent figure in post-Independence Tamil literature. Born in 1931 in Thazhuviya Mahadevan Kovil, a ...

has translated the novel into Tamil.

References

External links

''Thottiyude Makan''
at

DC Books DC Books is a publisher in Kerala publisher of books in Malayalam, and one of the publishers in India . It also operates one of the largest book store chains in India, with a network of over 45 bookshops under the DC Books and Current Books b ...

official website {{Malayalam Literature , state=collapsed 1947 novels Malayalam novels Novels set in Kerala Novels by Thakazhi Sivasankara Pillai DC Books books