T 1290.pdf - Pondicherry University DSpace Portal

The ontological falsity or weakness in the heroes Of~alamud and the heroines of Mukherlee comes to the surfaceunconsciously ln a crltical situation, and theirheroes/heorlnes recognize that they are ridiculously subject toa flendlsh appalling loke by belng caught unawares in theircrlmlnal weakness. One may call it "sln" or "folly". Actually,~t 1s a violation of the human bond rather than of the divinelaw-a transgresslon.Malamud's short storles In the collection The MaaE--where the traglc suffering of the Panessas in "TheB1llt', Lieb in "The Loan" and Rosen In "Take Plty" acquiremeanlng In thelr compassionate reponse to their needs ofsuiferlnq brethren. The prlnclpal sublect of Malamud's shortstorles 1s the ambivalence of human nature. "The Billu forexample emphasizes the duallty of human nature In whlchcompasslon wars wlth self Interest, conscience with greed. Atenement ]a nLter, Wllly Schlegal takes advantage of anelghbourly grocer, Mr. Panessa by running up a bill of erghtythree dollars and then switching over to a near by self servicemarket. Obsessed by guilt he develops a hatred for the elderlyPanessa. When he recelves a letter from Mrs. Panessa pleadingfor ten dollars for her srck husband Wllly hldes in the cellar,but the next day he pawns his over coat and runs back wlth themoney only to dlscover the grocer belng carried off in a