The Social and Academic World in Chetan Bhagat’s Fiction

Abstract

In his novels, Chetan Bhagat emerges as a keen observer of the present-day social and academic scene in India. In his fictional world Indian education system suffers from two diseases, namely stress and corruption. Stress takes a heavy toll primarily on the students who, under intense parents-teacher-peer pressure, prepare for board exams or a ruthlessly competitive entrance test, or are enrolled in some professional course. According to a report in The Times of India on November 02, 2011 while, 5857 students killed themselves in 2006 in India, the figure rose to 7379 in 2010. The stress factor hits hard, especially the students who are enrolled in professional courses because the stakes there are very high. They find it very hard to cope with the rising academic expectations and quite a few of them fall prey to their own and the parents’ unrealistic expectations.

On the other hand, as a UNESCO report puts it, corruption has seeped through the whole education system, leaving no part of it untouched or undefiled. Teacher absenteeism is a big issue in India as with 25% teacher absenteeism the country ranks among the highest in the world, coming second only to Uganda. A study by Transparency International shows that more than half of those surveyed had first-hand experience of paying bribes.