Portrayal of marginalization in discourse: a critical literature review of Shyam Selvadurai’s funny boy

Abstract

Marginalization is experienced in different forms by many people around the world, due to several reasons such as language, religion, ethnicity, sexuality etc. The point from which the power is exerted is unknown and hidden, however it is hovering above, making the marginalized, powerless, and struggling. This critical literature review, which is part of an on-going critical discourse analysis based on Norman Fairclough’s three-dimensional model, examines the studies carried out on Funny Boy and aims to discover how the critics have recognized marginalization embedded in the discourse of the novel. Shyam Selvadurai in Funny Boy presents the story of “Arjie”, a young boy who goes through a journey to find out his own sexuality, while facing the reality of the world in a war-torn country and the story transcends to portray how war as well as societal norms can shake the life of an individual. An ample number of studies carried out on the novel were reviewed to identify how the discourse of Funny Boy portrays marginalization. Findings of the review indicate that many critics consider the novel as portraying multiple marginalization; the protagonist being marginalized and exiled from many social spheres due to sexual identity and ethnicity. This review concludes that Shyam Selvadurai’s Funny Boy is viewed in studies as a piece of discourse that presents multiple marginalization experienced by the protagonist.