English

The Gold Watch: by Mulk Raj Anand
Complete Analysis
Written by: Waris Ntow
Form: 4Pine
Subject: English Literature(Prose)
About the Author

Mulk Raj Anand was an Indian novelist, short-story writer, critic, editor, journalist and
political activist. Mulk Raj Anand's stories created vivid pictures of the poor in India which often
caused readers to sympathize with the them. He is best remembered for his realistic depiction of the
poorer classes of people in India. In the year 1959, he wrote the short story “The Gold Watch”. He
was born in December, 1905 and died in September, 2004.
The Gold Watch: The Title

The title of the story refers to a gold watch that is given to an employee of the Empire of Henry
& Co., Srijut Sudarshan Sharma, by the general manager of the company who is a white man,
Mr. Acton. The watch is a symbol of Srijut’s retirement however, he does not want to retire until
5 years later. His manager has other plans and lets him retire earlier at the age of fifty. The
watch, therefore, represents Srijut’s loss of control over his life and his forced acceptance of his
early retirement or situation because of his dependence on his manager and Mr. Acton’s
decisions.
The Narrative Point of View

The short story is narrated in the third person by an unknown narrator.
Why?
The fact that the story of Srijut is not even narrated by he himself suggests that Srijut never has
control of his own life and future and how the two are going going to end up.
Themes
The two man themes of this story are:
Control
At the end of the story, the reader most probably identifies this theme, because Srijut just lost all
control over his life and future. “The Gold Watch” is set in the old India, when the Indians had not
yet gained their independence from the British. At that time, everything, including the lives of the
native Indians, was under the control of the British, which definitely moved Mulk Raj Anand to
write this story. In the story, it is evident that Srijut is a victim of not having control over his life as
Mr. Acton lets him retire early, eventhough it is not yet time for Srijut to retire. Srijut is also forced
to accept this because he knows he very much depends on the general manager and what he desires.
Srijut is not even able to say a word to his manager when Mr. Acton tells him to retire,which shows
his fear of the white man.
Anxiety of the Poor

After Srijut’s superior tells him that he is going to receive a golden watch as a gift, the Indian Clerk,
Srijut suddenly becomes very anxious, knowing exactly what the gold watch gift meant, his
retirement. The retirement was 5 years early and wouldn't help his family, his son and his wife. His
anxiety depicts the anxiety of all the other poor Indians who were ruled by the white man and didn’t
know what the white man may do to them. The clerk’s struggles were displayed in a way that
readers could sympathize with him and all the others who seem to have these struggles of constant
anxiety over whether they will be able to take care of themsleves and their family.
Setting
The story is set in India, mostly in a company named, Empire of Henry & Co., and sometimes at
Srijuts home. The story most probably took place during the time of British colonial rule in
India. This story has a historical setting.
Plot
The short story, “The Gold Watch” revolves around a man, Srijut Sudarshan Sharma, who worked
at a marmalade production company as a watchman for more than 25 years and looked forward to
his retirement. His manager, though, did not think that was a good idea and so decided to let him
retire 5 years early and to give him a golden watch as a retirement gift or a token of appreciation for
the years he had spent at the company. The protagonist struggles with the anxietiesof having to
retire early and not being able to take care of his family as well as before.
Characters
Srijut
The protagonist of this story is a man who knows that he is being controlled by his
employer and that he has to accept the situation he finds himself in due to his early
retirement. He is a man who cares a lot about his family and is a goo loving father to his
son, Hari. It is evident that he has no control over his life because his manager just
decided to retire him of his job 5 years early to which Srijut could and did not say anything
to voice his opinions of his want to retire at a later time, 5 years away. Yet later on,
theman realizes that the only thing that he could do in this situation was to accept it and
somehow, move on with his life, telling himself to ‘shanti’ or to calm down. He also shows
that he cares about his family because of the way he is not only anxious about himself but
also about his family.
Mr. Acton
Mr. Acton is the antagonist of the story because he is the one in control of what his Indian
subordinates do. He is the one who makes Srijut retire early-five years early. Mr. Acton is a white
man who represents all the British who were colonizing the Indians and controling their everyday
lives. The story also makes him a rich figure, who drives a ‘Buick’ which is a big American car
which a reader would assume, is quite expensive and not so affordable for those who are poorer.
Tone and Mood

The tone of the story is bitter and pathetic. The main character struggles with his anxieties and is
not happy with it, he is disappointed. The narrator, therefore, is bitter and angry at what happened to
the one who is the protagonist of the story, Srijut. The mood of a reader on reading this is a feeling
of empathy or sympathy for what the poor Indian in the story had to face. The bitterness of the
narrator can be seen when the narrator said, “they were too dimmed to smile.” This also makes the
mood a sad and sympathizing one for the ppor Indian clerk, Srijut.
What Can we Say?

“The Gold Watch” is a short story by Mulk Raj Anand that speaks about the control that the british
had over the Indians and the struggles that the poor Indians face due to this.

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The Gold Watch: by Mulk Raj Anand

About the Author

The Gold Watch: The Title

The Narrative Point of View

Anxiety of the Poor

Tone and Mood

What Can we Say?

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