Abstract

“Borders can join and separate,” writes Diane Freeman. “It is risky to migrate across a border, whether aesthetic or geographic.” for borders in themselves are problematic, where cultures conflict, overlap, blend or co-exist. The way in which the author treats such border crossings implies important cultural attitude that need to be exposed and analyzed in literature. In this paper, I intend to examine “the border” and see the possibility and desirability of cultural bridges. Such analyses are important if we are to understand the ideologies that have an impact upon the feasibility of cultural bridges in society. I will discuss the most cataclysmic, life-changing event for South Asia ---the “partition” not merely a geographical reality. The Radcliff line that ran not only through paper but also through many lives slitting through lives of those who were once neighbors. It meant upheaval of every aspect of life for those migrating from one enemy to the other. It also meant something else: something dark and raw and potent. Partition, are either accounts of victory or nightmares, constructed in the form of ‘compelling narratives’ concerned with the metaphysical identities of different communities and their collective fate. For some people ethnic boundaries assume primary importance; for others, the borders of planet-spanning communities are of interest. Where might those trends carry us in the 21st Century? The purpose of this paper is not prescriptive; it does not present a vision of an ideal future. It explores “possibilities” emergent but not realized as they meet resistance from the power structures and current day realities. I want a provocative exploration of possibilities of re: citizenship, locale, and identity, of multidimensional boundaries as conceptual and virtual rather than physical and geographic. Not sure of these possibilities myself: but hopeful of possible changes.