Abstract

This paper attempts to semiotically interpret the use of time and place as narrative device in Anita Desai’s ‘In Custody’. Space and time have aroused the curiosity of people for many centuries. It has been central to philosophy from its inception. In literature, there is no other device which captures imagination of the narrative in both temporal and spatial implications. Time and space are regarded as substrata of culture. Here is an attempt to outline a contemporary view on the hierarchy of spatial and temporal structures. The ‘conceptual primitiveness’ has been revisited through the study of In Custody. Marred by time and place, the protagonist moves in search of his identity. The presentation of the characters is very near to the life in twentieth century India, ‘True to the temper of our times, there are no heroes, no big chested ideologies, and no utopias that will provide complete solutions to our problems’ (Das, 2002).

Key words: Time-space, semiotics, culture, post-colonial literature, twentieth century India.