A House for Mr Biswas

by

V. S. Naipaul

Teachers and parents! Our Teacher Edition on A House for Mr Biswas makes teaching easy.

Govind Character Analysis

Govind is a cheery, illiterate former coconut-seller who began to work in the Tulsis’ fields after marrying Chinta. Mr Biswas’s early attempts to befriend him by complaining about the other Tulsis eventually led them to a physical fight. While they never fully reconcile, Govind personally carries Mr Biswas in his arms from Green Vale. At Shorthills, Govind withdraws from the family, sells fruit from the estate’s trees, and destroys the cricket pavilion to build a cowshed, where he spends most of his time beating the cows. Eventually, he gets wealthy by driving a taxi for the Americans who come to Trinidad during World War II, terrorizes everyone in the Port of Spain house, beats Chinta mercilessly, and becomes obsessed with his three-piece suits.

Govind Quotes in A House for Mr Biswas

The A House for Mr Biswas quotes below are all either spoken by Govind or refer to Govind. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Independence vs. Belonging Theme Icon
).
Part 2, Chapter 5 Quotes

[Mr Biswas] turned the long room into an office. In this room, where the lotuses still bloomed on the wall, he had lived with Shama. Through the Demerara window he had tried to spit on Owad and flung the plateful of food on him. In this room he had been beaten by Govind, had kicked Bell’s Standard Elocutionist and given it the dent on the cover. Here, claimed by no one, he had reflected on the unreality of his life, and had wished to make a mark on the wall as proof of his existence. Now he needed no such proof. Relationships had been created where none existed; he stood at their centre. In that very unreality had lain freedom. Now he was encumbered, and it was at Hanuman House that he tried to forget the encumbrance: the children, the scattered furniture, the dark tenement room, and Shama, as helpless as he was and now, what he had longed for, dependent on him.

Related Characters: Mr Biswas, Shama, Mrs Tulsi, Owad, Govind
Related Symbols: Houses
Page Number: 509
Explanation and Analysis:
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Govind Quotes in A House for Mr Biswas

The A House for Mr Biswas quotes below are all either spoken by Govind or refer to Govind. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Independence vs. Belonging Theme Icon
).
Part 2, Chapter 5 Quotes

[Mr Biswas] turned the long room into an office. In this room, where the lotuses still bloomed on the wall, he had lived with Shama. Through the Demerara window he had tried to spit on Owad and flung the plateful of food on him. In this room he had been beaten by Govind, had kicked Bell’s Standard Elocutionist and given it the dent on the cover. Here, claimed by no one, he had reflected on the unreality of his life, and had wished to make a mark on the wall as proof of his existence. Now he needed no such proof. Relationships had been created where none existed; he stood at their centre. In that very unreality had lain freedom. Now he was encumbered, and it was at Hanuman House that he tried to forget the encumbrance: the children, the scattered furniture, the dark tenement room, and Shama, as helpless as he was and now, what he had longed for, dependent on him.

Related Characters: Mr Biswas, Shama, Mrs Tulsi, Owad, Govind
Related Symbols: Houses
Page Number: 509
Explanation and Analysis: