Kanthapura

by

Raja Rao

Teachers and parents! Our Teacher Edition on Kanthapura makes teaching easy.

Khadi Term Analysis

Refers to hand-woven Indian cloth. Gandhi encouraged his supporters to wear khadi and boycott British-made cloth.

Khadi Quotes in Kanthapura

The Kanthapura quotes below are all either spoken by Khadi or refer to Khadi. For each quote, you can also see the other terms and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Oral Tradition, Writing, and Political Power Theme Icon
).
Section 2 Quotes

“May I ask one thing, Moorthy? How much has one to pay?”

“Nothing, sister. I tell you the Congress gives it free.”

“And why should the Congress give it free?”

“Because millions and millions of yards of foreign cloth come to this country, and everything foreign makes us poor and pollutes us. To wear cloth spun and woven with your own God-given hands is sacred, says the Mahatma. And it gives work to the workless, and work to the lazy. And if you don’t need the cloth, sister—well, you can say, ‘Give it away to the poor,’ and we will give it to the poor. Our country is being bled to death by foreigners. We have to protect our mother.”

Related Characters: Moorthy (speaker), Nanjamma (speaker), Maistri
Page Number: 17
Explanation and Analysis:
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Kanthapura PDF

Khadi Term Timeline in Kanthapura

The timeline below shows where the term Khadi appears in Kanthapura. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Section 1
Gandhism and the Erosion of Caste Theme Icon
...When he came back to town two years ago, he started wearing a dhoti and khadi, and he even quit “his city habit of smoking.” (full context)
Section 4
Oral Tradition, Writing, and Political Power Theme Icon
Gandhism and the Erosion of Caste Theme Icon
Nationalism and Colonialism Theme Icon
Labor, Exploitation, and Economic Independence Theme Icon
...start up for the day, carrying their goods in every direction. With “a bundle of khadi on his back and a bundle of books in his arms,” Moorthy heads to Kanthapura,... (full context)
Section 8
Nationalism and Colonialism Theme Icon
...length of yarn yearly, plus “vow to speak Truth, and wear no cloth but the khadi cloth.” Moorthy admits that this might bring trouble with the government in the future, especially... (full context)
Section 10
Oral Tradition, Writing, and Political Power Theme Icon
Nationalism and Colonialism Theme Icon
Sankar enlists Advocate Ranganna, Khadi-shop Dasappa, and a number of other volunteers to bring in a crowd for the meeting... (full context)
Nationalism and Colonialism Theme Icon
Labor, Exploitation, and Economic Independence Theme Icon
Sankar’s father helped Dasappa run the khadi shop, where he sold cloth from around India and distributed political leaflets to aspiring Gandhians.... (full context)
Oral Tradition, Writing, and Political Power Theme Icon
Land, Geography, and Belonging Theme Icon
Rather, Sankar takes Hindi classes above the khadi shop, since Hindi will be India’s national language. He does not greet people in Kannada,... (full context)
Section 18
Nationalism and Colonialism Theme Icon
...refuse to stop even when millions are beaten and thrown in jail. They only buy khadi cloth and the money in circulation ends up with the Congress, not the government. Gandhians... (full context)