The Guide

by

R. K. Narayan

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

The Villagers Character Analysis

Residents of the village of Mangal in southern India, located not far from a river bank. The villagers, following Velan’s example, put their faith in Raju as a spiritual guide. They suffer especially under a severe drought that afflicts them one year and puts their livelihoods in jeopardy. Turning to Raju for guidance, they draw him into a long fast to alleviate the drought.

The Villagers Quotes in The Guide

The The Guide quotes below are all either spoken by The Villagers or refer to The Villagers. 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:
Hypocrisy and Disguise Theme Icon
).
Chapter 2 Quotes

Where could he go? He had not trained himself to make a living out of hard work. Food was coming to him unasked now. If he went away somewhere else certainly nobody was going to take the trouble to bring him food in return for just waiting for it.

Related Characters: Raju, The Villagers
Related Symbols: Water
Page Number: 24
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 4 Quotes

Raju himself was not certain why he had advised that, and so he added, “If you do it you will know why.” The essence of sainthood seemed to lie in one’s ability to utter mystifying statements.

Related Characters: Raju (speaker), The Villagers
Related Symbols: Water
Page Number: 38
Explanation and Analysis:

Raju soon realized that his spiritual status would be enhanced if he grew a beard and long hair to fall on his nape. A clean-shaven, close-haired saint was an anomaly.

Related Characters: Raju, The Villagers
Related Symbols: Water
Page Number: 39
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 6 Quotes

[…] he suddenly noticed at the end of the year that the skies never dimmed with cloud. The summer seemed to continue. Raju inquired, “Where are the rains?”

Related Characters: Raju (speaker), The Villagers
Related Symbols: Water
Page Number: 70
Explanation and Analysis:

Did they expect him to starve for fifteen days and stand in knee-deep water for eight hours? He sat up.

Related Characters: Raju, The Villagers, Velan’s Brother
Related Symbols: Water
Page Number: 85
Explanation and Analysis:
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The Villagers Quotes in The Guide

The The Guide quotes below are all either spoken by The Villagers or refer to The Villagers. 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:
Hypocrisy and Disguise Theme Icon
).
Chapter 2 Quotes

Where could he go? He had not trained himself to make a living out of hard work. Food was coming to him unasked now. If he went away somewhere else certainly nobody was going to take the trouble to bring him food in return for just waiting for it.

Related Characters: Raju, The Villagers
Related Symbols: Water
Page Number: 24
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 4 Quotes

Raju himself was not certain why he had advised that, and so he added, “If you do it you will know why.” The essence of sainthood seemed to lie in one’s ability to utter mystifying statements.

Related Characters: Raju (speaker), The Villagers
Related Symbols: Water
Page Number: 38
Explanation and Analysis:

Raju soon realized that his spiritual status would be enhanced if he grew a beard and long hair to fall on his nape. A clean-shaven, close-haired saint was an anomaly.

Related Characters: Raju, The Villagers
Related Symbols: Water
Page Number: 39
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 6 Quotes

[…] he suddenly noticed at the end of the year that the skies never dimmed with cloud. The summer seemed to continue. Raju inquired, “Where are the rains?”

Related Characters: Raju (speaker), The Villagers
Related Symbols: Water
Page Number: 70
Explanation and Analysis:

Did they expect him to starve for fifteen days and stand in knee-deep water for eight hours? He sat up.

Related Characters: Raju, The Villagers, Velan’s Brother
Related Symbols: Water
Page Number: 85
Explanation and Analysis: