Paul Scott, The Day of the Scorpion

Peter Childs (Birmingham Newman University)

The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.2.1.09: English Writing and Culture: Postwar and Contemporary Britain , 1945-present.
Vol. editors: Gina Lyle (University of Glasgow), Graham MacPhee (University of Manchester), Kerry Myler (Birmingham Newman University), Jenni Ramone (The Nottingham Trent University)

Dates

First circulation or publication 1968

Places

England (Country of Origin)

Genres and Modes

Novel

Resources

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The second novel of

The Raj Quartet

begins with a prologue that introduces “the writer”, who appears to be the narrator from

The Jewel in the Crown

, before following a less complex narrative form than the first book: omniscient third-person narration with considerable use of point of view. Ostensibly different from the first novel in its main concerns,

The Day of the Scorpion

(1968) sounds three notes in the prologue which confirm it as a continuation of the earlier story. First, the prologue's principal location, the Premanagar Fort, has been re-applied from its traditional use as buildings designed for keeping invaders out, to meet a more pressing need from 1939 onwards: that of keeping prisoners in. To this fort in early August 1942, was brought M. A. Kasim, one of the Congress…

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2031 words

Citation: Childs, Peter. "The Day of the Scorpion". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 08 January 2001 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=1116, accessed 25 April 2024.]

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