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FRAGMENTS OF A PRISONER S DIARY
vouch for the authenticity of the story and faithfulness of the psychological record. The critical portions may represent more the ideas of my collaborator than mine. But here, human intellect has only elaborated upon the spiritual properties of my animal being. My reactions to certain human behaviours, or certain human characteristics brought out by my presence, simply provided my collaborator with the clue for a specific line of criticism. In short, it has been a perfect collaboration; and this was possible only through the realisation of the animal essence of humanness and the animal (instinctive) foundation of human spirit.
Finally, this unprecedented literary venture is justified by the exigency of social protest. Great works of literature are inspired by a spirit of revolt against social institutions and traditional ideas supporting them. Modern Indian literature is as yet practically untouched by such a spirit. But it is the crying need of the day. If literature is to contribute its share to the much belated Indian Renaissance, it must expose the rottenness of social life, the falsity of popular notions, the ridiculousness of time-honoured institutions, instead of idealising them. Cases of revolt there are in plenty. It is remarkable that they are not discovered even by writers with a tendency to social reform. Nationalist preoccupation debars even the educated youth from a critical approach to
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