The
Guide By R.K. Narayan Summary
The Guide By R.K. Narayan Summary - In this post you will get all the
information about 'The Guide'. The proper and easy explanation of the novel is
written below, i hope will read the summary and know everything about 'The
Guide'.
Introduction
Characters
- Raju
- Raju's
Mother
- Rosie
- Macro
- Velan
- Velan's
Sister
- Gaffur
- Velan's
Brother
- Raju's
Father
- Joseph
- Raju's
Uncle
- The
Sait
- Raju's
Lawver
- Malone
- Mani
Summary
The Guide By R.K. Narayan Summary - The novel begins on the outskirts
of the quiet village of Malgudi, where a simple villager named Velan mistakes Raju,
newly out of jail and resting at the ruins near the river, as a holy man. Velan
is reverential toward Raju and tells him of his problems, namely that his
half-sister refuses to marry the man selected for her. Raju does not really
care but since he is lonely, he is happy that
somebody is talking to him. He thinks about how he just got out of jail and of
his time before then as a famed tourist guide. Raju lived in Malgudi with his
mother and father. He grew up as the train station was being built and
eventually, after his father’s death, came to run his father’s spacious shop.
He loved talking to people and was quite popular as a guide; his nickname was
even "Railway Raju."
The Guide By R.K. Narayan Summary - The next morning Velan brings his sister to Raju and he tells
her placidly that "What must happen must happen; no power on earth or in
heaven can change its course, just has no one can change the course of that
river.” She is impressed and after her meeting with Raju she agrees to her
family's wishes. This begins Raju's journey as a holy man. Dozens and dozens of
villagers gather to see their Swami. They decorate the ancient temple, bring
him food and gifts, encourage their sons to read and learn from the schoolteacher
in Raju’s presence, and generally seek Raju’s counsel about all manner of
things. Raju is concerned about his pretending but is often impressed with his
own sagacity and decides he must stay here to avoid going back to his old
village. He grows a long beard and long hair and becomes used to saying
profound things.
The Guide By R.K. Narayan Summary - After a few years, the rains disappear and famine and strife
begin to affect the villages. Velan’s never-do-well brother
comes to see Raju and admits that people are fighting due to the famine. Raju
is distressed by all of this commotion and orders the brother to give the
message to the people that they are not to fight and that he will not eat until
they stop fighting.
The Guide By R.K. Narayan Summary - When Velan’s brother finds Velan and the other elders, he is
embarrassed that he mentioned the fighting to the holy man so he says simply
that he told the Swami that there was no rain. He then repeats the part about
Raju not eating so Velan and the others think Raju is about to undertake the
sacrifice of fasting and praying until the rain comes. When
the people pour into Raju’s area to look upon him and thank him, he
realizes something strange is going on. Velan excitedly reminds him of what
he’d said one time about this fasting and praying, and Raju rues that he made
this up a while ago.
The Guide By R.K. Narayan Summary - That evening, Raju wonders if he ought to run away but
remembers the women and children and their gratitude and decides he must see
this out. He calls Velan to him and begins to tell him his life’s story. Velan
listens gravely.
The Guide By R.K. Narayan Summary - Raju tells Velan of his childhood, his time at school, how he
built up the business after his father's death, and how his fame as Railway
Raju increased day by day. Most importantly, he tells of how his life changed
when he meet Rosie.
This is what Raju recounts...
The Guide By R.K. Narayan Summary - One day, a stern and dry academic tourist named Marco arrives
and enlists Raju’s services. His wife Rosie arrives not long after. Raju sets
them up in a hotel and from there, after dropping Marco to admire old friezes,
he takes Rosie to watch a king cobra dance to a flute.
Rosie sways to the rhythm and Raju learns she is a dancer. He finds her
beautiful and enticing and falls in love with her. He praises her dancing. He
sees that she and Marco have a terrible marriage and fight constantly; she
married him because he was rich and did not care that she was from a lower
caste. He confesses his love for her and eventually the two start sleeping with
each other.
The Guide By R.K. Narayan Summary - Raju becomes more interested in Rosie than his shop or his
friends or his mother. He cares little for tourists and they have to go away
disappointed. Though Marco has no idea what is going on between Raju and Rosie,
caring only for his caves and friezes and virtually letting Raju become a
member of his family, Raju still cannot relax because it seems like distance
has made Rosie fonder of her husband. She often worries that she is doing the
wrong thing. Raju earns her affection back by telling her she must take up
dancing again and that he will support her. She is elated and begins
practicing. However, she needs to secure permission from Marco and he has
always been antipathetic to her dancing, considering it base and useless.
The Guide By R.K. Narayan Summary - Rosie prepares to spend a few days with Marco at Peak House
and broach the subject. When Raju comes to fetch her, he can tell something is
terribly wrong with the couple. Marco tells Raju his services are ended, and
Rosie yells at him to leave.
The Guide By R.K. Narayan Summary - Back home, Raju has a miserable month where nothing provides
him solace. He cannot stop thinking about Rosie. His business continues to
fail. To his delight, though, Rosie shows up at his doorstep one day and Raju
announces to his mother that she will be staying with them. Rosie tells Raju
that when she brought up the dancing to Marco, he did not like it and she
accidentally mentioned that Raju did. The story of their affair came tumbling
out and Marco cut her off completely. After three weeks of silence
and completely ignoring her, he packed up and left for their home in
Madras and told her she did not have a ticket. That was when she came to Raju
and his mother's house. Raju promises to turn her into a star.
The Guide By R.K. Narayan Summary - While Rosie works hard, Raju’s mother and the rest of the
town cannot help but gossip about her. Raju loses his store and wonders how he
will make money. He is taken to court for his debt but even though his mother
angrily pesters him he cares little. He only wants to help Rosie become a
famous dancer.
The Guide By R.K. Narayan Summary - At her wits’ end, Raju’s mother asks her elder brother, a
wealthy and commanding man, to come to the house to knock sense into Raju. It
does not work, and despite the myriad of insults and threats, all that happens
is that Raju’s mother decides to go away with her brother; she cannot bear to
see Raju throw his life away for Rosie.
The Guide By R.K. Narayan Summary - Raju is sad about the state of affairs with his mother, but
devotes himself to Rosie and her career. He suggests she change her name to
Nalini and she agrees.
The Guide By R.K. Narayan Summary - Rosie/Nalini becomes very popular with her
art of dance and, with Raju’s guidance and maintenance of her schedule, they
both are earning money. They move into a huge house and begin moving in elite
circles. Raju and Rosie’s relationship becomes a bit strained and he can see
that she is unhappy, but all that matters to him is earning the maximum amount
of money.
The Guide By R.K. Narayan Summary - One day, Raju’s secretary Mani drops
off a book for him. It is by Marco and is his long-awaited cultural history of
South India. There is a brief thanks to Raju in it for his guide work. Raju is
puzzled and decides to hide it from Rosie. When Mani tells her of it somehow,
she demands Raju show her. She is happy for her husband, which makes Raju
furious.
The Guide By R.K. Narayan Summary -Not long after the book incident a letter arrives for Rosie
but Raju sees it first and opens it to see correspondence from a lawyer that
states: “Madam, under instruction from our client, we are enclosing an
application for your signature, for the release of a box of jewelry left in
safe custody at the Bank of ------, in the marketplace. After this is received
we shall proceed to obtain the other signature as well, since you are aware
that the deposit is in your joint names, and obtain the release of the said
box, and arrange to forward it to you under insurance cover in due
course." Raju is thrilled that there might be expensive jewelry but he
does not want Rosie to see the letter because she might become emotional. He
cannot stop thinking about it, however, and finally forges Rosie’s signature.
He expectantly waits for the arrival of the jewelry box.
The Guide By R.K. Narayan Summary - After several days of waiting, Rosie is giving a
performance and Raju is watching. During the dance, the police
superintendent comes with an arrest warrant against Raju for forgery. He
realizes how grave his offense was but feels immense self-pity. When he tells
Rosie, she soberly says it is karma because she had a feeling he was doing
wrong. She says she will take care of their debts but the relationship is over.
The Guide By R.K. Narayan Summary - Raju has his trial and has to spend two years in jail. There
he is a model prisoner and actually grows to enjoy the peace and regularity of
jail life. He learns from Mani that Rosie has settled in Madras and is doing
well.
The Guide By R.K. Narayan Summary - Raju concludes his tale of his past life and he again tells
Velan that he is not a holy man but a common man like everyone else. Velan is
unaffected by the story and promises never to say anything to anyone. Raju
realizes he must go on with the fast.
The Guide By R.K. Narayan Summary - A newspaper article garners a great deal of attention and
people begin flooding Malgudi to pay homage to the holy man
trying to end the drought. Crowds swarm around Raju and his wishes for some
peace and privacy. His body begins to weaken and sometimes he is bitter against
Velan for starting this whole thing. However, he finally decides this is his
calling and he will fast properly and will devote himself to this with all care
and energy.
The Guide By R.K. Narayan Summary - On the eleventh day, doctors suggest that Raju is dying and must stop the fast; a government telegram concurs. However, in the evening, with the help of Velan and others, Raju gets up and walks to the river. He prays and then opens his eyes, looks about, and says, "Velan, it's raining in the hills. I can feel it coming up under my feet, up my legs” and sags down.
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