Home / Current Issue / Paper 1722488
Escapism and Existential Crisis in Anita Desai's Where Shall We Go This Summer
Subject area: Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities · Area of research: English Studies
DOI: 10.64388/IREV10I2-1722488
Abstract
Anita Desai's Where Shall We Go This Summer is a profound psychological novel that explores the complexities of human existence through the inner turmoil of its protagonist, Sita. This paper examines the interrelationship between escapism and existential crisis, arguing that Sita's retreat to Manori Island represents both a psychological response to emotional distress and an existential quest for meaning in an increasingly alienating world. Adopting an interdisciplinary framework that integrates existential philosophy with psychological criticism, the study examines the themes of alienation, identity crisis, loneliness, motherhood, and the search for authenticity. It demonstrates how Sita's inability to reconcile herself with the violence, materialism, and emotional emptiness of urban life compels her to seek refuge in an idealized past. The paper contends that Desai portrays escapism not merely as avoidance of reality but as a complex expression of existential anxiety and the human desire for self-discovery. Ultimately, the novel affirms the enduring struggle to attain meaning, identity, and emotional equilibrium amid the uncertainties of modern existence.
Keywords
escapism; existential crisis; alienation; identity crisis; psychological conflict; human existence.
References
[1] Camus, Albert. The Myth of Sisyphus. Translated by Justin O'Brien, Vintage International, 1991.
[2] Desai, Anita. Where Shall We Go This Summer. Orient Paperbacks, 2021.
[3] Asnani, Shyam M. "Anita Desai's Fiction: A New Dimension." Indian Literature, vol. 24, no. 2, 1981, pp. 44–53.
[4] Erikson, Erik H. Identity: Youth and Crisis. W. W. Norton, 1968.
[5] Frankl, Viktor E. Man's Search for Meaning. Translated by Ilse Lasch, Beacon Press, 2006.
[6] Heidegger, Martin. Being and Time. Translated by Joan Stambaugh, State University of New York Press, 2010.
[7] Sartre, Jean-Paul. Existentialism Is a Humanism. Translated by Carol Macomber, Yale UP, 2007.
[8] Braun, Virginia, and Victoria Clarke. "Using Thematic Analysis in Psychology." Qualitative Research in Psychology, vol. 3, no. 2, 2006, pp. 77–101.
[9] Creswell, John W., and Cheryl N. Poth. Qualitative Inquiry and Research Design: Choosing Among Five Approaches. 4th ed., SAGE Publications, 2018.
[10] Denzin, Norman K., and Yvonna S. Lincoln, editors. The SAGE Handbook of Qualitative Research. 5th ed., SAGE Publications, 2018.
[11] Kierkegaard, Søren. The Concept of Anxiety. Translated by Reidar Thomte and Albert B. Anderson, Princeton UP, 1980.
How to cite this paper
@article{1722488,
author = {Shiva Bhardwaj, Dr. Amresh Baboo Yadav},
title = {Escapism and Existential Crisis in Anita Desai's Where Shall We Go This Summer},
journal = {Iconic Research And Engineering Journals},
year = {2026},
volume = {10},
number = {2},
pages = {2414-2422},
issn = {2456-8880},
url = {https://www.irejournals.com/formatedpaper/1722488.pdf},
abstract = {Anita Desai's Where Shall We Go This Summer is a profound psychological novel that explores the complexities of human existence through the inner turmoil of its protagonist, Sita. This paper examines the interrelationship between escapism and existential crisis, arguing that Sita's retreat to Manori Island represents both a psychological response to emotional distress and an existential quest for meaning in an increasingly alienating world. Adopting an interdisciplinary framework that integrates existential philosophy with psychological criticism, the study examines the themes of alienation, identity crisis, loneliness, motherhood, and the search for authenticity. It demonstrates how Sita's inability to reconcile herself with the violence, materialism, and emotional emptiness of urban life compels her to seek refuge in an idealized past. The paper contends that Desai portrays escapism not merely as avoidance of reality but as a complex expression of existential anxiety and the human desire for self-discovery. Ultimately, the novel affirms the enduring struggle to attain meaning, identity, and emotional equilibrium amid the uncertainties of modern existence.},
keywords = {escapism; existential crisis; alienation; identity crisis; psychological conflict; human existence.},
month = {August},
doi = {https://doi.org/10.64388/IREV10I2-1722488}
}