Social Justice and Inclusive Development in Vikas Swarup's The Accidental Apprentice
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.71093/iqmrj.v1i2.202507Keywords:
Casteism, Child labour, Inclusive development, Indian society, Khap panchayat, Organ trafficking, Patriarchy , Social justiceAbstract
This paper examines the themes of social justice and inclusive development in Vikas Swarup’s novel The Accidental Apprentice through a detailed literary analysis. The novel offers a critical perspective on systemic inequalities in contemporary Indian society, as experienced by the protagonist, Sapna Sinha. It explores how caste hierarchies, child labour, corruption, organ trafficking, and patriarchal oppression continue to marginalise vast sections of the population. Drawing on both textual evidence and theoretical frameworks, the paper argues that Swarup’s narrative not only exposes these injustices but also advocates for a more humane and equitable model of development.
References
Abe, Shinzo. “Inclusive Growth Quotes.” Goodreads.com. https://www.brainyquote.com/topics/inclusive-quotes#:~:text=Growth%20must%20be%20inclusive%2C%20and%20no%20one%20must%20be%20left%20behind. Accessed 28 May 2025.
Beteille, Andre. Social Inequality and Public Policy. Oxford UP, 2012.
Chowdhry, Prem. Contentious Marriages, Eloping Couples: Gender, Caste, and Patriarchy in Northern India. Oxford UP, 2007.
DiFranco, Ani. “Quotes on Patriarchy.” BrainyQuote.com. https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/ani_difranco_600277. Accessed 28 May 2025.
Drèze, Jean, and Amartya Sen. India: Development and Participation. Oxford UP, 2002. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199257492.001.0001
Earhart, Amelia. “Quotes on Process of Becoming.” Goodreads.com. https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/367092.Amelia_Earhart. Accessed 28 May 2025.
Herman, Alexis. “Child Labor Quotes.” BrainyQuote.com. https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/alexis_herman_212937?src=t_child_labor. Accessed 28 May 2025.
Panha, Vorng. “Inclusive Growth Quotes.” Goodreads.com. https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/inclusive-growth#:~:text=%22Sustainable%20development%20thrives%20when%20we,innovation%20to%20create%20inclusive%20growth.%22. Accessed 28 May 2025.
Purushothama, G. S. A Textbook on Social Problems. Himalaya Publishing, 2003.
Suresh, Mayur. “Organ Trafficking in India: A Review.” Journal of Clinical and Diagnostic Research, vol. 11, no. 9, 2017, pp. 167–170.
Swarup, Vikas. The Accidental Apprentice. Simon and Schuster, 2013.
Weiner, Myron. The Child and the State in India: Child Labor and Education Policy in Comparative Perspective. Princeton UP, 1991. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/9780691225180
Yousafzai, Malala. “Child Labor Quotes.” BrainyQuote.com.
https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/malala_yousafzai_662494?src=t_child_labor. Accessed 28 May 2025.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Dr. S. Jemi Violet
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
All articles published in the International Quarterly Multidisciplinary Research Journal (IQMRJ) are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0) license. This permits readers to share and adapt the published material, provided the original work is properly cited, used for non-commercial purposes, and no modifications are made without acknowledgment.
For more details, visit the Creative Commons website.
