The Partition Riots in Manto’s Migration Fiction: A Critical Study of the Social and Moral Crisis

Abstract

The Partition of India was one of the most traumatic events in the history of the subcontinent. Besides redrawing political and geographical boundaries, it profoundly disrupted social relations, cultural values, and established moral principles. In his post-migration short stories, Saadat Hasan Manto portrays the communal violence, forced displacement, mass killings, sexual brutality, identity crisis, and moral insensitivity caused by Partition with remarkable realism and impartiality. This study critically examines Manto’s migration-related fiction, particularly Toba Tek Singh, Khol Do, Thanda Gosht, Sharifan, Yazid, and Siyah Hashiye. It argues that Manto does not present the Partition riots merely as a conflict between religious communities; rather, he portrays them as manifestations of humanity’s moral failure, social disintegration, and the collapse of civilizational values. In these stories, the female body becomes a site of communal revenge, the migrant suffers from displacement and fractured identity, and madness emerges as a metaphor for the irrationality of political decisions and social violence. The study further demonstrates that Manto avoids blaming any single nation or religious community. Instead, he exposes the brutality, prejudice, and desire for domination concealed beneath the surface of civilized human behavior.

Reference:

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