The Algebra of Infinite Justice (2002)

The book The Algebra of Infinite Justice is a collection of eight essays written by Arundhati Roy between the years of 1998 and 2002. My edition was published by Penguin Books in 2002 with a Foreword by John Berger and is approximately 300 pages long. It makes a change to have a little more non-fiction on my university reading list and I'm definitely glad this was mandatory reading. I decided to blog about it mainly because it is such a powerful book. So without much further ado and to keep this post brief I'll share some of my thoughts and feelings about the book but will not delve into too much detail, as I think it would be much better for anyone interested to read these with Roy as their first "exposure" because she articulates her points best and I find it useless paraphrasing them. 

Just to be clear as to what you'll be getting when you get hold of this book I'll list the names of the eight essays. In order of "appearance" they are: 'The End of Imagination', 'The Greater Common Good', 'Power Politics', 'The Ladies Have Feelings, So...', 'The Algebra of Infinite Justice', 'War is Peace', 'Democracy' and 'War Talk'.

As you can probably tell, I'm a fan of the book and would suggest everyone read it. The reason behind this is simply because the issues Roy discusses are so important and relevant to our modern society because it brings into question the nature of the world we're living in. Despite these essays being rather "old" the problems raised in the essays haven't necessarily been resolved, if anything they have been aggravated and I think it would be a crime not to be aware of what major crimes are being committed in the name of globalisation and "progress".

What I love about these essays is Roy's unflinching approach and her fact-filled passion. Not only is she well informed, she is witty and critical in her stance. She does not hold back from exposing enormous injustices taking place in her homeland. Roy critiques the decision to adopt nuclear arms, the business of building dams and notions of terrorism and democracy. She even goes on to explore what it means to be a writer and/ or an activist. Echoes of colonial burdens are ever present in her work, as India is plagued by its desire to compete with or please the "first world". She denounces the scale of the havoc as well as the fact that only the poor have to bear the brunt of it all. She provides us with eye-watering and heart-melting facts and statistics, and I personally found it heart wrenching to realise to what extent we, and governments, are disconnected from nature, the earth and a traditional way of life. Our inability to authentically value nature beyond a resource to be monetised is in great part one of the major causes of environmental destruction in our current climate. We need to open our eyes and look at the world beyond the lens of money and profit.

These essays are so valuable to humanity because they are a brave call in the face of superpowers. They are voicing the concerns of the voiceless or even trying to protect those who are uninformed and ignorant to how they're being taken advantage of and disregarded. The works are largely about India but they concern every human being because India is part of the world we live in and the issues in India are replicated in many ways across the world. If I were to say anything to India or any other developing country it would be to stop humiliating yourself before the West and destroying yourself from the inside. Value your people, including the poorest amongst them, and value a simpler, more traditional way of life and you will find harmony and success.