Having read Manto's Sahib e Karamat, I tried to see how the Saidian model of secular criticism could be used as a tool to study this story. Saidian secularism asks for an approach that does not affirm or lie within the ruling paradigm (of the majority) and can also ask 'why' it's asking the 'why' question.
Said's secular means emphasizing on the minority and allowing the minority to observe the majority from the outside. However, in Manto's story, Moju's character resonates with a large majority of the present population of Pakistan. Those who recklessly follow religion and fall into a trap where they rationalize everything around them through the supernatural and transcendental. I think, Manto's narrative does not represent the views of the minority through the character of Moju but rather illustrates their ignorance.
Said's secular means emphasizing on the minority and allowing the minority to observe the majority from the outside. However, in Manto's story, Moju's character resonates with a large majority of the present population of Pakistan. Those who recklessly follow religion and fall into a trap where they rationalize everything around them through the supernatural and transcendental. I think, Manto's narrative does not represent the views of the minority through the character of Moju but rather illustrates their ignorance.
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