A Critical Explanation of "The Ghost of Firozsha Baag" by Rohinton Mistry
The writer of the story, Rohinton Mistry, is an Indian-born Canadian writer who belongs to the Parsi community. He was born in 1952 in Bombay (now Mumbai) and immigrated to Canada in 1975. He studied mathematics, economics, English, and philosophy at the University of Bombay and the University of Toronto. He is known for his novels and short stories that depict the lives of Parsis in India and Canada, often dealing with themes of cultural identity, migration, and social justice. He has won several awards for his works, including the Neustadt International Prize for Literature in 2012. He has also been shortlisted for the Booker Prize three times, for his novels Such a Long Journey (1991), A Fine Balance (1995), and Family Matters (2002). His stories are influenced by his own experiences as a Parsi and as an immigrant, as well as by his observations of the political and historical events in India and Canada. He is widely regarded as one of the most important contemporary writers of Indian origin.
Rohinton Mistry's story "The Ghost of Firozsha Baag" (1987) is a story that explores the themes of class discrimination, social exclusion, and human dignity through the perspective of a Catholic woman from Goa who works as a maid for a Parsi family in Mumbai. The story is part of Mistry's first book, Tales from Firozsha Baag, which is a collection of stories about the residents of a Parsi-dominated apartment complex in Mumbai.
The protagonist of the story is Jacqueline, who is called Jaakaylee by everyone. She narrates her paranormal experience of seeing and sleeping with a ghost on the staircase landing of the apartment complex. She also reflects on her life as an ayah (a maid), and how she has been marginalized and mocked by her employers and neighbors for her beliefs, her appearance, and her status.
The story begins with Jacqueline introducing herself and her belief in ghosts. She says that she used to see ghosts often back in Goa when she was a little girl and that she has always believed in them. She then tells the reader how she came to Bombay to work as an ayah for a Parsi family, and how she has been living with them for forty-nine years. She then describes how she saw a ghost one Christmas morning after the midnight mass, while she was returning home. She says that she was not afraid of the ghost, but she rang the doorbell to scare him away. However, her employers did not believe her and got angry at her for waking them up so early. She also says that everyone in the neighborhood made fun of her for believing in ghosts, and teased and mocked her.
The story then shifts to the second encounter with the ghost, which happened on a Friday night. Jacqueline says that the ghost appeared on her bed and jumped on her chest, trying to misbehave with her. She says that she did not tell anyone about this incident, because she knew that they would not believe her or they would laugh at her. She then says that the ghost returned every Friday night and slept with her, always trying to do some mischief. She says that she tolerated this behaviour for almost a year, until she decided to confess to the priest at the church. The priest assured her that she was blameless and gave her holy blessings. After that, the ghost stopped coming. Jacqueline says that she waited for him every Friday, but he did not come. She also says that he did not come on Christmas or New Year's Eve. She then wonders why he left her, and what he wanted from her.
The story then shifts to Jacqueline's reflections on her life and her past. She remembers a boy named Cajetan who used to misbehave with her in Goa, in a similar way as the ghost did. She says that it has been forty-nine years since she left Goa and that she has not seen anyone from her old life. She also wonders why the ghost wanted to sleep with a "fat and ugly" old woman like her. She then compares herself to the earth, which is also sweet and spontaneous but has been pinched and poked by philosophers, prodded by science, and taken upon its knees by religions. She says that the earth answers them only with spring, which is its way of expressing its beauty and vitality.
The story ends with Jacqueline saying that she does not know what will happen next, but that she will keep waiting for the ghost. She says that maybe he will come back someday, or maybe he will not. She then asks the reader not to laugh at her or pity her, but to understand her.
The story uses humour and irony to highlight the contrast between Jacqueline's simple and sincere worldview and the cynical and hypocritical attitudes of the people around her. The story also uses symbolism and imagery to suggest that Jacqueline's ghost is a manifestation of her repressed desires, memories, and fears. The story implies that Jacqueline's ghost is a representation of her lost love, Cajetan, who used to misbehave with her in Goa. The story also implies that Jacqueline's ghost is a representation of her loneliness, isolation, and longing for home.
The story challenges the reader to question their own prejudices and stereotypes about people who are different from them in terms of class, religion, or ethnicity. The story also challenges the reader to empathize with Jacqueline's plight and to appreciate her dignity and humanity. The story suggests that Jacqueline is not a mere object or a servant, but a person who has feelings, dreams, and hopes. The story also suggests that Jacqueline is not a victim or a fool, but a survivor and a hero.
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