One Night @the Call Center as a Self-help Book.

Topic: One Night @ The Call Center as a Self help Book.

Name: Solanki Binita M.

Roll No:

Paper No: 13

Subject: The New Literatures

Semester: 4

Year: 2014-2015

Submitted to:  Maharaja Krishnakumarsinhji Bhavnagar University.

                              (Department of English)

Brief Introduction about Chetan Bhagat:

Chetan Bhagat is author of five bestselling novels. In these he writes about the present situation of the society. Chetan Bhagat writes for leading English and Hindi newspaper focusing on youth and national development issues. He is also a motivational speaker.

v His Novels Like:  

ü  Five Point Someone.

ü One Night @ the Call Center.

ü  The 3 Mistake of My Life.

ü 2 States.

ü Half-Girl Friend.       

What will you learn?   

    One Night @ the Call Center is a novel written by Chetan Bhagat and first published in 2005. The Novel revolves around a group of six call center employees working at the call center in Gurgaon, Haryana. It takes place during which all of the span of one night, during which all of the leading characters confront some aspect of themselves or their lives they would like to change.

     The story takes a dramatic and decisive turn thought a literal Deus ex machine when the characters receive a phone call from God. Also you find some Characteristic of the Self-help book. Also you find some aspect of Meannepean satire in the novel.       

First definition of the of the Self-help book:     

                                             “A self-help book is one that is written with the intention to instruct its readers on solving personal problems. The books take their name from Self-Help, an 1859 best-seller by Samuel Smiles, but are also known and classified under "self-improvement", a term that is a modernized version of self-help. Self-help books moved from a niche position to being a postmodern cultural phenomenon in the late twentieth century.”

                We can say that self-help book means that books who represent the realty of the time. Self-help book show the real image of the society and we also learn in the self-help book. With help of the self-help books readers solve their problem and also improve their self. Self-help book present the modern culture.

Some Famous examples of the self-help book:

                        Some social observers have suggested that the ‘Bible’ is really the first and most significant and most helpful of self-help book.

Ø  Act Like a Lady, Think like a Man. –by Steve Harvey.

Ø  How to Stop Worrying and Start Living. – by Dale Carnegive.

Ø  How To Solve Our Human Problems . by Geshe Kelsany Gyatso.

Ø  The Magic of Thinking Big.- by David Schwartz.

Ø  Unlimited Power. –by Anthony Robbins.         

v Characteristics of the Self-help book:

ü  Self-help books often focus on popular psychology such as romantic relationships, or aspects of the mind and human behavior which believers in self-help feel can be controlled with effort.

ü  Self-help books typically advertise themselves as being able to increase self-awareness and performance, including satisfaction with one's life. They often say that they can help you achieve this more quickly than with conventional therapies.

ü  In the self-help book story about problems of the life and how they live in their life. Writer use characters who suffer in their life. Characters sharing experience and enables them to give each other support. In these books we find that writer present the real life situation of the people.

v Now, Let’s see that how Chetan Bhagat’s book: ‘One night @the Call Center’ is Self-help book? 

                In the book all six character, who work in one call center, and also every character suffer in their personal life. The themes involve the anxieties and insecurities of the rising Indian middle class including question about career inadequacy, marriage, family, conflict in changing India, and the relationship of the young Indian middle class to both executives and ordinary clients whom they serve in the united states.

                  There is an aspect of self-help in the book as the author invites readers two identify aspects of themselves and their lives that make them angry and that they would like to change. Here we see that all character present the real life situation, of the people. In the story we see that character of Shyam, who almost lost his love. Character of Radhika is in an unhappy marriage with demanding mother-in-law. Character of Military Uncle, who wants to talk to his grandson. Character of Mr.Bakshi, who boss of the call center, all hate them because of their cruel and somehow sadist behavior.

                  So here we see that all character suffer in their life. Also these all problems we find in our real life and also in the society. With help of the type of book we find solution of the problem. Chetan Bhagat’s present the real life situation of the people and how they all manage the life.

Here the author has tried to portray the world of the call centers. Book presents the post-modern phenomena. In this book we find that every character suffers in different problem, but then all they all live and fight with their situation. They all struggle in different way. Chetan Bhagat show the realty of people’s life and they all live in their life.

        In chetan Bhagat all book we see that he give one activity on one page, this page shows the self-help book most important Characteristics.

        In One Night @ the Call Center he gives activity like this:

        Before you begin this book, I have a small request. Right here, not down three things. Write down something that

1)  You fear,

2)  Makes you angry and

3)  You don’t like about yourself.

        Be honest, and write something that is meaningful to you.

                                      Do not think too much about why I am asking you to do this just do it.

                        One thing I Fear:

                                                                    

                            One thing about that makes me angry:

                                                                          

                           One thing I do not like about myself.

                                                                             

    Okay, now forget about this exercise and enjoy the story.

                       Here we see that Chetan Bhagat gives one small exercise, in this exercise he ask some question, and that three question about our personal thing. All three question about our own self. He ask like our fear, when we angry and do not like about our self. So these all things present that Chetan Bhagat saw that our self.

                        Also in Chetan Bhagat all book we see the Prologue and Epilogue. In One Night @ the Call Center in epilogue we see one line like:

               “It is true thought; we all have a dark side – something we don’t like about ourselves, Something that makes us angry and something we want to change about ourselves. The difference is how we choose to face it. Here Chetan Bhagat connects to us with all character, and say that how we handle this types of situation in our life, that depend on our self.   

                        One more thing in One Night @ the Call center that is God episode means when all character in one problem that time God call them. God call them is also turning point of the story. God call them and that time every ask to god how our life change and what we do. That time god gives them answer like this:

            ‘The inner call,’ God said.  

‘The inner call’? Everyone said in unison.

    Yes, the little voice inside that wants to talk to you.

            Here we see that Chetan Bhagat try to say that how we solve the our problem with only our self. In book ahead we read the conversation of god and all character and we find that everyone know that how they solve their problem. But no one knew that, because of they all never listen their inner voice.

        Episode of god that saw that we need only know about our self. Not ignore to our inner voice. Whenever we all in some problem that time we try to listen our self, what we want? And how we choose the right way. In the last we see that all character find their solution because now they all know how to face the problem and choose the right way of our life.

       We also need to listen our inner voice and face the problem and then get a solution of the problem.

vConclusion:      

     Characteristics of Self-help books, these all find in Chetan Bhagat book One Night @ the Call Center. We see that how Chetan Bhagat present the people life situation. In  the story we see that all character suffer in their life. Many problems in their life. But then they all live in the life.