In the literary works Fire on the Mountain by Anita Desai and The Cripple and His Talismans by Anosh Irani, the main characters have chosen to isolate themselves from the world; mentally, physically, and socially. Nanda Kaul, the main character in Anita Desai's Fire on the Mountain, lives alone and feels it is the only way she can live. But when her great-grand daughter comes to visit, Nanda has a strange reaction towards the child's lack of interest and communication with her. The unnamed narrator and main character in The Cripple and His Talismans was once a rich playboy who loses his ar…
