Ayn Rand's The Man-Eater Of Malgudi

One’s ego can be a strength, but also a great weakness. Without a healthy ego, one is likely to have low levels of self-esteem, but once bruised, it can take ages to heal. At the beginning of the novel The Man-Eater of Malgudi, Nataraj is a character that displays a healthy ego, but eventually, like his blue curtain in the printing press, it is destroyed because of the choices he makes. He is a husband, father, and friend that is respectful, religious and kind, but he also enjoys being the power holder in situations. In the first couple of chapters of the novel, Nataraj's ego is fueled by the knowledge that he makes his wife and son happy, the village people’s admiration of his parlor, the power that his position grants him over Sastri, and the fact that his business flourishes while his competitor struggles. One by one, his choices turn the causes of his pride into the

He lives comfortably with his loving wife and dear son, Babu. His son, " went to Albert Mission School and felt adequately supplied with toys, books, sweets, and other odds and ends that he fancied from time to time " (1). Fulfilling his son’s every want and need allows Nataraj to feel that he is the perfect father every child wishes for. When it comes to the matter of treating his wife well, Nataraj not only provides her with necessities, but also things that her heart desires. For example, "[his] wife gave herself a new silk sari, glittering with lace, every Deepavali, not to mention the ones acquired for no particular reason at other times" (1). Nataraj believes that it is not normal to discuss his problems with his wife but at one point he "[becomes] abnormal and [turns] to her in [his] desperation" (1). After she gives him satisfying guidance, part of Nataraj's ego was bruised because he realized that, much to his dismay, females are very much capable, more so than him, of coming up with solutions to