Language & Communication - Themes, Shantaram | Shantaram - Summary, Themes and Characters - Novels PDF Download

The Australian narrator, Lin, has a real knack for language, and it's a good thing. Shantaram takes place in India, Afghanistan, Australia, and all points in between. Whether he's picking up Hindi or Marathi in Mumbai, or trying to keep up with the Arabic words his Muslim friends use, or even figuring out what French and German expats are talking about in the bar, languages play a big role in the multicultural, international texture of the novel. This doesn't seem to cause any communication problems, though; on the contrary, Lin's ability to understand pretty much everyone he meets shows what a great communicator he is.

Chew on This

Try on an opinion or two, start a debate, or play the devil’s advocate.

By speaking Hindi and Marathi, Lin shows that he is not just a tourist in Bombay—none of the Lonely Planet guidebook stuff.

Lin believes that he has penetrated the native Indian world by learning a couple of the languages, but he has only scratched the surface of interpersonal communication. Capisce?