Explain how a postcolonial criticism would look in terms of Desai's Games at Twilight.

I think that there are several ways that a postcolonial
critique of Desai's work could look.  Fundamentally, it has to be presumed that this
game of hide and seek is a representation of something more.  In this light, one has to
embrace a Freudian or psychological view of reality whereby what one experiences as a
child has implications for the older world.  In this case, the game is a setting whereby
"the other," in the form of Ravi, seeks to be acknowledged by the ruling majority, in
this case the older brother, Raghu, and the older kids.  In this, there can be a
postcolonial construct established. The older kids and Raghu would represent the
dominant order in which Ravi and those who are disenfranchised seek acknowledgement and
recognition.  Ravi's internal belief that this is something he is going to be able to
receive from those in the position of power is something that exists in his mind, and it
struggles to be a reality.  The conclusion of the story is one whereby Ravi has to make
a conscious choice in recognizing that he will never receive the acknowledgement and
validation that he receives.  He ends up rejecting the ruling order and accepts his
condition.  In this, there can be an examination of the relationship between those who
are under the control of a ruling majority and struggle within that system to gain a
sense of acknowledgement and validation within such a system.