Myth and History in the Selected Novels of Raja Rao, Salman Rushdie and

The term „fiction ‟ refers to the literature which describes the imaginary people or characters in imaginary event or situation while fact aims at presenting truth or reality. History and myth, like fact and fiction, have often been presented as opposites. When we define the word „Myth ‟ in colloquial terms, we often refer to an untrue story or anything that is opposed to reality. It can be defined in words of M. H. Abrams: Myth is one story in mythology- a system of hereditary stories which were once believed to be true by a particular cultural group, and which served to explain (in terms of the intentions and actions of deities and other supernatural beings) why the world is as it is and things happen as they do, to provide a rationale for social customs and observances and to establish the sanctions for the rules by which people conduct their lives. 1 Thus, „myth ‟ is understood as a traditional but unauthentic story or tale created by ancient sage and seers in order to interpret the nature of existence. The word „myth ‟ has been derived from the Greek word „Mythos ‟ which means „word ‟ or „story ‟ that has been rooted i