Paul Cobley defines narrative as a sequence – a chronological order of events that lines up to

create meaning. But since a narrative tends to become tedious when it follows the sequence
of A to B, Cobley suggests -through the example of Gerald’s Game by Stephen King- how a
digression is necessary for a narrative. This is further elaborated through space and time;
where space, as conceptualized by Brooks and Barthes, works as detours (or ‘hermeneutic
code’) that are structured in such a way that small delays are woven into the narrative so that
they arouse curiosity in the progression of events. In order to handle these delays, time
becomes important. Cobley acknowledges that humans have no control over the flow of time
since its ‘objective’ but that they seek it through narrative, thus making it ‘subjective’. Hence,
Cobley elaborates on Julian Jayne's views in the quest for meaning in a narrative. Jaynes’
expounds on the phenomenon of narratization and how humans connect it with their very
essence of identity. They create an ‘analog I’ and then connect it with their narrative.
This is portrayed in an exemplary fashion through Shashi Tharoor’s writing style, especially
in his fiction. He is known for using historical backgrounds, magical realism, myths etc. to
enhance it but also to subvert it. The question of identity in his work characterizes his milieu
of work and his protagonists are known to go through several obstacles, meet several people,
and gain a sense of identity through them. Jaynes’ ‘analog I’ is resonated throughout his work
as his protagonists are both - a product of their past, culture and society and they justify their
actions through their narrative of ‘I’. Thus, through the protagonist’s narratization they
confirm their sense of identity as well as create it. Though their journey might not be
universal, through several contextual and cultural differences, the quest for identity is
something that creates meaning in the narrative.