Setting

Physical setting

The events described in the short story “A Horse and Two Goats” by R. K. Narayan take place in India, at the entrance to Kiritam village (p. 184, ll. 2-3). Given that the old man speaks Tamil (p. 185, l. 3), the village is most likely somewhere in Tamil Nadu, one of the Indian states. The village is described at the beginning of the story:

The village was so small that it found no mention in any atlas. On the local survey map it was indicated by a tiny dot. It was called Kiritam, which in the Tamil language means ‘crown’ (…) – a rather gorgeous conception, readily explained by any local enthusiast convinced beyond doubt that this part of India is the apex of the world. (p. 183, ll. 1-6)

Although the village is small and modest, t...