ABSTRACT
Petroleum is a transnational component that brings together ideas, concepts, people, products, and commodities from all over the world and, as a result, has had an effect on communities, cities, and ecosystems in various geographic regions. Despite being widely spread, the impact of oil on contemporary societies constitutes a hegemonic and dispersed global phenomena. Given that South Asians make up the largest oil diaspora in the Gulf Corporation Council (GCC), it is crucial to examine the effects of petro-capitalism on South Asia. This chapter aims to identify the sociocultural and political implications on Kerala society. Using contemporary petro-fiction writers from Kerala, such as Benyamin and Deepak Unnikrishnan, this chapter aims to trace the affective presence of oil in the everyday lives of people. Through a close reading of literary texts, this chapter argues that oil economies are constructing a new core and periphery through a continuous process of temporary movement. While the core is actively involved in the production of temporary proletariats and thrives on human caloric energy in addition to fossil energy, the periphery becomes intensely dependent on fossil capital and consequently proletarianized.
