Analysis of A Passage to India by Forster
Forster's novel A Passage to India portrays a colonial India under British rule, before its liberation. For convenience's sake, Western civilization has created an Other as counterpart to itself, and a set of characteristics to go with it. An "us versus them" attitude is exemplified in Forster's representation of The Other. Separation of the British and the Indian exists along cultural lines, specifically religious/spiritual differences. Savage or ungodly cultures were to be assimilated into or at the least governed by Christians, and converted. The separation between the English and the Indian occurs when the Christian assumes the Indians are an ungodly people, in need of spiritual salvation, a race below their own, and entirely unlike them. This was demonstrated historically by the dominance of supposedly inferior races by the Christians (English). Forster's Indians have a seemingly rugged outward appearance. They are a godless people insomuchas they do not believe in the Christian GOD, even though there are two religions, Hinduism and Muslimism, which thrive in India. This division of India's religions, as opposed to England's presumably unifying religion, separates England from India even moreso. Because the Indians do not believe in the Christian GOD, they are unrecognized as spiritual. Religion shapes, if not embodies characterization. The British are British because of their religion, i.e. Ronny Heaslop is who he is because he is a white Christian British male. How he is outwardly polished is a construct of his Christian upbringing. Ronny "approved of religion as long as it endorsed the National Anthem [of England]." (p. 65) His purpose, as was the purpose of English colonialists, was constructed by his Christian beliefs. If Ronny were not English (and for this paper's purposes, English is specifically and continually linked with Christianity) he would not exist as a character. He is almost a caricature of what is English, and is represented wholly by the standards and beliefs of that culture. In contrast, Aziz would not exists if he were not Indian, representing wholly the standards and beliefs of that culture. Forster implies that the division, the Other, is what makes an individual who they are. Spirituality is integral to that existence.
The Indian people are further represented in the English's eyes by the description of India itself. The city, presumably a mark of civilization, is a rotting, festering thing that no English colonialist would consider urbane;
The English took their land and disrupted their traditional systems of trade and agriculture. As a result, the power of native religious leaders was corrupted. The Indians we...
It is a beautiful day in the area modernly known as southern Mississippi. The birds are chirping, the plants are growing, and the sun is shining. The day starts off like any other in this Native American community. The women began to tend the fields and the men are preparing for the next hunt. Suddenly, many strange figures appear at the entrance of the village. These figures appear to be men but these men are far different from any Native Americans they have seen. In the beginning, these men appear to be friendly and even exchange gifts with the local groups. Not for long these relationships began to change these white men began to disrespect the local chiefs and began to dominate the lands. Interaction of this kind was common along the Native Americans and the European settlers, however, it is not exact with every Native American group.
The extend of most American’s knowledge of early America is of Columbus’ discovery of America for Europe in 1492 and the landing of the Mayflower in Plymouth in 1620. This was true of A Voyage Long and Strange author, Tony Horwitz. Horwitz felt as if there were pieces missing in his picture of early America and set out on a journey that spanned from Canada to the Dominican Republic. The novel starts out with a prologue of Horwitz talking about his own reasons for wanting to learn more of early America and then is broken into three sections Discovery, Conquest, and Settlement. Each section discusses another period in early American history starting with first contact in Vinland and ending with the landing in Plymouth.
India had a company which set up trading spots around India and this company was the British East India Company. At first the British did not interfere as much, but after the Industrial Revolution things changed. Things changed because when the Industrial Revolution happened there were needs for natural resources. Since India had various natural resources the British saw India as the most profitable country for them and for this India was called the Jewels in the Crown. The Industrial Revolution had a negative effect on India because the British became more involved in their country. When the British changed the Indians referred to them as the knife with sugar because at first the British were just there in India to help and not interfere, but then the British gained control of them and took their natural resources away. The changes that occurred were that British a more powerful country controlled India a weaker country. When the British gained control over India the Indians were forced to produce raw material for the British. One Negative thing that happened was that the British gained control over India politically and economically leaving the Indians no control. Another Negative thing that happened was that the British focused on just making cash crops instead of food and this lead to famine in India. The people of India were divided into four groups called verna. Before the Indians were classified based on their wealth and power, but during imperialism it was based on their occupation. The Indians did experience assimilation during imperialism because their culture was ignored by the British since they didn’t understand their religion and culture. The British believed that “Indian institutions were well adapted to Indian needs and that the new British governments should try to restore an 'ancient constitution', which had been subverted during the upheavals of the 18th
“It is generally recognized that the extension of British power was dependent on the willing participation of Indians, either as allies, or by those employed as revenue collectors, merchants and sepoys” (Johnson). According to this view, if the British had great power in India, it then follows that many Indians either helped or at least did not hinder this expansion. The colonizers realized that to maintain a certain level of peace with the natives, they would have to interfere as little as possible in the lives of the people. “British rule had, until the 1810s generally integrated itself with Indian modes of government. Many British officials had become ‘Indianised’, adopting Indian dress and custom” (Johnson). However, it wasn’t always smooth sailing. There were many British reformers who sought to change India. Educational reformers believed that India’s “only opportunity for salvation…was if the Indians could learn the English language and adopt English customs through an English education” (Johnson). Furthermore, religion was also something imposed on the Indians since “there is no question that Christian missions frequently rode on the coattails of European colonialism, and it is equally well accepted that missions have not merely benefited from colonization but have often aided in both establishing and stabilizing colonial regimes” (Roberts). Legal reform was also carried out: “The Indian Penal Code (1860), for example, was based on British law” (Johnson). So, British colonization in India was more about taking over culture and customs, whereas in Australia it was more about taking over land and
In Thomas King’s novel, The Inconvenient Indian, the story of North America’s history is discussed from his original viewpoint and perspective. In his first chapter, “Forgetting Columbus,” he voices his opinion about how he feel towards the way white people have told America’s history and portraying it as an adventurous tale of triumph, strength and freedom. King hunts down the evidence needed to reveal more facts on the controversial relationship between the whites and natives and how it has affected the culture of Americans. Mainly untangling the confusion between the idea of Native Americans being savages and whites constantly reigning in glory. He exposes the truth about how Native Americans were treated and how their actual stories were
What is pictured when someone thinks of India? Perhaps the manufactured goods, or diverse people. The truth is, however, that until India gained its independence in 1947, it was ruled entirely by British government. The British then proceeded to “improve” India, driving it into a deeper hole. Although British Imperialism in India had some positive effects, the overall political, economic, and social impacts were negative.
The British considered Indian civilization to be inferior and implemented their western ways, overriding ancient Indian customs. Nevertheless, it cannot be denied that British imperialism in India resulted in both positive as well as negative reforms in political, economic and social aspects of its new colony. To begin with, one can observe that the British colonizers did indeed improve Indian civilization by developing means of communication and transport. They built a great number of bridges, over 40,000 miles of railway and paving an astounding 70,000 miles of road (Doc. 4. The adage of the adage.
In the early settling of this country, when the English first encountered the Indians they viewed them as uncivilized beasts. ?The first English colonizers in the New World found that the Indians reminded them of the Irish? (Takaki, 28). To the English the Irish represented a lower and uncivilized class of people, a group that the English considered to be beneath them. This association was the beginning of creating an ?Indian Race.? The Indians were different then Irish in they had a reddish tint to their skin. This was important because this lead further to their separation by their color. The Indians were further looked at as...
Political and social reform in India was achieved as a result of the European political principles brought to India by the British. Indians were Anglicised, and the British ideal for an Indian was to be "Indians in blood and colour, but English in tastes, opinions and intellect", as put by one British legislator (Rich, 214, 1979). This Western education inevitably led to well-read Indians encountering European principles such as human rights, freedoms of speech, travel and association, and liberalism.
what an alteration there would be if they were brought under Anglo-Saxon influence.” It quickly becomes apparent that those who were integral to the modern colonization of South Asia, Southeast Asia, the Middle East and Africa were not doing so out of the goodness of their hearts. Without delving too deeply into the actual statistics of the good done for these “barbaric” cultures, it may seem as if colonization was a positive occurrence. In all actuality, however, the ulterior motives and imperialistic attitudes of the key players in colonization brought much more harm than gain. The benefits of colonialism were almost entirely one-sided at the unfortunate loss of the other side’s culture, inhabitants, resources and overall way of life.
In Forster's A Passage to India we recognize certain elements that can be seen as Orientalist. According to Edward Said's definitions of Orientalism I tried to point out some of these Orientalist elements. However, there are many more examples in the novel which would also fit in the Orientalist frames set by Said.
Nicholas B. Dirks. (2011). Castes of Mind: Colonialism and the Making of Modern India. Princeton University Press
In this short story the protagonist is a newly married Indian woman who is attending a party with her husband’s western friends. Throughout the short story the reader senses her anxiety of being introduced to people who are not as conservative as her. “She longed for the sanctuary of the walled home from which marriage had promised an adventurous escape. Each restricting rule became a guiding stone marking a safe path through unknown dangers” ("The First Party"). In this quote, the narrator explains how the Indian woman did not feel comfortable or at ease with this new world she had been introduced too. She fiend to be back home but because of her tie that she made to this man through marriage she is in her mind, stuck with him. In addition to her anxiety of being with non-conservative woman, who drank, smoked, dressed provocatively, and had painted nails, the protagonist grew angry in her own head. “She had been so sure of herself in her contempt and her anger, confident of the righteousness of her beliefs, deep-based on generations-old foundations” ("The First Party"). Is this the way that the Indian people reacted to British colonialism? The things that western people found normal, was this disrespectful to the Indian people. The protagonist surely thought it was and was certain that her anger was not misplaced. She felt as her anger was a sign of her strong faith. She came to the realization that her husband was someone who would challenge her beliefs but above all she knew that her beliefs state that her life must be one with his (“The First Party”). This realization must be heartbreaking, to realize that one 's comfort is not found in their life partner. The protagonist was raised to believe that her life must be one with her husband, that she is
Crane, Ralph J. Inventing India: A History of India in English Language Fiction. London: Macmillan, 1992.