A Postcolonial Reading of E.

M Forster's A Passage To India

A Dissertation submitted to the CMS College, Kottayam, (Autonomous)

(Affiliated to Mahatma Gandhi University)

In partial fulfilment for the award of the degree of

Bachelor of Arts in English Language and Literature

By

Feba Sanu

Reg. No. 181101311

Supervising Teacher

Mr. Ditto Prasad

Assistant Professor

Dept. of English

CMS College, Kottayam (Autonomous)

July 2021
 Declaration

I, Feba Sanu do hereby declare that the dissertation entitled Postcolonial Reading of E.M

Forster's A Passage to India is a bonafide work carried out by me under the guidance of Mr

Ditto Prasad, Assistant Professor, Department of English, CMS College, Kottayam, Kerala

and that no part of it has formed the basis for the award of any other degree to the best of my

knowledge and belief.

Kottayam Feba Sanu

July 2021 UPRN: 181101311

 Certificate

This is to clarify that the dissertation entitled Postcolonial Reading of E.M Forster’s A

Passage to India submitted to CMS College, Kottayam, Kerala, in partial fulfilment of the

requirements for the Degree of Bachelor of Arts in English Language and Literature, is a

record of bonafide research carried out by Feba Sanu, Reg No:181101311, final year B. An

English student of the department of English, CMS College, Kottayam, Kerala under my

supervision and guidance.

Ms Cinny Rachel Mathew Mr Ditto Prasad

Head of the Department Assistant Professor

Department of English Department of English

CMS College (Autonomous) CMS College(Autonomous)

Kottayam Kottayam

July 2021
 Acknowledgement

I take this opportunity to acknowledge the valuable assistance extended for me from various

quarters during the preparation of the dissertation entitled Postcolonial Reading of E.M

Foerster's A Passage to India.

First of all, I thank God almighty due to whose blessings, I was able to complete this

dissertation successfully.

I extend my sincere gratitude to Mr Ditto Prasad for his valuable guidance and support for

the completion of my thesis.

I express my gratitude to Ms Cinny Rachel Mathew, Head of the Department of English,

CMS College, Kottayam and Dr Varghese C Joshua, Principal, CMS College, Kottayam, for

the cooperation they have extended to me in carrying out the project.

I wish to extend my sincere thanks to all other faculty members in the department for their

guidance.

I would like to convey my gratitude to my family, friends and teachers for their generous

encouragement, help and support. I express my gratitude to all who have influenced me in the

task of preparing and submitting this dissertation.

Feba Sanu
 Abstract

A Passage to India written by Edward Morgan Forster is based on the historical context of

India where the country is under colonial rules. The brutality of colonisers and the human

relationship are the important themes discussed in the novel. This project aims to detect the

postcolonial elements, cultural differences and racial differences between colonisers and

colonised natives in the novel.

The story takes place in an Indian city named Chandrapore. Dr Aziz, the protagonist of the

novel, is an Indian doctor who becomes a friend of a British professor named Fielding.

Through Fielding, he gets acquainted with two British women, Mrs Moore and Miss Adela

Quested. Their plan to visit the Marabar caves which are situated near the city was a

significant event that later led to so many mishappenings and problems. A Mysterious event

happens in the cave and Aziz gets arrested for assaulting Adela. The trial of Aziz based on

Adela's statement made explosions inside both British and Indian society. That trial became a

fight between natives and Britishers. Fielding takes the side of Aziz and his fight for giving

justice to Aziz is a significant event that happened in the novel. During the final trial, Adela

changed his previous statement and confessed the innocence of Aziz. After the release of

Aziz from jail Fielding and Aziz get separated due to some misunderstandings. Two years

later both of them reunite in Mau, a Hindu town and they become aware that the Britishers

and Indians cannot be friends until India gets its independence.

The project titled A Postcolonial Reading of E.M Forster's A Passage to India tries to

study the postcolonial elements of the novel and critical analysis based on postcolonial

theory. The project includes an introduction to postcolonial theories and theorists, the

postcolonial analysis of the novel and a conclusion. The novel was analysed based on

postcolonial theories and terms by different theorists such as Edward Said, Frantz Fanon,
Spivak and Homi. K.Bhabha. It also tries to point out the instances which can prove

postcolonial themes of the novel. The project concludes with the differences shown by E.M

Forster's work from other colonial discourses of the twentieth century.

 Contents

Title Page no.

Introduction 1

Postcolonial Elements in E.M Forster’s A Passage to India 11

Conclusion 22

Works Cited 24
 Sanu 1

Introduction

In this project, E.M Forster's A Passage to India will be analysed based on postcolonialism.

It also tries to detect the elements such as cultural differences, racial inequalities and the

politics that are discussed in the novel. A Passage to India is Forster's last and best novel

which is filled with modernist features like a paradox, Irony, scepticism, multiple ideological

viewpoints etc. The novel takes place in a city named Chandrapore, on the bank of the river

Ganges. It was written during a period in which India is completely withering under British

rule. The tension between natives and British also play a major role in the novel. It was

divided into three parts and based upon the relationship between a native Doctor named Aziz,

British Professor Fieldings and a young English woman named Adela Quested. Through their

relationship, the author was trying to discuss the social differences between colonisers and

colonised.

Edward Morgan Forster, the prominent British novelist, essayist and literary critic was

born on January 1, 1879, in London, England. He was raised by his mother after the death of

his father in his childhood. He started his education at Tonbridge school and continued his

college education at King's College, Cambridge. Education from Cambridge helped him to

improve his personal views and knowledge. It also positively influences his career as a writer.

After his college education, he committed himself to writing.

His writings were more in a free and colloquial style. In his earlier works, he gives more

importance to paganism and most of the works are closely related to the life of middle-class

people. Howard's End was the first famous work by Forster. This novel also shows his

interest in Mediterranean paganism. A passage to India was also one of the major books

written by him. He wrote this book based on his experience acquired from world war l. The

raw materials for this novel were developed through his travelling in India during that time.
 Sanu 2

He was a member of the literary 'Bloomsbury set'. During the 1930s he became a public

figure who represented the liberal conscience. He was elected as the first president of the

National Council for Civil Liberties in 1934 and in 1939 he became a member of the lord

chancellor's committee on defamatory libel.

At the time of the second world war also he was one of the central figures due to his essay

Two Cheers for Democracy. He also advocates the importance of individual and personal

freedom. In 1946 king's college offered him an honorary fellowship. He becomes a lovable

and respected figure in society during his life in Cambridge. He refused a knighthood in 1949

and said that 'I seem to be a great man'. The incredible novelist of the twentieth century died

on June 7, 1970, due to a stroke and was cremated in Coventry's crematorium.

Postcolonialism is the field of study that deals with the impacts of European colonisation on

the colonised people and the reaction of colonised people against colonisation. Colonisation

by European countries such as Britain, Spain, Portuguese etc was started in the 18th century

through their explorations to other parts of the world. This exploration later became the

means to acquire more wealth from other countries. It became more economical and later on

those economical interests changed to grab more power.

The word postcolonialism can be written in two ways. one is with a hyphen

(post-colonialism) and the second one is without a hyphen (postcolonialism). The word with

the hyphen indicates the exact period after colonisation and the word which has no hyphen

stands for specific theoretical orientation with a diverse range of interests. Postcolonialism is

not something that only talks about the situations after colonisation. It is the response of

colonised people during and after colonisation. The struggles and problems that they faced

under colonisers and how they reacted is the major aspect of postcolonialism. Through their

writings, they started to attack imperialism imposed by those colonies.

 Sanu 3

Postcolonialism is not a theory that only discussed their sufferings under colonisers but also

illustrated the view of colonies about the eastern world. They also dealt with how western

colonisers handled the 'third world' countries and their literature. We can't say postcolonial

theory comes after colonisation because colonisation is still going on in the world in different

aspects. It can be said as an umbrella term for many problems faced by the colonised people.

The ideas such as exoticism, hegemony, hybridity, identity crisis etc can be considered as the

result of colonisation.

Colonisers are majorly aimed at acquiring wealth. To reach their supreme goal they started

to grab the power. Not only imposing their power on countries geographically but also

culturally, mentally and politically. They consider language as the first step to reach that

ultimate goal. They started to replace the indigenous language with their language. Later on,

they started to justify imperialism through their colonial discourses. Colonial discourses are

the writings that are written from the perspective of colonisers. They showed the colonised

people as 'exotic' or 'other'. They give the colonised people the title of uncivilised brutal

people. Postcolonialism started to attack these colonial discourses through the writings.

Postcolonialism stands not only for political decolonisation but also for the decolonisation of

the mind. For attaining political and mental decolonisation they started to give importance to

nationalism.

Edward Said, Frantz Fanon, Homi Bhabha, Gayatri Spivak etc are the major figures that

come under postcolonial theory. Edward Said was considered the founding father of

postcolonialism through his book orientalism.

 Sanu 4

Edward Wadie Said, the American professor and cultural critic was born on November 1,

1935, in Jerusalem. He was considered one of the outspoken proponents of postcolonialism.

The book Orientalism was published in 1978 as the best-known work by Said.

Orientalism primarily deals with the impact of colonialism and westerners' perception of

colonial countries, especially about the eastern part of the world. The crucial argument that he

tries to put forward was how westerners see themselves as 'superior' and easterners as

'inferior ' or 'other'. According to him, colonialism particularly took advantage of colonised

people and exploited their resources. But at the same time, he considered these colonial

powers as a leading path for colonised communities to become more modern. Colonisers see

the 'orient ' with some stereotypical beliefs. He says through his book that colonialism was

still dominant in the world in different forms.

Orientalism is the thought about the orient by comparing it with the occident. He also used

anthropological methodology to support his argument about this orient and occident. He

argues that orientalism is formed from the supremacy of one culture(occident) over the

other(orient). Orient stands for the eastern part of the world, especially Asia. According to

him, knowledge about the orient is not acquired from the people but the cultural aspects. The

west is more concerned about some unknown culture than individuals. West was the one who

constructed and propagated the idea of the orient to attain their needs. Those ideas do not

stand for the real orient. All the knowledge about the orient is only the result of manipulation

and domination of the occident. Those fabricated notions about the orient are still prominent.

Frantz Fanon was another major theorist who stood for anti-colonial thoughts. He was born

in 1925 in Martinique. He started his career by writing political essays and plays. He was one

of the well known postcolonial theorists and activists. His major books are Black Skins, White

Masks(1952) and The wretched of the Earth(1961). He fought against the French government

in the matter of Algerian colonisation. He died in 1961, December 6 due to Leukaemia.

 Sanu 5

He tried to analyse the psychological effects of colonialism on both colonised and

colonisers. In his psychological study, he states that due to colonisation the natives developed

an inferiority complex through their efforts to be as white as possible. They started to adopt

the culture, values, language, religion etc of the colonisers. The inferiority complex that

developed from these efforts made them more violent and in his opinion, this violent

behaviour will make decolonisation more aggressive.

Black Skins, White Masks is his first book and it mainly deals with his personal experience

as a black intellect in the world of white men. The book is about the challenges and the

problems he faced from white superior society. Another famous book, The wretched of the

Earth dealt with the importance of national literature and national culture. Through this book,

he tries to propagate an idea of a utopian world that is completely different and new from the

existing world. His thoughts and theories about postcolonialism were also an influence on

theorists like Homi K Bhabha and Edward Said.

Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak, an Indian academician and theorist who was also a

distinguished personality in postcolonial theories was born on February 24, 1942, in Calcutta.

She completed her education mainly at the University of Cambridge and Cornell University.

She was a distinguished feminist, Marxist, postcolonial theorist and a major proponent of

deconstruction. Her first notable work is the translator's preface of Derrida's Of

Grammatology.

The significant theory of Spivak was the concept of the subaltern. Subaltern indicates the

social group or classes who are placed in the margins of society. It is also a military term that

stands for 'of lower rank'.

The essay was written by Spivak, Can Subaltern Speak discusses the marginalised people

who have no voice in their society and how the western culture sees other cultures. She uses

the example of 'sati the book to express the westerners view on the culture of others. She also
 Sanu 6

questions the gender difference that prevailed in society. She considers the knowledge given

to the orient by the accident like any other goods that come from the west to colonised

countries. In the essay, she also applies Marxist theory to say about the leftists and their

attitude towards subalterns.

In the concluding part of the essay, Spivak says that the subaltern can't speak. She gives

further reasons to support that statement. In the case of marginalised people, their resistance

or voice against anything didn't get any importance or support from society. All those voices

coming from them are oppressed by the elite class like their oppressed lives.

Homi K Bhaba is another theorist who provides so many terms and theories related to

postcolonial theory. He was born on November 1, 1949, in Mumbai. He graduated from the

University of Mumbai and completed his post-graduation at Oxford University. Hybridity,

ambivalence, cultural differences, mimicry etc are the most famous ideologies put forward by

him.

Hybridity is the central idea that goes hand in hand with post-colonialism. It is the

transcultural forms that were created through colonisation. Hybridisation can be seen in many

forms such as linguistic, religious, racial political etc. In postcolonial discourse, turbidity is

used to indicate cross-cultural exchange. Through hybridity, he was trying to expose the

inequality inside power relations.

Mimicry and ambivalence are the other prominent ideas by Bhabha. Mimicry is the term

used to refer to the relationship between colonies and colonised. This concept was introduced

by him in his essay Of Mimicry and Man. He talks about the mimicking of colonised people.

Colonised people always try to mimic the culture, language, values etc of the colonisers.

According to him, this mimicry is a threat to the people because in this process of adopting

the colony's culture or values they are only trying to copy them. Here this mimicry is one

copying another who has power in their hands to attain the power that is enjoyed by those
 Sanu 7

ruling classes. By doing this they are avoiding or neglecting their culture and try to suppress

the feeling of who they are.

Ambivalence is the next significant concept that Bhabha tries to describe in the colonial

discourses. Ambivalence in colonisation is the mixture of attraction and repulsion towards the

colonies by colonised people. For colonizers, it is a negative aspect because it is an idea that

negatively affects their supreme authority. According to him, almost all colonial discourses

are ambivalent.

Critical analysis of the novel - A Passage To India is a novel written by Edward Morgan

Forster. The novel talks about the life of people who are from different spheres, the

relationship they shared and the political conflicts they faced in colonial India. The novel is

divided into three parts; Mosque, Caves and Temple. The novel begins with the image of a

small Indian city named Chandrapore which is situated on the banks of the river Ganges. In

the initial chapter Forster gives a vast description of the town. We can see the differences that

are prevalent between the Britishers and Indians from the beginning itself.

The first part of the novel is the Mosque, which starts with the image of a house of an

Indian named Hamidullah. Aziz, the protagonist of the novel, was having his dinner with

Hamidullah and some of his friends. During this time he was summoned by Mr Callender, the

chief surgeon. He goes to the house of Mr Callender in the middle of the dinner but Mr

Callender goes out without saying the reason why he called Aziz. This ignorant behaviour of

the English man made him furious. He visits the Mosque on his way home. There he met

with an old English woman named Mrs Moore and yelled at her for not removing her shoes

before entering the Mosque but in reality, she already removed her shoes before entering the

Mosque. Aziz felt guilty about yelling at her without any reason. They started talking and
 Sanu 8

from this first meeting itself, both of them felt attachment. Aziz escorts her to the club after

that.

In the club, Mrs Moore meets Adela Quested who was the travelling companion of Moore.

Adela came to India with a lot of expectations. She asked the other English women in the

club about India and told them that she wanted to see the 'Real India'. Mr Turton arranges a

bridge party where both Britishers and Indians are invited for Adela. But Indians feel

suspicious about the invitation because according to them the Britishers wouldn't behave so

nicely without any ulterior motive. Adela and Mrs Moore expected to see the 'Real India' they

wanted to see but for them, the party was a failure. At the party, both of them meet Mr

Fielding, a British man who teaches in the government college. He invited them to have tea

with him and they accepted the invitation.

Fielding also invites Aziz to tea with Adela, Mrs Moore and Professor Godbole. Aziz,

Adela and Godbole talked about Marabar caves and Fielding takes MRS.Moore to see the

college. Ronny, The District Magistrate and the son of Mrs Moore who was also expected to

marry Adela came to Fielding's house. He scolded Fielding for leaving Adela alone in the

room with two Indians. After all that Fielding and Aziz decided to take Mrs Moore and Adela

to Marabar Caves. After returning from Fieldings' house Adela shows her disagreement to

marry Ronny but after some rethinkings and mishappenings, she accepts the proposal of

Ronny.

The second part of the story, that is the caves, started from the point where Aziz planned the

journey to Marabar Caves. All of them arrived at the railway station on time except Fielding

and Godbole. Both of them missed the train due to the prayers held in the house of Godbole.

Aziz is compelled to take the journey in the absence of Fielding and Godbole. They reached

the caves in time and decided to explore the cave. But the echo and darkness of the cave

made Mrs Moore uncomfortable and she decided to stay outside the caves. Adela, Aziz and a
 Sanu 9

guide entered the cave. Adela talked about the misconception she had about Indian men and

marriage with Aziz. After a brief conversation, Aziz entered into a cave to smoke. He came

back from the cave to find Adela but Adela was not there. Fielding also reached the caves and

both of them searched inside and outside the cave for Adela but they didn't get any

information. Both of them came back to Chandrapore without Adela. But Aziz's coming back

to Chandrapore becomes more chaotic when he is arrested by the police for assaulting Adela.

Fielding tried to convince the British officials that Aziz was not the culprit. The Collector

replied to him that if an Indian and British come together that will lead to disaster and said to

him that it was the same thing that happened in this case too. Fielding tried to prove the

innocence of Aziz and he tried to meet Adela. But the officials did not allow him to do so. All

the Britishers except Fielding and Mrs Moore accused Aziz of all the problems. Mrs Moore

was certain about Aziz's innocence. She also talked to Adela about it. All this chaos made

Mrs Moore disturbed and decided to go back to England before the trials. On her way back to

England she passed away.

At the time of the court trials, Adela admitted his mistakes and said to the judge that it was

her misunderstanding. Adela's confession made the English people furious and they

abandoned her in the court. The court released Aziz based on Adela's confession. After this

Ronny cancelled his engagement with Adela. Fielding allowed Adela to stay in the garden

house. But this kind gesture led to so many misunderstandings between him and Aziz. After

some days both Adela and Fielding went back to England.

The third part of the novel, Temple, talks about things after some years. Aziz was portrayed

as the chief surgeon in a Hindhu town named Mau. After all these years Fielding came back

to India with his wife Stella and her brother Ralph. Fielding and Aziz met each other during

the festival of 'Janmashtami in Mau. Aziz again misunderstood Fielding by believing that he

married Adela. This misunderstanding was caused by the common surname both Adela and
 Sanu 10

Stella shared. Fielding clear that by saying that he didn't marry Adela, Stella was her

half-sister. After this, they watched the festival by travelling in boats. Before going back from

Mau, Fielding goes on a horseback ride with Aziz and asks him about the possibility of

remaining as friends. They also argued about the relationship between the British and India.

Aziz told Fielding that their friendship is only possible if there is no difference between

Britishers and Indians and it is not possible to be friends until India becomes independent

from British rule.

 Sanu 11

Postcolonial Elements in E.M Foster’s A Passage to India

Colonial and Postcolonial literature is entirely different from other literary works. They are

the byproducts of changes. In the case of colonisation, one country is completely oppressed

by another country. That oppression can be seen in every field such as culture, religion, food,

daily lives etc. Colonisers are the one who controls everything that the natives have. They are

the ones who decide how the natives want to live. Natives are compelled to live in a way the

colonisers wanted them to be. The relationship between colonies and colonised people are

closely related to master-slave relations. Slaves do everything based on the likes and dislikes

of their masters. They don't have any other choices. The same is found in the case of

colonisation. Natives are compelled to change their religion, culture etc. In the eyes of

colonies, they are the 'inferior other' or ''savages'' who have no values. E.M Forster in his

novel A Passage To India also talks about such a society that suffocated in the clasps of

Britishers. But at the same time, he also tries to make a good relationship between both

colonisers and colonised characters.

The novel is based on the British colonisation or in other words 'The British Abroad' by

presenting the life and experiences of colonised people under British rule. A Passage To India

talks about the colonised India under British Raj. The novel tries to make a bridge between

both the colonisers and natives but it fails. Racial tension and the effect of imperialism is the

major part of the novel. The problems caused due to differences in race, caste, religion and

misunderstandings also have a significant role.

In the novel, we can see two entirely different Britishers. One group of people believes

themselves superior and consider the natives as something inferior and the second group is

the one who considers themselves as the same as the natives. Characters like Mr Turton,
 Sanu 12

Ronny are some of the characters who come in the first category and Professor Fielding, Mrs

Moore are the ones who come in the second group.

The novel discusses several postcolonial aspects such as racism, mystification, otherness

etc. The novel consists of three parts. First is the Mosque, second is Caves and the third is

Temple. The first part of the novel starts with the description of the city of Chandrapore, we

can see two types of description. The first one is the barbarous images of the city where

natives live and the attractive images of the city where the English people live.

''The streets are mean, the temples ineffective and though a few houses exist they are

hidden away in gardens and down alleys whose filth deters all but guests[...]in the

bazaars there is no painting and scarcely any craving.The very wood seems made of

mud,inhabitants mud moving”(5).

The city is portrayed as something 'abased' and 'monotonous'. Everything in the city is

shown as underdeveloped and ugly. There is the second world where the 'houses of Eurasians'

stand. They are shown as much better and superior to the natives. We can see a different place

''a city of garden with tropical pleasant washed by the noble river'’(6)

The description of the city itself indicates the inferiority prevailed between the people.

The discussion of native characters Hamidullah, Muhammed Ali, Dr Aziz about the

possibility of friendship between the British people and Indians itself explains the

socio-cultural differences that prevailed between them. Hamidullah says about the insult he

faced from Ronny and also added that the ' red-nosed boy was a quite nice boy' when he first

came here but 'the others have got hold of him. In this 'the others' are the anglo Indian people.

''They come out intending to be a gentleman and are told it will not do''(9)

The Bridge party is one of the crucial events where we can see the superiority of the west

more clearly. Mr Turton was the one who planned the party for the newly arrived Ms Adela

Quested when she insisted on seeing the 'real India'. The anglo Indians consider the native
 Sanu 13

Indians as some vicious creatures. In the club, the group of Anglo Indian ladies talked about

the natives to Adela and Mrs Moore. They said to them that,

“Natives don't respect one anymore after meeting one[...] He can go where he likes as

long as he doesn't come near me. They give me the creeps[...]they are full of virtues

and we don't”(23-24)

According to those English ladies, the natives are some type of horrible creatures and they

see them as ugly and inferior to them.

The Bridge party is simply an attempt to build up a relationship between both east and west.

But the educated natives are not ready to accept the invitation. They saw the invitation

suspiciously. The discriminatory nature of Britishers can also be seen in this instance where

Mr Turton says that ''we must exclude someone from our gathering or we shall be left with

nothing”(34) They did this event to build up a good relationship but in between that attempt

also showed their superiority and controlling nature. Their superior behaviour of colonies can

also be seen in the dialogue by Turton '' You are superior to everyone in India except one or

two of the rain”(38). These words also reveal the prejudiced mind and 'otherness' notion of

Britishers about the natives.

Throughout the novel, these Britishers watch Indians with a stereotypical notion. They are

not considered as individuals instead of that the Indians are considered as a whole group.

They are considered as people with no morals or values. The instance where Adela says about

the experience they faced from Bhattacharya and family also gives the idea that all the

Indians are careless and they don't stand for the promises they made. In the novel, India is

portrayed as a ''muddle'' in several instances. This is also one of the suitable examples for the

stereotypical view of Britishers. India is assumed as 'muddle' or 'mysterious' and Indians as

filthy. Fielding is one of the Britishers who has a sympathetic feeling for Indians but he says
 Sanu 14

that India is a muddle.''Aziz and I know well that India is a muddle ''.This itself indicates the

westerner's notion about India as a place full of superstitions.

Representations of Marabar caves indicate some type of mystery. It is depicted as something

'dubious'. The echo that is present around the Marabar caves also stands for such a suspicious

notion. We can see the image of muddled India from the beginning where ''wood seems made

of mud, the inhabitants of mud moving''. But this picture of muddle gradually changes when

it comes to westerners. The sky around the place where westerners live is more clear.

Everything there is more attractive. This difference can also be seen in the part where Adela

goes back to Europe. The changes that happened in the atmosphere in Egypt is an example.

''The clear sands, heaped in the earth side of the canal, to wipe off everything difficult

and equivocal and even port said, loaded pure and charming in the light of rose grey

morning'’(265).

Adela says about it as the 'Mediterranean clarity'. This reflects the dark mythical muddled

figure of the east that was changed into more clearer and attractive images when travelling to

the west.

Racialism is a novel that can be seen in many portions. Racialism is the difference between

human beings. It is separation. We can see such separation in the case of east and west. From

the beginning itself, we can see the distinct worlds. The description of the city, the bridge

party conducted by Britishers, the opinion of natives about the relationship and attitude of

English people towards etc displays two different worlds.

The incident that happened in the Marabar caves is one of the turning points in the novel.

Ms Adela was assaulted in Marabar caves and everyone accused Dr Aziz of it. The basic

reason behind the accusation was only because he was an Indian. According to the

westerners, Indians are exotic and brutal. Entire officials say the same about Aziz except for

Mr Fielding and Mrs Moore. The district superintendent of police, Mr McBryde questions Dr
 Sanu 15

Aziz about the event. He also has a preoccupied notion about Indians or the east.''All

unfortunate natives are criminals in heart for the simple reason that they leave south of

latitude 30'’.He called it a theory about the climatic zone. Simply, it implies that the people of

the east are criminals and cruel as compared to westerners. The collector's opinion on the

relationship between Indians and English people is also significant.

''Twenty-five years seemed to fill the waiting room with their staleness and

generosity and during these twenty-five years I have never known anything but a

disaster when English people and Indians attempt to initiate socially'’(153).

This also portrays Indians as full of 'ungenerous' and 'stale'.The novel ends with such a note

of separation. It ends with a question ''why can't we be friends now?'' And the answer was,

“no, not yet''. That is, there is a 'gap' between both worlds. Society didn't allow them to fill

that gap.

The difference can be seen in the time where Mrs Adela regretted accusing Aziz. When she

gave the statement supporting him on the court, she didn't get anything more from Indians

except 'some garland from students'. Adela's gesture is said as cold justice and honestly.

''Her behaviour rested on cold justice and honesty[...] Truth is not truth in that exciting

land until they go with kindness and more kindness again[...]though it comes from her

heart, it did not include her heart'’(230).

This is the comment given by Indian on Adela's gesture. She corrected herself but Indians are

not seen as something reasonable. The difference between both Indians and English people is

so big that it can't be filled. The novel also discusses the difference between religion that is

Hinduism and Christianity apart from the social and political differences. Professor Godbole

is the representative of the Hindu community and Mrs Moore stands for Christianity.
 Sanu 16

Edward Said's Orientalism is one of the key subjects that deal in the novel. Forster used the

same word when Aziz met Mrs Moore for the first time. He called her friend because of her

attitude towards Indians and India.

The voice of subalterns is another concerning fact that is communicated in the novel. The

voiceless subaltern can be seen in the occasion where Aziz was summoned to Major

Callender's office in the middle of his meal but Callender left the house one hour ago without

giving the reason for calling him. Here Aziz was not able to question that because he is a

native and his voice has no value in front of the superior colonisers. We can see many other

instances where the voice of colonised people face oppression. The incident Aziz faces when

the two ladies from Callender's house take away his cycle without asking them. He was

compelled to be silent because of the power those colonists have.

The concept of mimicry also plays a key role in the novel. The term gained its popularity in

postcolonial studies through the work of Homi K Baba(2009). Frantz Fanon also used the

term in his work ''Black Skins and White Masks''. He talks about the Africans who try to

speak in the European language by avoiding the African inflexions accentscent. Bhabha

defined assimilation of European religion, education, literature, and cultural activities by

locals in the image of their European masters. Bhabha believed that native subjects

Anglicized and Europeanized themselves to be more like their white master. The ultimate

dominance of the colonized by the colonizer is what Bhabha and Fanon are referring to.

Forster talks about this nature of mimicry through many characters. We can see the

protagonist Aziz himself trying to copy the values, languages and dressing style of Britishers

to become one among them. His disagreement about marrying a woman who he never met

before also shows his inclination towards western cultures. Ronny, Mrs Moore's son also

speaks about the mimicking nature of natives by saying that;'' European costumes had lighted
 Sanu 17

like leprosy''. Mimicry makes the men inappropriate to fit in the western culture and the

native culture.

E. M Forster himself says about the novel that "the book is not about politics, though it the

political aspect of that caught the general public and made it sell. It is something wider than

politics, it is more about the human relationship and race"(Colmer156). But as a reader, we

cannot see those human relationships as the central idea of the novel. In the novel, we can see

the political tensions between the colonists and the colonised people. It also portrays the

struggle of the characters who are attempting to understand and experience another culture

outside their society. We can see that struggle in every character, especially in the case of

Aziz and Adela. The effect produced by imperialism on the human values and character

under British rule and the impact of British imperialism on a colonised society can be said as

some major themes of the novel. The depiction of conflicts that were undergone by the

Anglo-Indian society and native Indians due to the differences in race, religion, culture can

also be considered as the central idea that the novel wants to propagate. Aziz is a character

who has the traits of both Occidental and oriental cultures. At the same time, he doesn't

belong to either of them. This creates some kind of incompleteness in his mind. The

incompleteness Aziz feels is mainly due to the difference in those elements.

The writer's attempts to build a bridge between the two cultures, British and Indian, plays a

vital role in the work. But most of those attempts fail. The bridge party that Mr Turton

arranged for Adela can be seen as one of the failed endeavours. Through that party, Forster is

trying to unify both the cultures but the Britishers approach the idea of the bridge party

ignorantly and the natives contemplate it suspiciously. The preoccupied notions both of the

group have about others and the problems that are created due to these diverted notions create

so many misunderstandings among them. The Britishers always approach Indians with

stereotypical beliefs. They saw Indians as exotic, vulgar etc. The repeated use of the word
 Sanu 18

'muddle' to represent the Indians and India can also be seen as part of these stereotypical

notions that they have. Apart from the word muddle, the novel also contains direct evidence

of those stereotypical notions. For example, the collector says that the Indians are 'stale' and

'ungenerous'. That statement itself shows the preoccupied notions every Englishmen has

about Indians.

At the starting of the novel, we can see the interest that Mrs Moore and Adela express to

see the "Real India" but when they got the opportunity to explore the real India they refused

to see that. They are not able to adopt the image of 'Real India'. The accusations that Aziz

faced due to the incident that happened in the Marabar cave implies the differences that

prevailed between the natives and colonists. Most of the Britishers except Fielding and Mrs

Moore believe in the words of Adela and they didn't even try to think about the possibility of

Aziz being innocent. Every character seems to be reverted to their own culture. But it can't be

seen in the characterisation of Fielding. Fielding boldly stands against his people and tries to

prove the innocence of Aziz. At the end of the trials, Adela also shows such a character. She

gives a statement favourable to Aziz and that proves the discriminant thoughts of Britishers.

The novel provides a lot of possible interpretations to the critics. One interpretive trend that

has persisted since its publication is based on the assumption about the inability to fully and

accurately reflect realities that are inherited in India or Indians. One of the famous critics

Benita Parry assumes that the representation of the Marabar cave in the novel indicates the

difficulties he faced in depicting the "archaic mind" of an "aspect of India' that is "altogether

darker and more remote'' than even "the ancient night" of "Aryan India".This propensity to

interpret the crisis of representation in the novel as a reflection of an elusive ontological truth

about India or Indians has continued into more modern criticism. Edward Said states about

Forster's India that "it is so affectionately personal and so morosely metaphysical that his

view of Indians as a nation contending for sovereignty with Britain is not politically very
 Sanu 19

serious or respectful"(Said 246).By representing India without any political terms he

successfully neutralizes Indian nationalism as a political force. Apart from the representation

of India, recent critics also talk about binary oppositions.

There are so many novels and other types of literary works written during the colonisation

of India based on both Indian culture and British imperialism. We also have books that are

written from the point of view of Indians and the British point of view. Most of these works

are written favouring a particular side. but when closely looking into Forster's novel we can't

see such an inclination or favouritism to any side. The novel is more focused on the human

relationship than the feeling of nationalism or political scenario. Another feature of the novel

that we can see is the use of satire. The novel contains so many satiric features. But at the

same time, the writer didn't use any of the cultures or values that were followed by Indians or

Britishers as the weapon to make sarcastic comments or caricatured any of them. The

prominent post-colonial critic Edward Said commented that "A Passage to India did not

subvert typical views of colonisation and colonial rule in India, it also fell short of outright

condemning either nationalist movements in India or imperialism''(Said 246). Many critics

including Said did many misinterpretations of the book. Said once interpreted and criticised

the novel by considering Mr Fielding as the protagonist but the actual protagonist who leads

the novel is the Indian doctor Aziz. According to Said, Forster tried to draw a line that

separates the Muslims and Hindu. he says that Forster uses this separation to connect the

values of Islam with western culture and the Hindu's as erotic Indians. This can be seen in

different parts of the novel. The Hindu rituals and the attitude of Hindus that are depicted in

the novel give such an idea to the readers. Another major point put forward by him is the

feeling of 'otherness' that is prevalent both in the westerners and Indians. The broken

friendship and the misunderstandings between Fielding and Aziz at the end of the novel also

take as to such an otherness feeling contained in both cultures. Said was one among the
 Sanu 20

postcolonial critics who helped to see canonical English literature from a postcolonial point

of view. He considered E M Forster as one of the canonical English writers who wrote about

colonialism without any preoccupied notion. At the same time, Said was also a critic who

negatively read the novel several times. This happened because his criticism was based on a

particular political position, mostly by theories like Marxism, liberalism etc.

A Passage To India contains two points of view. One is the view assured by Forster's

experiences from the war and post-war scenario and the second one is based on the pre-war

scenario. Most of the characters depicted in the novel have a second point of view, that is the

pre-war scenario. Many critics criticize the work according to the period discussed in the

novel. One among them was Rose Macaulay who said that the novel talks about a specific

period(1912) of India. But the truth behind it is Forster took almost 12 years to complete the

novel. He wrote and rewrote it several times after his every visit to India. So we can't

interpret the novel based on any specific year.

Some of the critics also pointed out that the anglo Indian representation in the novel seems

unfair. Forster himself replied to that comment by saying that "if I saw more of anglo-India at

work, I should, of course, realize its difficulties and loyalties better and write about it from

within well and good. But you forget Indiana to be paid. I should begin to write about

Indians from without"(Furbank 129-130). This statement itself proves how he excludes

authentic knowledge about India and the realIties. This type of representation is directly

questioned by Said by saying that "how can one study other cultures and people's from a

libertarian or non-repressive and non-manipulative perspective?".If knowledge is from one's

perspective then it cannot be said as non-repressive or non-manipulative.

Many Indian critics such as Nirad C Chaudhary, Shahen, G K Das etc considered A

Passage To India as a milestone of British understanding about India. According to them, it is

the first work by a European which represents the culture and value of India somewhat close
 Sanu 21

to reality. The Indianness is explained in the light of actual India rather than the mere

description of European preoccupied notions. Most of them evaluate Forster as a European

who truly knows the pulse of India and Indian tradition. Every one of them agreed to the fact

that there is a unity between Britishers and Indians in the work of Forster. They also try to

analyse novels from various perspectives. V.A Shahane was a critic who analysed and

criticised the novel based on its religious conflicts and descriptions. G.K Das, M.K Naik,

Nirad C Chaudhary etc are some of the significant critics who criticised the work strictly on

its politics.
 Sanu 22

Conclusion

E.M Forster's A Passage To India is a literary and social link between the British and the

Indians. The novel both contributes to and rejects the concept of 'orientalism' at the same

time. Forster started to write the novel A Passage To India in 1912 and completed it in 1924.

During the first publication of the novel, many people protested against the novel especially

the Anglo-Indians because of its questioning nature of British imperialism. The novel also

shattered the ideas about British imperialism propagated by Kipling's The White Man's

Burden. In the poem, Kipling supports and justifies imperialism by claiming that Englishmen

are only trying to save the natives from their pathetic conditions and misery. Through the

novel, Forster completely knocked down this idea of imperial myth.

The novel talks about twentieth-century India where British colonialism was at its glorious

moment. A wide range of literature such as journals, letters, novels, short stories etc which

discusses British colonial rule and experiences under that rule were produced during this

time. This literature includes the works written by both colonised and colonisers. Most of the

writers who are from the western world described the presence of British or British roles as

holy missions which helps exotic and vulgar Indians to become more civilised. The people in

India were portrayed as exotic, lawless, irresponsible creatures. They wrote Indian culture as

something that needs protection and at the same time something that needs a change. All of

those works tried to justify the rule of the British and considered it as something that India

wanted for its good.

E.M.Forster's A Passage To India can be said as the turning point in the colonial discourse

which rejects the traditional British literary approach towards India. The novel stands out

from all other colonial discourses because of its heterogeneous nature and cross-cultural

relationship. The emphasis given to the Indian culture, religion etc is some of the most
 Sanu 23

significant features of the novel. The narration used in the novel also shows some differences

when compared with traditional western literature. The narration includes both the

perspective of Britishers and Indians. The novel also contains many records of cultural

misunderstandings and how Britishers misread Indian culture and Indians.

 Sanu 24

Work Cited

Forster, E.M, A Passage to India, edited by Oliver Stallybrass, Penguin Classics, Printed in

2005.

Said, Edward W. Culture and Imperialism (1993).

Said, Edward W. Orientalism(1991).

Fanon, Frantz and Charles L.Markmann. Black Skin, White Masks(1967).

Lowe, Lisa.Critical Terrains: French and British Orientalisms, Cornell University Press,

Ithaca; London, 1991, pp. 102–135. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/10.7591/j.ctt207g5rk.7.

White, Gertrude M. A Passage to India: Analysis and Revaluation. PMLA, vol. 68, no. 4,

1953, pp. 641–657. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/459789.

Armstrong, Paul B. Reading India: E. M. Forster and the Politics of Interpretation.

Twentieth-Century Literature, vol. 38, no. 4, 1992, pp. 365–385. JSTOR,

www.jstor.org/stable/441781.

Parry, Benita, The Politics of Representation in A Passage to India, ed. John Beer, London:

The Macmillan Press, 1985.

Colmer, John, E.M. Forster: The Personal Voice. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul,

1975.

Furbank,P.N,E.M Forster:A Life (vol.2),London,Secker(1977).

Forster, Edward Morgan (1879–1970).Oxford Dictionary of National

Biography,www.oxforddnb.com/view/10.1093/ref:odnb/9780198614128.001.0001/odnb-978

0198614128-e-33208.

Beer, John Bernard. E.M. Forster.Encyclopedia

Britannica,https://www.britannica.com/biography/E-M-Forster.

https://www.bl.uk/people/e-m-forster
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