Theme , symbol, imaginary in ‘A Passage to India’

Theme

COLONIALISM

On one level, A Passage to India is an in-depth description of daily life in India under British rule. The British “Raj” (its colonial empire in India) lasted from 1858 to 1947. The prevailing attitude behind colonialism was that of the “white man’s burden” (in Rudyard Kipling’s phrase)—that it was the moral duty of Europeans to “civilize” other nations. Thus the British saw their colonial rule over India as being for the Indians’ own good. Forster himself was British, but in the novel he is very critical of colonialism. He never goes so far as to advocate outright Indian rebellion, but he does show how the colonial system is inherently flawed. Forster portrays most of the British men working in India as at least well-meaning, although condescending and unoriginal, but their positions in the colonial system almost always push them towards becoming racist and harmful figures. This is played out most explicitly in the development of Ronny’s character. The British women, apart from Mrs. Moore and Adela, often seem less sympathetic than the men, to the point that even Turton blames their presence for the tensions with the Indians. The women don’t have the daily labor and interactions with Indians that the men do, but they are generally more racially hateful and condescending (and perhaps this is because they are usually so isolated from actual Indian society). Forster also shows how the colonial system makes the Indians hate and sometimes condescend to the British. The colonialists are by necessity in the role of “oppressor,” no matter how individually kind or open-minded they might be. This is best shown in the changes to Aziz’s character throughout the novel, as he goes from laughing at and befriending the English to actively hating them. Although Forster ultimately offers no concrete alternative to British colonialism, his overall message is that colonialism in India is a harmful system for both the British and the Indians. Friendships like that between Aziz and Fielding are a rare exception, not the rule, and even such friendships are all but destroyed or thwarted by the problems and tensions of colonialism.

 

“MUDDLES” AND MYSTERIES 

Throughout the novel Forster uses the words “muddle” and “mystery” as distinctive terms to describe India. A “muddle” implies chaos and meaningless mess, while a “mystery” suggests something confusing but with an underlying purpose or mystical plan. On the English side, Fielding sees India as a muddle, though a sympathetic one, while Mrs. Moore and Adela approach the country with a sense of mystery. Forster himself often uses “Orientalizing” terms to describe India, portraying it as a muddle that is unable to be understood or properly described by Westerners. For example, he describes India’s architecture and natural landscape as formless and primitive, while he sees European architecture and landscape as aesthetically pleasing and comforting. In this way Forster and his British characters, as outsiders, cannot help but view India as a muddle they can never comprehend, and one that—despite Forster’s critiques of colonialism—might benefit from Western “civilization” and reasoning. But Forster also shows that even the Indians themselves are unable to describe India’s essence, and they too are divided in their ideas of muddles and mysteries. The Muslim Aziz regards Hindu India as a primitive muddle of chaos, while he is comforted by the elegant mysteries of his own religion. Professor God bole, on the other hand, is a Hindu, and the main figure standing for the view of India as mystery. Hinduism is portrayed as a muddle of many gods and strange ceremonies, but there is also a mystery and plan behind it all—the meaning is in the chaos of life itself, and the unity of all things. These muddles and mysteries ultimately become externalized and symbolized in the scene at the Marabar Caves. Forster never clearly explains what happened to Adela, and so the whole incident is a kind of horrible muddle. Also in the caves, Adela and Mrs. Moore’s “mysterious” India is reduced to terrifying chaos in the echoing “boum” of the caves. A similar effect, though a more positive one, is achieved in the final scene, where Aziz and Fielding’s boats crash into each other near the Hindu festival. Ultimately Forster finds both muddles and mysteries necessary to properly encompass and comprehend India, as well as the universe itself.

FRIENDSHIP

Despite its strong political overtones, A Passage to India is also a deep psychological portrayal of different individuals. As Forster describes his characters’ inner lives and their interactions with each other, the subject of friendship becomes very important, as it is shown as the most powerful connection between two individuals apart from romantic love. This subject relates to Forster’s humanistic philosophy—which says that friendship, interpersonal kindness, and respect can be the greatest forces for good in the world—but in the novel, friendship must always struggle with cultural divides and the imbalance in power enforced by the colonial system. The book begins and ends with the subject of friendship between an Englishman and an Indian, and in both cases it concludes that such a friendship is almost impossible. Forster shows all the obstacles—race, culture, class, religion, and language—that stand in the way of meaningful friendships between Indians and the English, no matter an individual’s best intentions. The English view the Indians as inferior, while the Indians (including Aziz) view the English as both cruel oppressors and foolish foreigners. Towards the middle of the novel, however, Aziz’s growing friendships with both Mrs. Moore and Fielding seem to be an example of successful humanism, implying that if both parties can treat each other with respect, kindness, and open-mindedness, then even Englishmen and Indians can be friends, and British colonialism could become a beneficial system. After the experience in the Marabar Caves, however, Mrs. Moore ends up going mad and dying, and Fielding and Aziz’s friendship starts to fall apart. After Aziz’s trial, each man ends up returning to his own cultural circle. Fielding feels sympathetic to Adela, while Aziz lets his suspicions harden into a hatred of all the English. In the novel’s final scene the two men become reconciled just as they are about to part forever. They embrace while riding together, but then their horses separate and they are divided by the landscape itself, which seems to say “not yet.” Such friendship might be possible once India is free, but not yet in the colonial system. Thus Forster doesn’t let go of his humanistic ideals, but he does show how such ideals can be hindered by social systems and cultural divides.

 DIVISION VS. UNITY

Ideas of division and unity are important in A Passage to India in both a social and spiritual sense. The social and cultural divisions between English and Indians are clear, but India itself is also internally divided. The phrase “a hundred Indias” is used several times to describe the “muddle” of the country, where Hindus and Muslims are divided against each other and even among themselves. The best hope Forster proposes for this chaotic division lies in the idea of unity, particularly of the spiritual kind. Most of the novel’s main characters are Muslims or Christians, but the book’s final section focuses on the Hindu side of India, as introduced by the character of Professor Godbole. Hinduism has many gods and rituals, but certain aspects of it incline towards pantheism, which is the belief that all things are essentially one, and of a divine nature. Forster shows this sense of spiritual unity in several places, like the “liberal” Christians willing to accept monkeys into heaven, and Hindus like Godbole who try to accept even a wasp as divine. Mrs. Moore starts to feel dissatisfied with the “small-mindedness” of Christianity when she reaches India, and her character leans towards a Hindu kind of unity as she too feels connected to a wasp in her room. This kind of empathy and unity between living things is a positive force for Forster, and he implies that it may be the best hope for both friendship between individuals and peace between cultures. But he also shows how this oneness can be terrifying. This is best represented by the “boum” of the Marabar Caves. All sounds, whether spoken language or not, are reduced to “boum” in the caves’ echo. This lack of distinction between things terrifies Adela and ultimately drives Mrs. Moore mad, and even Godbole is unable to accept non-living things (like a stone) into his vision of universal oneness. The perfect realization of unity may be the chaos and void of the Marabar Caves, or it may be the love of God as in Hinduism—but either way Forster advocates for the constant striving for greater unity and empathy.

RACE AND CULTURE

Many observations about race and culture in colonial India are threaded throughout the novel. A Passage to India is in some ways a sort of ethnography, or an examination of the customs of different cultures. On the English side, many cultural forces affect the characters. Ronny is naturally goodhearted and sympathetic, but his “public school mindset” and the influence of his English peers compel him to become hardened and unkind to Indians. The other English expatriates view Adela as naïve for sympathizing with the Indians, and they even admit that they too felt the same at first before realizing the “truth.” Overall the pervading culture of the English in India is that one must adopt a racist, patronizing attitude to survive and thrive, and that one’s very Englishness makes one superior to the Indians. Forster also examines the English tendency to be rational without emotion, and what is perceived as the English lack of imagination. Forster gives equal time to analyzing Indian culture. On one level he portrays the many religions and cultures of the country, which are part of the reason India remains so internally divided. On the individual level, Aziz is the best-developed Indian character, and he too (like the English) is subject to cultural norms. Forster portrays the Indians as generally more emotional and imaginative than the English, with a tendency to let stray notions harden into solid beliefs without evidence. This “ethnography” then informs the novel’s other themes of division, friendship, and colonialism. Overall Forster shows that race and culture are forces that cannot be altogether avoided, no matter a person’s individual intentions. Forster gives the greatest importance to interpersonal human interaction and friendship, but he also recognizes the pervasive influence of larger social forces.

 

SYMBOLS

 

THE MARABAR CAVES

The Marabar Caves are a central aspect of the novel—a presence in the distance during the first section, the setting of the second section, and the shadow that looms over the third section. The caves represent an ancient, inhuman void, the more terrifying aspect of the universal oneness embraced by Hinduism. The caves themselves are domelike and pitch-black, with nothing beautiful or romantic about them. Inside, any sound—whether human speech or a fingernail scratching the wall—is reduced to a single echo that sounds like “boum.” This echo captures the essence of the Marabar Caves, as it shows the emptiness behind all human action. This is a kind of “unity” like that found in Hinduism, but it is a unity of chaos instead of one of love, as the caves seem almost alien and malicious, unfriendly to humans. Even the Indians of Chandrapore cannot act as real “guides” to them or explain them. While in the caves, Adela and Mrs. Moore both experience some frightening aspect of life that they had not considered before. Mrs. Moore sees the smallness and hollowness of her Christian faith, and succumbs to a kind of irritable apathy after seeing the void the caves represent. Adela, meanwhile, is confronted with the reality of her lack of feelings for Ronny and then the horror of her assault. The attack is never fully explained, so it almost becomes an embodiment of the darkness of the caves.

WASPS 

Wasps are mentioned occasionally throughout the novel, and their appearance signifies the theme of the oneness of all living things, especially in the Hindu vision of pantheism. The wasp associates Mrs. Moore with Hinduism for the first time when she watches one in her room and feels an appreciation and love for it. Years later, Professor Godbole thinks of both Mrs. Moore and the wasp when filled with religious ecstasy and love for all living things. The wasp generally represents the “lowest” of creatures that can be incorporated into the vision of oneness—Godbole tries to include a stone in his universal love, but cannot. Thus the wasp is also symbolic of the limits of the idea of unity, which is not a perfect solution, but still a hopeful one for India politically and for the characters’ internal struggles.