E. M. Forster's "Passage to India"

Paper Summary:

This paper explains that situations of racial and ethnic strife occurred long before the British colonization of India; however, the British presence created a worsened landscape. The paper relates that this stark realization of racism is played out in E. M. Forster's novel "Passage to India", especially within the symbolism of the Marabar Caves, which is the orient to the usurpers. The author points out that the trial of protagonist Aziz is an example of how such mystery feeds the minds of a fearful population, both native and white.

From the Paper:

"The foundations of the strife between the characters and the community in stark realization, during the only time in the novel when the "truth" is allowed to be heard is still evident, as many probably walked away from the incident and the trial with a clear sense of the mystery that surrounds the caves. No one is allowed to discover the whole truth, as to whom if anyone really attacked the white woman, or if it was simply the fear of the surroundings that rebuffed the young girl."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Dolin, Kieran. "Freedom, Uncertainty, and Diversity: A Passage to India as a Critique of Imperialist Law." Texas Studies in Literature and Language 36.3 (1994): 328-352.
• Forster E. M. A Passage to India. San Diego: Harcourt, Brace, and World, 1984.
• Gardner, Philip, ed. E.M. Forster: The Critical Heritage. London: Routledge, 1997.
• Paxton, Nancy L. Writing under the Raj: Gender, Race, and Rape in the British Colonial Imagination, 1830-1947. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 1999.
• Un-Disciplining Literature: Literature, Law, and Culture. Ed. Kostas Myrsiades and Linda Myrsiades. New York: Peter Lang, 1999.

More papers on E. M. Forster's "Passage to India":

• Book Review # 104598 : "Sexuality in "A Passage to India"
• Comparison Essay # 49249 : "A Passage to India"
• Analytical Essay # 67371 : "A Passage to India" and "Season of Migration to the North"

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