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Amazon.co.uk Review
What really happened in the Marabar caves? This is the mystery at the heart of E.M. Forster's 1924 novel, A Passage to India, the puzzle that sets in motion events highlighting an even larger question: can an Englishman and an Indian be friends?
Written while England was still firmly in control of India, Forster's novel follows the fortunes of three English newcomers to India--Miss Adela Quested, Mrs Moore and Cyril Fielding--and the Indian, Dr Aziz, with whom they cross destinies. The idea of true friendship between the races was a radical one in Forster's time, and he makes it abundantly clear that it was not one that either side welcomed.
Despite their countrymen's disapproval, Miss Quested, Mrs Moore and Mr Fielding are all eager to meet Indians, and in Dr Aziz they find a perfect companion: educated, westernized, and open- minded. Slowly, the friendships ripen, especially between Aziz and Fielding. Having created the possibility of esteem based on trust and mutual affection, Forster then subjects it to the crucible of racial hatred: during a visit to the famed Marabar caves, Miss Quested accuses Dr Aziz of sexually assaulting her, but then later recants during the frenzied trial that follows. Under such circumstances, affection proves to be a very fragile commodity indeed.
Arguably Forster's greatest novel, A Passage to India paints a troubling portrait of colonialism at its worst, and is remarkable for the complexity of its characters. Here the personal becomes the political, and in the breach between Aziz and his English "friends", Forster foreshadows the eventual end of the Raj. --Alix Wilber --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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When Adela and her elderly companion Mrs Moore arrive in the Indian town of Chandrapore, they quickly feel trapped by its insular and prejudiced British community. Determined to explore the 'real India', they seek the guidance of the charming and mercurial Dr Aziz, a cultivated Indian Muslim. But a mysterious incident occurs while they are exploring the Marabar caves with Aziz, and the well-respected doctor soon finds himself at the centre of a scandal that rouses violent passions among both the British and their Indian subjects. A masterly portrait of a society in the grip of imperialism, A Passage to India compellingly depicts the fate of individuals caught between the great political and cultural conflicts of the modern world.
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Except for the Marabar Caves - and they are twenty miles off - the city of Chandrapore presents nothing extraordinary. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
Except for the Marabar Caves - and they are twenty miles off - the city of Chandrapore presents nothing extraordinary. Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Almost a century after the book's publication the most crucial problems it discussed are as current as they were during Forster's life. The impossibility of communicating across the divide of culture, religion, and race, seems to be even more alive then when he saw it. The value of the novel lies not so much in representing it but in the fact that Forster offers a way out - personal contact.
The story takes us to India of the 1920s - we follow the path of a young Englishwoman who goes to marry a British official but wants to know "the real India". This she never achieves but she gets to know something by far more important - herself. Her inept attempts at connecting with India and Indians make other characters of the novel learn more about themselves, force them out of safe shells in which they lived. The lesson is painful but at least for some of the characters opens the door to a better life.
There is little chance people will suddenly like Muslims, Pakistanis, gays, lesbians, Moroccans, Turkish, Kurds etc etc - there is a chance (a very slim chance, Forster would be quick to add) that a specific American and a specific Muslim, a Turk and a Kurd, an Israeli and a Palestinian can be friends. The world may not want it, the people that surround them may not want it but the results depend on us alone. If we do not try we only have ourselves to blame.
The story takes us to India of the 1920s - we follow the path of a young Englishwoman who goes to marry a British official but wants to know "the real India". This she never achieves but she gets to know something by far more important - herself. Her inept attempts at connecting with India and Indians make other characters of the novel learn more about themselves, force them out of safe shells in which they lived. The lesson is painful but at least for some of the characters opens the door to a better life.
There is little chance people will suddenly like Muslims, Pakistanis, gays, lesbians, Moroccans, Turkish, Kurds etc etc - there is a chance (a very slim chance, Forster would be quick to add) that a specific American and a specific Muslim, a Turk and a Kurd, an Israeli and a Palestinian can be friends. The world may not want it, the people that surround them may not want it but the results depend on us alone. If we do not try we only have ourselves to blame.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
When I first picked up Forster's classic novel, I wasn't sure what to expect. As a modern, 21st century reader, a book about colonial India didn't seem particularly appealing. However, A Passage to India exceeded all my expectations. The characters were both believeable and convincing but what is most striking are Forster's descriptions of setting. He brings India to life so that we not only see what it was like to live there, we almost hear and smell it too! I know that Forster's book has its flaws and is not always completely accurate but it is still one of the most important novels concerning the conflict between rulers and natives around. Read it!
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
The novel is highly regarded by critics as a portrait of socio-religious-political ethnicity in the latter days of the raj, written by an author with a profound interest in Indian culture and a liberal's view of the ruling British attitude. Forster spent several years in India gleaning an insight into the beliefs and mores of Hinduism and Islam, and the clashing cultures of East and West which form the backbone of the novel. In addition he packs the novel with additional issues. And `there's the rub'; he has so much to say that it's done at the expense of a plot subordinated to philosophical badinage and tit for tat conversations which occasionally border on the trite.
The novel begins brightly enough, with a lyrical account of Mrs Moore's meeting with Dr Aziz in the moonlight mosque. The two central female characters, Mrs Moore and her protégée, plain naive and neurotic Adela Quested have just arrived in India to fulfil Moore's hopes that Adela will marry her magistrate son Ronny. Adela, a virtuoso of the faux-pas, innocently tramples on the natives' sensibilities, culminating in the famous court case where she makes a wrongful accusation against Dr Aziz only to retract it, causing a scandal which rocks all levels of society both Indian and British. These events account for the first and second part of the novel, which are not without some lighter moments, and despite the minimal plot are entertaining and in the main very readable. The author's tendency to overwork pronouns and omit proper nouns is a little trying when the reader has to backtrack to find out who's speaking. And there is the missed opportunity to inject more atmosphere into the visit to the caves which have such an effect on the two English ladies.
However, towards the end of Part two with the departure of Mrs Moore, Adela and Cyril Fielding the main British protagonists, the novel loses momentum and we are left with the Indians bickering among themselves. Fielding's return, having married Moore's daughter does little to restore the interest, and the reader is left wishing more had been made of a disappointing finale.
The appendices which run to thirty three pages contain a lot of esoteric dissertation that may be of interest to specialists and four short rather matter of fact essays by Forster.
The novel begins brightly enough, with a lyrical account of Mrs Moore's meeting with Dr Aziz in the moonlight mosque. The two central female characters, Mrs Moore and her protégée, plain naive and neurotic Adela Quested have just arrived in India to fulfil Moore's hopes that Adela will marry her magistrate son Ronny. Adela, a virtuoso of the faux-pas, innocently tramples on the natives' sensibilities, culminating in the famous court case where she makes a wrongful accusation against Dr Aziz only to retract it, causing a scandal which rocks all levels of society both Indian and British. These events account for the first and second part of the novel, which are not without some lighter moments, and despite the minimal plot are entertaining and in the main very readable. The author's tendency to overwork pronouns and omit proper nouns is a little trying when the reader has to backtrack to find out who's speaking. And there is the missed opportunity to inject more atmosphere into the visit to the caves which have such an effect on the two English ladies.
However, towards the end of Part two with the departure of Mrs Moore, Adela and Cyril Fielding the main British protagonists, the novel loses momentum and we are left with the Indians bickering among themselves. Fielding's return, having married Moore's daughter does little to restore the interest, and the reader is left wishing more had been made of a disappointing finale.
The appendices which run to thirty three pages contain a lot of esoteric dissertation that may be of interest to specialists and four short rather matter of fact essays by Forster.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Beautiful descriptive writing but average plotline
This is one of the classic reads, i'm currently trawling through them and picked this up as it is short, and dare I say it, I judged the book by it's cover. Read more
Published 2 months ago by Mrs. J. E. Gray
Must read
I had to read this for uni and I wasn't looking forward to it at all, but it was a great book which was well worth he read. Read more
Published 16 months ago by kt1982
Well-deserved place in the canon
Wonderful fictional account of east meets west and all of the cultural misunderstandings involved. Gave me a new insight into south asian history and culture.
Published 21 months ago by John Keats
E.M.Forster's A Passage to India
This beautifully crafted book is a materpiece in its exploration and mockery of colonial India. Both the narrative and the story itself, subtly expose the hypocrisy and endemic... Read more
Published on 3 May 2009 by Lindsay Simmonds
East and West Can Never Meet?
Almost a century after the book's publication the most crucial problems it discusses are as current as they were during Forster's life. Read more
Published on 2 April 2009 by Ford Ka
Heavy going
While the themes of this novel (largely racism and prejudice) are, sadly, apparently timeless, I didn't feel this novel had aged particularly well. Read more
Published on 17 Aug 2008 by daisyrock
East and West Can Never Meet?
Almost a century after the book's publication the most crucial problems it discussed are as current as they were during Forster's life. Read more
Published on 19 Jan 2008 by Ford Ka
Passage to India
E.M Forster's classic novel is a savage critique of English colonial attitudes towards the Indian 'subject race' during the British Raj. Read more
Published on 8 Aug 2007 by Demob Happy
Passage to India
E.M Forster's classic novel is a savage critique of English colonial attitudes towards the Indian 'subject race' during the British Raj. Read more
Published on 5 Aug 2007 by Demob Happy
Really Difficult Read
I found this incredibly heavy going. The story emerges at a snails pace and is only after about half way through that I felt any interest in the story or the characters. Read more
Published on 17 Feb 2007 by CJ
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