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A Passage to India (Twentieth Century…
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A Passage to India (Twentieth Century Classics S.) (original 1924; edition 1989)

by E. M. Forester

MembersReviewsPopularityAverage ratingMentions
12,384142503 (3.76)606
In this hard-hitting novel, first published in 1924, the murky personal relationship between an Englishwoman and an Indian doctor mirrors the troubled politics of colonialism. Adela Quested and her fellow British travelers, eager to experience the "real" India, develop a friendship with the urbane Dr. Aziz. While on a group outing, Adela and Dr. Aziz visit the Marabar caves together. As they emerge, Adela accuses the doctor of assaulting her. While Adela never actually claims she was raped, the decisions she makes ostracize her from both her countrymen and the natives, setting off a complex chain of events that forever changes the lives of all involved. This intense and moving story asks the listener serious questions about preconceptions regarding race, sex, religion, and truth. A political and philosophical masterpiece.… (more)
Member:Teramis
Title:A Passage to India (Twentieth Century Classics S.)
Authors:E. M. Forester
Info:Penguin (1989), Paperback, 368 pages
Collections:Your library
Rating:***
Tags:India, historical fiction

Work Information

A Passage to India by E. M. Forster (1924)

  1. 60
    The Raj Quartet, Volume 1: The Jewel in the Crown; The Day of the Scorpion by Paul Scott (FemmeNoiresque)
    FemmeNoiresque: Scott's The Raj Quartet, and particularly the relationship between Daphne Manners and Hari Kumar in the first novel, The Jewel In The Crown, is a revisioning of the charge of rape made by Adela Quested to Dr Aziz. Race, class and empire are explored in the aftermath of this event, in WWII India.… (more)
  2. 50
    Where Angels Fear to Tread by E. M. Forster (li33ieg)
    li33ieg: Same author, different setting, same core themes
  3. 40
    Maurice: A Novel by E. M. Forster (li33ieg)
    li33ieg: The man is brilliant! One should read all of his books!
  4. 40
    The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver (lucyknows)
    lucyknows: You could use the theme of colonialism to pair The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver with Passage to India by E. M. Forster.
  5. 31
    The Jewel in the Crown by Paul Scott (Cecrow)
    Cecrow: These two novels bear close relationship in setting and circumstance.
  6. 10
    Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts (Booksloth)
  7. 10
    Major Pettigrew's Last Stand by Helen Simonson (kiwiflowa)
  8. 10
    Natural Opium: Some Travelers' Tales by Diane Johnson (Anonymous user)
  9. 00
    Hindoo Holiday: An Indian Journal by J. R. Ackerley (SomeGuyInVirginia)
  10. 00
    Slowly Down the Ganges by Eric Newby (John_Vaughan)
  11. 00
    Staying On by Paul Scott (KayCliff)
  12. 00
    The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy (WildMaggie)
  13. 34
    The Jewel in the Crown [1984 TV mini-series] by Christopher Morahan (li33ieg)
    li33ieg: Similar period and themes
  14. 01
    An Area of Darkness by V. S. Naipaul (zasmine)
    zasmine: Cross referenced by Naipaul in 'An area of Darkness'
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» See also 606 mentions

English (133)  Spanish (4)  French (2)  Dutch (2)  Hebrew (1)  Italian (1)  All languages (143)
Showing 1-5 of 133 (next | show all)
So, this white lady goes into a cave with this Indian guy and comes out accusing him of something that she's not sure really happened. And thusly we explore the crazy political and social dynamics between colony and colonizer. Many say this is Forster's best work, but I get so peeved at the white lady for not knowing what really happened in the cave that I have to take away stars. ( )
  LibrarianDest | Jan 3, 2024 |
Definitely a book written in a different era, an era where people read slowly and focussed on nuance. I understand why the other Forster book I read, A Room with a View, did not go well on audio. There are leaps between paragraphs that do not convey themselves well orally the way they can be detected visually on the page.
  LDVoorberg | Dec 24, 2023 |
Somehow I'd gotten the impression that A Passage to India was a departure from Forster's earlier novels. In subject matter, sure, but in all else this is a very Forsterian novel: sharply observed social commentary, lyrical prose, meditations on the human condition, and an almost mythic quality that is nevertheless grounded in the banal. Forster's novels are romantic, but they don't romanticize.

I'm glad I found myself reading this book in 2020. It's fundamentally a novel about nationalism, a topic I have formed Strong Opinions about. Actually maybe just one opinion, which Forster evidently shares. Please imagine, in place of this book, a tract titled "NATIONALISM" in 72-pt font, followed by one sentence: "FUCK THAT SHIT." (Forster phrases it more delicately.)

As a portrait of India and Indian people goes, I am not equipped to judge this novel. I think I can say it is a humane and openhearted effort. Certainly Forster's disdain for British culture does not lead him into the trap I expected, that of romanticizing the East. Instead, he attempts to be both empathetic and objective.

As far as objectivity goes, well. The text is littered with generalizations about Indians; some of these are the narrative's attempts at pointing out cultural differences, while others rise from the collective point-of-view of the colonizers. All that said, I expected this to be a novel written for the white gaze, and it's not quite that. Forster seems to be reaching toward an inclusive audience, whether or not he ever quite gets there.

I won't give away the plot, but I will say that this novel is set in British India at the turn of the 20th century and shows a British elite closing ranks in response to their tribal identity being threatened. The threat isn't some vast cultural divide between British and Indian people—the mutiny of 1857 is passing out of memory; the Indian elite is increasingly Westernized. To borrow an observation from Hannah Arendt, it's not necessarily difference that triggers xenophobia, but assimilation and the threat of social categories dissolving.

Meanwhile we have Dr. Aziz and his circle, acculturated Muslim Indians who are trying to invent a tribe of their own. Their definition of India keeps widening—Muslim identity becomes Indian pan-nationalism, which almost widens to human solidarity—but they, and we, can't quite reach across the gap.

And here's where this book gets really interesting, using the vocabulary of religion to imagine the (im)possibilities of a truly universal love. You could, in fact, write a very trite five-paragraph essay about how the second half of this book follows the structure of the Nativity story. I have no idea if Forster had this in mind; certainly he's not crass enough to explicitly compare the experiences Adele and Mrs. Morse have in the caves to an Annunciation. Nevertheless, this scene does take on a numinous quality. Encountering divinity is not a comfortable experience, threatening our belief that we are separate individuals in a structured universe. When the gods try to seize us, we flail.

This book won't enchant you with its memorable character studies or gripping plot, but something about the shape of Forster's novels is really compelling to me. I'm glad I read this one.
  raschneid | Dec 19, 2023 |
3.5/5 My feelings about this book were all over the place. Forster's writing is gorgeous as usual, but I had a difficult time caring about any of these characters, British or Indian. The motives behind the characters' actions were vague and noncommittal. The so-called exotic atmosphere was tainted--similar in a way to Joyce's “Araby“. I walked away unenlightened and depressed. ( )
  crabbyabbe | Oct 12, 2023 |
Profoundly dissatisfying, as it was intended. ( )
  emmby | Oct 4, 2023 |
Showing 1-5 of 133 (next | show all)

» Add other authors (31 possible)

Author nameRoleType of authorWork?Status
Forster, E. M.primary authorall editionsconfirmed
Adam, VikasNarratorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Burra, PeterIntroductionsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Campbell, AliCover artistsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Dastor, SamNarratorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Davidson, FrederickNarratorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Diaz, DavidCover artistsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Furbank, P. N.Introductionsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Magadini, ChristopherIllustratorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Mishra, PankajIntroductionsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Motti, AdrianaTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Nyman, VäinöTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Pigott-Smith, TimNarratorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Sanders, Scott RussellAfterwordsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Simpson, WilliamCover artistsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Stallybrass, OliverEditorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Wilby, JamesNarratorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed

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Dedication
To Syed Ross Masood and to the seventeen years of our friendship
First words
Except for the Marabar caves--and they are twenty miles off--the city of Chrandrapore presents nothing extraordinary.
The India described in A Passage to India no longer exists either politically or socially. (Prefatory Note)
Perhaps it is chance, more than any peculiar devotion, that determines a man in his choice of medium, when he finds himself possessed by an obscure impulse towards creation. (Introduction)
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"We must exclude someone from our gathering, or we shall be left with nothing."
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In this hard-hitting novel, first published in 1924, the murky personal relationship between an Englishwoman and an Indian doctor mirrors the troubled politics of colonialism. Adela Quested and her fellow British travelers, eager to experience the "real" India, develop a friendship with the urbane Dr. Aziz. While on a group outing, Adela and Dr. Aziz visit the Marabar caves together. As they emerge, Adela accuses the doctor of assaulting her. While Adela never actually claims she was raped, the decisions she makes ostracize her from both her countrymen and the natives, setting off a complex chain of events that forever changes the lives of all involved. This intense and moving story asks the listener serious questions about preconceptions regarding race, sex, religion, and truth. A political and philosophical masterpiece.

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Grottes de Marabar/Mrs Moore à la mosquée/et l'Inde des Anglais/(tiercelin)
British and native / In the dark of Marabar / Neighbours, yet distant

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Penguin Australia

2 editions of this book were published by Penguin Australia.

Editions: 014144116X, 0143566385

 

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