The British may have been more disorganized and chaotic in their quest for India than what initially meets the eye. A Passage to India delves into a British controlled town of India called Chandrapore. The clash of cultures is inevitable, but the British response is unexpected according to conventional views of the British rule.
It is interesting to compare the ideas of British rule over India in Kipling’s poem, “White Man’s Burden,” and Wilson’s anxious and chaotic arguments in, India Conquered: Britains Raj and the Chaos of Empire. I think both arguments here are accurate, however, the root in the difference between the two, is the scope at which one analyzes the situation. From a broad perspective as Britain in whole, one sees Kipling’s argument more prevalent. On the contrary, looking at Britain’s rule from the narrow scope of A Passage to India we see Wilsons argument clearly. Many characters, Mrs. Turton in particular, exemplifies the chaos and anxiousness associated with a mood of fear, self-interest, and a desire for glory that Wilson speaks of.
The fear between the British and the Indians, is a reoccurring theme that beats through the history of British rule over India. In 1857, the Indians revolted against the British in the Sepoy Rebellion, and in 1910, the British slaughtered a mass of Indians in what is called the Amritsar Massacre. These events enforce the mistrust, misunderstanding, and fear between the two groups. Mrs. Turton shows her fear towards the Indians when she explains, “a show of force will do no harm; it’s ridiculous to pretend they don’t hate us; do give up that farce.”(237) The fault in her argument, in regards to, the Indians hating the British is clearly rooted behind her hate towards the Indians. Hate is a direct feeling associated with fear. As many do in fear of something, she resorts to a “show of force” to extinguish those fears. She fears the Indians, as much as the Indian’s fear her, as elaborated in Azizs and Mahmoud Ali’s conversation in chapter 2.
It is clear that the British had very selfish monetary inclinations in their rule over India. They built vast railways to export goods, post offices, roads, and many other means for monetary gain. This idea continues down the pipe into the “fiercely guarded outposts of British sovereign power.”(Wilson) In chapter 2 of A passage to India, Mahmoud Ali explains to the group that “Mrs. Turton takes bribes.”(8) This is not the only problem here. Her self-interest comes to light as Mahmoud Ali further explains that she took a bribe in the form of a solid gold sewing machine, and did nothing for it in return.
As a superpower of the time period the British were extremely proud and anxious for glory. They conquered as much as they could, to extract goods, for the rise of the mother land, all in the name of “White Man’s Burden.” This idea is supported in A Passage to India when the British try everything in their power to “win” the case of Aziz and Adela. Mrs. Turton was not a big fan of Adela from the very beginning when she snootily says to her husband, “Miss Quested, what a name!”(26) When the situation in the caves comes up she is forced to back up Adela for the glory of Britain. However, they eventually “lose” the case, and Mrs. Turton turns her back to Adela because the glory of her country, through Adela, has been defeated. Mrs. Turton’s desire for glory is further supported when she explains, “Why, they ought to crawl from here to the caves on their hands and knees whenever an Englishwoman’s in sight, they oughtn’t to be spoken to, they ought to be spat at, they ought to be ground into the dust, we’ve been far to kind.”(240) It is apparent that by seeing the Indians crumble under the sheer force of the British would provide glory and pride to her.
Wilson hits the nail on the head when he claims that the British rule over India is marked by chaos and anxiousness. Though Kipling’s, “White Man’s Burden” is not far off by any means, I find Wilsons argument to be much more supported in A passage to India. Mrs. Turton is a prime example for Wilsons arguments as she is very much self-interested, desires glory, and fearful of the Indians.
* The hyperlinked quote in second paragraph, supports wilsons ideas that the British empire did not rule as centrally, or as efficiently as they made it out to be.
* Kipling’s, “The White Man’s Burden,” is a poem regarding the British ideology that it is their duty to fix the Indians to the British way of life. Contrary to my argument, this poem gives a more centralized view of the British agenda in India.
