Amazon.com 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?
"It is impossible here," an Indian character tells his friend, Dr. Aziz, early in the novel.
"They come out intending to be gentlemen, and are told it will not do.... Why, I remember when Turton came out first. It was in another part of the Province. You fellows will not believe me, but I have driven with Turton in his carriage--Turton! Oh yes, we were once quite intimate. He has shown me his stamp collection.
"He would expect you to steal it now. Turton! But red-nosed boy will be far worse than Turton!
"I do not think so. They all become exactly the same, not worse, not better. I give any Englishman two years, be he Turton or Burton. It is only the difference of a letter. And I give any Englishwoman six months. All are exactly alike."
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. If Aziz's friend, Hamidullah, believed it impossible, the British representatives of the Raj were equally discouraging.
"Why, the kindest thing one can do to a native is to let him die," said Mrs. Callendar.
"How if he went to heaven?" asked Mrs. Moore, with a gentle but crooked smile.
"He can go where he likes as long as he doesn't come near me. They give me the creeps."
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, 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 limns 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 the Paperback edition.
From School Library Journal
Grade 9 Up-By E.M. Forster. Narrated by Flo Gibson.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Audio Cassette edition.
發表於2024-12-23
A Passage to India 2024 pdf epub mobi 電子書 下載
《印度之行》講的是英殖民時期印度的故事,作者又是同情印度的知識分子,所以我在讀這本書之前就有瞭先入為主的想法,以為這會是一本反殖民主義的小說。實際讀下來,雖說確實有反殖民的成分,《印度之行》主要應該歸類為結構精巧的心理小說。因為政治性較弱,反而讓小說的藝術...
評分I find this reading experience quite disturbing, for no one in this novel is adorable enough. Aziz is certainly the star of the book, his words, especially when he is disturbed, are quite sincere and sharp; however, most of the times he can make one so irri...
評分“最漫長的旅程”——《印度之行》讀書筆記 福斯特(1879-1970)同喬伊斯、勞倫斯和伍爾夫被稱為20世紀英國最偉大的小說傢。主要作品有《天使懼於涉足之地》(1905)、《最漫長的旅程》(1907)、《看得見風景的房間》(1908)、《霍華德彆業》(1910)、《印度之行》(1924)...
評分E. M. Forster’s A Passage to India explores the difficulty in the mutual understanding and cohabitation of the British and the Indian people in British India in the early twentieth century. The major events centers on an alleged attempted rape. Dr. Aziz, t...
評分“最漫長的旅程”——《印度之行》讀書筆記 福斯特(1879-1970)同喬伊斯、勞倫斯和伍爾夫被稱為20世紀英國最偉大的小說傢。主要作品有《天使懼於涉足之地》(1905)、《最漫長的旅程》(1907)、《看得見風景的房間》(1908)、《霍華德彆業》(1910)、《印度之行》(1924)...
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A Passage to India 2024 pdf epub mobi 電子書 下載