SEA OF POPPIES - A REVIEW
Many authors worldwide have written about colonialism, imperialist hypocrisy and racial porosity in their unique different styles. Amitav Ghosh has done the wonderful job of weaving all this themes together in his novel 'Sea of poppies'. The basic plot of the novel is that of colonialized India just before the Opium wars begun. While the British reason their use of force with morals, the narrative shows us its dark side. The narrative also confronts the reader to the superstitions, ancient rituals, caste system and the social setting in India during those times. The reader unknowingly develops a dislike for it as he witnesses the sufferings of Deeti and Kalua on their account. Near the end, through the argument between Zachery Reid and the Captain, the question of the validity of the caste system is brought alive. All the pros and the cons are made evident through this argument and the reader is left to himself to decide.
At the center of the entire saga is the Ibis – the immense ship with a British Captain, an American second-mate, Indian troops and a crew of Lascars. The Ibis becomes home to many victims of British imperialism and the social system in India. They all leave behind their past and come together as Jahajbhais and Jahajbehens. These Jahajbhais and Jahajbehens have as diverse social background as their lingo and skin colour. And yet Amitav Ghosh suggests that these differences are illusory. Clothed in a sari, Paulette, the orphaned daughter of a French botanist is able to blend in among the migrant workers; Zachary, the second-mate realizes that passing as white can work to his advantage; Baboo Nob Kissin, a Bengali accountant filled with the spirit of a holy deceased woman begins to experience a shift in gender. Most powerfully, Neel, a rich, pampered rajah is charged with forgery and jailed on Ibis with an opium addict, Ah Fatt, whom he is able to befriend.
All the characters in the novel are introduced with great integrity. All of them have interesting back stories. Amitav Ghosh provides each of his American, British, French, Indian and Lascar characters with a unique vocabulary; this gives different colours to each character and also makes the differences in their social background quite evident. Amitav Ghosh has extensively used Bhojpuri, Bengali, Laskari, Hindustani and Anglo-Indian vocabulary. The narrative slows down the reader by entangling the reader in thickets of impenetrable words. Though the exact meanings of the words might not be known, the reader gets a feel of the overall gist and the direction of narration. However, such an extensive use of vocabularies of different languages can become irritating to some readers.
The first character to be introduced in the novel is that of Deeti, who with the course of the novel evolves to be the major ethical and moral character of the novel. It is noticeable that whenever a major “good” character is introduced, the narration predicts its future presence in Deeti's shrine and the reader immediately knows that it’s going to be one of the interesting characters. This subtly provides Deeti with moral and ethical prowess. Deeti's character therefore gives an overall stability to the novel and remains an attraction till the very end.
A few of the events in the novel are of Magical-realistic nature. For example, Deeti supernaturally is imparted the vision of Ibis while she is in the waters of holy river Ganga. Baboo Nob Kissin undergoes sex transformation when Taramony’s spirit enters his body. Such events give voice to the Indian superstitious ideology.
Inspite of the language barrier, the narrative creates enough curiosity and mystery, to make us keep turning the pages till the end. The narrative tells us beforehand about the future presence of some of the major characters in Deeti's shrine, when we see no apparent relation between the two. The future connection between Ibis and Deeti is revealed to us, when apparently there seems to be no relation between the two. Paulette and Zachary are predicted to be found in Deeti's shrine in the future at the point of time when their worlds seem to be quite remote from Deeti's. It is also noteworthy that Zachary and Deeti do not meet till the very end of the novel, while their meeting is predicted only after a few pages.
The novel also creates enough mystery about the future of its major characters. When Jodhu and Zachary refuse to help Paulette to get on Ibis, we know that, if she is ever to fulfill the prediction of meeting Deeti, she somehow has to get on Ibis; so we are kept wondering that how she would manage it. Near the end of novel we feel an intense sense of mystery. The fate of Jodhu and Kalua is kept on a hanging sword. We are kept wondering how Ah Fatt will manage to kill Mr. Crowle. Serang Ali's fate is also kept a mystery. At the end, when Serang Ali, Jodhu, Kalua, Ah Fatt and Neel escape from Ibis on a boat their fates are still kept unknown. The novel, which is obviously to be continued creates enough curiosity to make us wait for its next part.
- Manvar Apurva Pravinbhai
(2009CH70141)
apurvamanvar@gmail.com
I found the ‘jahajbhais and jahajbehens’ aspect quite intriguing. The people onboard the Ibis come from diverse backgrounds and circumstances. Yet on the ship, their old ties are broken away. They forget their cultural and caste differences and refer to each other as jahajbhais and jahajbehens. The novel is set in a time when the caste system was quite prevalent. I think the author is trying to send a message through this aspect of life onboard the Ibis. Perhaps he is suggesting that if the environment around you changes, if the circumstances demand it; common people will forget their origins and their superstitions and work together to survive.
ReplyDeleteYou mentioned Magical Realism. Yes, Deeti’s vision does seem to be Magical Realist. But Magical Realism itself has a very vague definition. What I’m trying to say is that it’s difficult to categorize certain events as to whether they are Magical Realist or not. Whatever the case, the rest of the book seems to have very little (or no) such ‘magical-realist’ incidents.
I would like to mention a little more about the Opium Wars. The novel is set in a time just before the first Opium War. The book talks about the realities of enforced cultivation of poppies. 1838 was a time when the Chinese were becoming a threat to the British drug industry in India. In the book we are told how even the animals are affected by the stupefying effects of opium. This indirectly suggests the huge impact that the forced opium cultivation has on the native people of the land.
About the ship Ibis. “The ibis was a sacred bird of religious veneration in ancient Egypt, particularly associated with the god Thoth, one of the most important deities of the Egyptian pantheon, who was usually depicted with the head of an ibis. Thoth served as a mediating power, especially between good and evil, making sure neither had a decisive victory over the other, and was the master of both physical and moral (i.e. Divine) law.” ---source: the Internet. Perhaps the ship being named 'Ibis' is symbolic. What do you think?
‘Destiny’ seems to be an underlying theme in the book. The novel continuously makes you think about the ‘destiny’ and ‘fate’ of its characters. The book also talks about multiple identities.
You have talked about the language used in the book. The book does use words from many Indian languages. This manages to create a beautiful image of the characters, their thoughts and feelings. I’m not very sure of it, but I think the book uses a different style of language for each character. Thus we get to know about a particular character, not just through the words in the book, but also through the style of the language attributed to that character. This manages to give a wholesome picture of the characters.
What strikes one even more is the way the predominant language used in the book (English), is also twisted and turned. The English used by certain characters is mixed up with certain words from native languages. I think what the author is suggesting here is that the cultures and languages of both the colonizing and colonized country intermix. They affect and change each other and we cannot pretend that it is not the case (just like Rushdie’s Midnight’s Children).
Aby Joseph
2009PH10702
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteThe concept of 'Jahajbhais and Jahajbehens' is indeed quite intriguing. It must be noted that these Jahajbhais and Jahajbehens have a common destination, the Mauritius islands and that they all have come to Ibis as a final place of refuge from their sufferings. It is this similarity of fate which binds them together and they strive to protect each other from harm. Evidently, Amitav Ghosh is suggesting that all human beings are alike and that circumstances can bind them together, even if they come from different sections of the society. This is what I had suggested in my main blog and your comment is also in agreement with it.
ReplyDeleteIn my main blog, I had cited two Magical realistic events. The first being Deeti’s vision of Ibis and the second being that of apparent sex transformation of Baboo Nob Kissin. I had also mentioned that these events give voice to Indian superstitious ideology. Indeed, these can simply be seen as a manifestation of the common public belief in such miraculous, time the novel is set in. They can also be seen through this alternative view.
About the Opium wars, the novel shows us how it has affected not only the Indians but also the Chinese. The forced Opium cultivation affected the Indians, while selling it forcibly in China affected the Chinese. The Novel brings to the forefront the sufferings of the ‘victims’ of colonialism. The focus is on the victimization of the Indians and the Chinese. The British try to justify their acts through display of false morals. There are two instances in the novel where this is made evident; the first through dialogue between Zachary and Mr. Burnham and later through dialogue between captain Chillingsworth and Mr. Burnham. The novel somehow manages its readers to disregard such false morals. This picture of colonialism is contrast with the one we find in ‘One hundred years of solitude‘ and ‘Midnight’s Children’. In Midnight’s children, Salman Rushdie projects that colonialism brings about adulteration and it leads to development. In One hundred years of solitude, Marquez shows us that even under the rule of natives the Latin Americans continued to suffer. There were however good rulers amongst the colonizers as well as amongst the natives. There is indeed much to write about this comparison between the three novels. Do you see any relation between ‘Portrait of an Artist’ and this novel in the context of colonialism?
The name ‘Ibis’ may be symbolic as you suggested. It can be suggestive of no clear victory of either ‘good’ or ‘evil’. Kalua manages to cheat death and kill Bhyrao Singh ; yet his fate is still unsure; He has to leave Deeti and escape from Ibis. Ah Fatt also manages to kill wicked Mr. Crowle and yet he is unable to undo his past and his fate is also unsure.
Can you please elaborate on your point of multiple identities?
Apurva Manvar(2009ch70141)
Both novels, 'A Portrait of the Artist' and 'Midnight's Children' are similar in one aspect: They talk about how the colonizing country influences the culture (and language) of the colonized country. Both novels emphasize that we should never pretend that this is not the case (because we seem to do so). I think 'Sea of Poppies' is doing something more. As I mentioned in my previous comment, the English used by certain characters also seems to be adulterated.
ReplyDeleteExample:
“Don’t you samjo, Paulette?”
...and many other instances.
This suggests that even the colonizing country cannot escape the experience of colonialism. More specifically, the British culture too is influenced by the cultures (languages) of the countries it colonized.
I don't know to what extent this is true :). Perhaps I'm just reading too much into some simple aspect of the novel.
The 'multiple identities' thing. Its not a major point. I just mentioned it in passing. I was actually trying to say that a single person's narration has words from different languages; it almost seems as if different personalities are talking at the same time. Perhaps I did not frame the sentence properly. Please ignore it.
And yes, thanks for commenting back.
Loved this book a lot. Amitav Ghosh has created an epic tale of adventure,love,history with Sea of Poppies. It has a memorable and varied cast of characters, exotic locales and most important of all, an engaging story.
ReplyDeleteThe book is set just before the start of the Opium Wars between Britain and China. The setting of the book is the British ship, the Ibis filled with a variety of people from various backgrounds. The story that follows is about these different characters on the ship as well as how they came to be on the ship (A considerable part of the book is spent on the latter kind of stories).
I loved how the author started telling all these individual back-stories and then weaved them together like parts of a grand tapestry. Also throughout the book, the characters change from time to time and along with it the language the novel is written in too changes, so that it better fits the current character (Something seen previously in Portrait of an Artist as A Young Man). This is a very interesting technique which enriches the reading experience a lot. Also you can see Ghosh has put a lot of research into this book as he weaves various historical elements in the book.
The only gripe I have with it is that the ending is too sudden and more of a 'to be continued' than a true ending (which is understandable as it is a part of a trilogy but still).
An engaging read that will suck you into it's mesmerizing world all I can say is "Bring on the next one".
@ Aby I feel that the author is simply trying to give a different identity to each of his characters by linking a different type of language with each one of them. Their adulterated languages are also suggestive of their multiple social backgrounds. By multiple social backgrounds I mean having lived abreast different cultures(and therefore languages) in different lands.
ReplyDelete"The British culture too is influenced by the cultures (languages) of the countries it colonized." I don't think there is much focus on this point. On the contrary, Salman Rushdie's novels have clear focus on such political aspects. This novel has more of story than any political significance.
Your idea of multiple identities seems vague.
Apurva Manvar
2009ch70141
@ Mrinal
ReplyDeleteThis is in response to your lines below:
"Also throughout the book, the characters change from time to time and along with it the language the novel is written in too changes, so that it better fits the current character (Something seen previously in Portrait of an Artist as A Young Man)."
The shift in the language that you have highlighted is only in the direct speech by the characters; the narrative's language remains the same. However, in Joyce's novel even the language of the narrator changes (the Uncle Charles principle).
thanks for commenting guys.
ReplyDelete