Alex Lotti

British rule in India was morally corrupt in its promotion of segregation, class, and various daily exercises in reinforcing inequality. While I sympathize with the main Indian characters to a certain extent, I cannot ignore the hypocrisy born from the preexisting culture of the country. It is virtually impossible to keep track of every subtle social rule within both the British and Indian societies, and I wonder whether the mass mentality established by already having a social hierarchy made it easy for Britain to occupy India. Aziz and his friends discuss their distaste for English culture while condemning servants and relatives deemed lower in status than themselves to silence. Though the Englishmen treat women as they would children, the Indian men seem even more sexist in the fact that women are not even allowed to dine with them. Indian women are barely given a voice in A Passage to India, and I wish to have seen how Aziz treated his wife during her lifetime, since his contradictory words paint him as somewhat unreliable, even when his intentions mean well.

While I obviously know very little about Indian culture, sexism is a clear issue within the two clashing societies of the book, though the book does not highlight sexism as one of its main themes. Fortunately, it seems women across the globe are becoming less tolerant and more vocal about sexism nowadays, just as the lines between classes in more hierarchical-based societies like Britain appear to be blurring in present day.