Discuss the portrayal of colonisation in A Passage to India.

The main
aim of the book is to show what a damaging effect colonisation has on both coloniser and
colonised. The English appear generally cold and unbending towards the Indians, and behave with
haughty superiority towards them. Of course there are notable exceptions like Fielding, and the
two newly-arrived ladies, Adela and Mrs Moore, but even their relations with the Indians turn
out to be less than straightforward. They attempt to form genuine connections with them, only
for all sorts of social and cultural misunderstandings and barriers to get in the way €“
culminating in the trial of an innocent Indian man, Aziz.

Forster shows that
many of the English out in India may actually be nice enough individuals in themselves, but
unfortunately, when they are around Indians, the race-mentality kicks in and they generally
become insufferable. Some of the English display racist prejudice of the worst kind, for
instance Mrs Callendar with her notorious comment that: €˜Why, the kindest thing one can do to a
native is to let him die (chapter 3).

On the other side, the Indians are also
seen to be adversely affected by colonialism. They often present a rather ingratiating front to
their rulers but mock and despise the English behind their backs. Of course, it is entirely
understandable that they should be resentful of their self-imposed overlords, but they dont
really seem willing to get together to really try to do something about it.

Even Aziz, the most fully-realised Indian character, is seen to harbour some quite
virulent racist tendencies and assumptions of his own, not so much towards the English (until
later in the book) as towards other Indians: principally €˜flabby Hindus, as he calls them
(chapter 2). The Indians generally seem incapable of uniting effectively against the oppressors,
in this novel. 

Indeed, colonialism serves to bring out the worst in both
ruler and ruled. Azizs trial of course is the dramatic high point of the tensions between the
two races, but although Aziz is sensationally cleared, the Indians briefly united behind him,
and the English temporarily discomfited, nothing is really seen to change as a result. The old
misunderstandings and divisions go on.

The novel, then, deals with the
detrimental effects of colonisation on the minds and actions of both ruler and ruled. It should
be noted that the focus really remains on individual relationships and behaviour, rather than
tackling the whole issue of colonialism per se. For instance, Forster never
says anything at all about the whole economic side of colonisation, an omission for which this
novel is often criticised. The English control vast swathes of Indian resources, but this really
doesnt figure in the novel as an issue.

To sum up, Forster's main interest is
in how colonisation affects individual connections, and really only those in the higher, more
educated ranks of society on both sides of the racial divide. He does not really show the
effects of colonisation on the lower classes, who largely remain part of the picturesque
backdrop to the novel.