Balram's Cages

“The Inconvenient Indian” speaks to a general audience and particularly to US and Canada. The book is organized into chapters and each chapter refers to a variety of themes. Some of these themes are history, culture, politics, and laws. By incorporating all these themes,

towards this changes throughout the story, however. At the end of the story, after his many experiences, he feels he must head out for "Indian Territory." He no longer feels like he can

One question I have on the topic of Britain’s reign over India is why Indians were discriminated against. On page 42, a young British girl says to Vidya at the airport, “Don’t touch me, blackie! Look where you’re going, you crow!” On page 38 Vidya’s father scoffs sarcastically, “Only white people have the brains to be officers. We are too stupid, of course.” Why did Britain hate the citizens of the country they had taken over? Was it to keep them in line, to say if they dare go against them the discrimination would get worse? If the British thought the Indians were so horrible, why did they take over their country, take their resources and take volunteers to fight on their side of the war? It made no sense that Britain would occupy their country

Amir and his father’s weak relationship in Afghanistan changes when Amir finally accomplishes something Baba can be proud about, spreading light of a possible close relationship in the future. At the beginning of the novel, Baba is talking with his friend, Rahim Khan, about his worries for Amir not standing up for himself, when he is being bullied. Khan responds to Baba saying, ““Children aren’t coloring books. You don’t get to fill them in with your favorite colors””(Hosseini 21). This quote illustrates the difficult relationship Amir and his father have with each other because Baba wants to mold him into the ‘perfect’ son, but Amir does not find appreciation in the same things as Baba, causing this ‘mold’ to be ruined. Amir and Baba being polar opposites causes them to naturally separate from each other because Baba likes building luxury to fit his ego, but Amir values the smaller gestures people do in life. Once Amir finally does something that makes Baba proud and improves ‘their’ ego, Baba starts to appreciate Amir more and tries to do more things with him. This is depicted when Hosseini writes, “Baba and I were finally friends” (Hosseini 85). Although Amir thinks they are close, they are not as close as they could be because Baba usually invites friends and family to join them on their outings. Also, when they are alone it is very awkward for the two of them because they do not know each other very well. The reason Amir feels like he is gaining his father’s acceptance is because he is taking him places, rather than ignoring his existence completely, which is a significant step compared to their relationship before. This step in their relationship illustrates they have a chance at becoming even closer in the future.

In this story, the Indians often resort to violence when faced with something that threatens their culture, or way of life. They see the fact

As a first generation Indian-American, I am no stranger to being a part of a distinct community while observing two unique cultures. Traveling to India exposed me to a dynamic population with rich diversity comprising of numerous languages and differing religions. Though these individuals may have had differing customs from their neighbors, there were similar ambitions to conquer grinding poverty. This poverty can be clearly noticed by seeing citizens sleeping on floors of a railway station, or the lack of air conditioning in searing hot weather. The frailty and mortality of the human condition was starkly visible in India. As a fellow human, I was humbled not only by the lack of privilege and opportunity of many citizens, but also by their

As India’s modernization developed, the entire civilization of India improved remarkably. The country’s improvement of civilization is exemplified through it’s establishment of schools and law. Western education was introduced by Britain and laws were well made with courts that enforce them. (Doc 3). One should take into account the speaker of this document because Romesh Dutt is an Indian like any other, yet he praises the British for what they have done to contribute to the development of India. In addition to these establishments is Britain bringing finer ideals of humanity to India. Infanticide, the killing of female babies, was brought to a halt as well as participation in the slave trade (Doc 5). Without the interference of Britain, these inhumane actions would be prevalent throughout India and the country would suffer from a bad reputation. These

There are many clues into how Indian society runs in this story. These cultural clues come from this story and they come from various aspects. There are cultural clues from Hinduism mythology and from first-hand accounts of Ms. Kralijevic’s journey to the Taj Mahal. The cultural context of India and its citizens that stems from Hindu mythology stem from how monkeys are perceived. ‘The monkey army commander

Although Balram argues that violence is his only way of overcoming the poverty he is born into, Vijay, a man born into status even lower than Balram’s, achieves power and wealth without resorting to violence. Initially Balram presents Vijay as his role model, condoning the rumors of his prostitution in order to advance socially. He portrays Vijay as “the first entrepreneur [he] knew of ” and a man who “had made it in life” (26), thereby

The story of “Rikki-tikki-tavi” directly describes the English present in India and also the idea of domestication. The story “The White Seal,” exemplifies how India’s resources were taken and the brutality of the natives being forced from their homes by the British. Imperialistic ideas are visible throughout the novel as

Kim gives a vivid picture of the complexities in India under British rule. It shows the life of the bazaar mystics, of the natives, of the British military. There is a great deal of action and movement, for Kipling's vast canvas painted in full detail. The dialogue in the novel makes use of Indian phrases translated by the author, they give the flavor of native speech in India. They are also touches of the native behavior and shrewdness.

Events in South Africa had made Gandhi a very well-known man in India and in 1915 he along with family in tow, arrives in Bombay, India which is where the following scene takes place. I immediately noticed that he was no longer wearing a suit, but instead the traditional clothing of the Indian people. Upon returning to India, the film depicts Gandhi taking on the English once again with the backing of millions of Indian supporters seeking independence from Great Britain. This done by once again forming a non-violent protesting organization. From here the film goes on to show violence brought to Gandhi’s followers, supporters, and the non-violent protestors by officials using force with gunfire, batons, etc. Afterwards, Gandhi was again imprisoned several times in India with one occurrence resulting in a six year sentence.

This incident began his life long battle against all discriminations. Although he debated returning to India, his duty came first. “It would be cowardice to run back to India without fulfilling my obligation. The hardship to which I was subjected was superficial-only a symptom of the deep disease of colour prejudice. I should try, if possible, to root out the disease and suffer hardships in the process. Redress for wrongs I should seek only to the extent that would be necessary for the removal of the colour prejudice.”

Balram’s thoughts of family keep him grounded while is in search of a job as a driver for a master to break him out of the Darkness. In his search, he finds a man who immediately does not want to accept him as a driver. Justifying his qualifications, Balram declares, “I don’t disrespect God, I don’t disrespect my family” (Adiga 51). In this quote, Balram equivocates disrespecting one's family to disrespecting God. Even if he does not truly believe this himself, it shows that words like this will have an effect on those around him because religion and family are very important to people. Moreover, this quote demonstrates that family grounds Balram’s thinking in the beginning on the novel, something that drastically changes as time passes. Later in the novel, Balram makes a pro versus con list of his spit to decide what to do and how he should continue his life. One puddle of spit says to him, “Your father wanted you to be a man” (Adiga 210). Balram explains early in the novel that his father was a good man and this quote shows that Balram’s father did not tie him down to a particular path in life. All he wanted was for him to have the strength and skills stereotypically associated with being a man. These two instances sharply contrast with the rest of his family’s views of him that restrict his freedom.

E.M. Forster’s classic novel “A Passage to India” tells the story of a young doctor, Dr. Aziz, and his interactions with the British citizens who are residing in India during the time of the British Raj. Throughout the novel, the reader gets many different viewpoints on the people and the culture of India during this point in history. The reader sees through the eyes of the Indian people primarily through the character of Dr. Aziz, and the perceptions of the British through the characters of Mr. Fielding, Adela Quested, and Mrs. Moore. Through the different characters, and their differing viewpoints, the reader can see that Forster was creating a work that expressed a criticism that he held of the behavior of the British towards their Indian subjects.