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A review by paola_mobileread
A Passage to India by E.M. Forster
4.0
Though as a non native speaker I found the prose at time very challenging, it was really a beautiful read.
In terms of the plot, for me it lost some steam (and coherence) after
As for the characters, rhe women here felt often more like a narration device than proper character - perhaps I am exagerating, but
On Aziz, though, the aspect that struck me most is not his being emotional or his propensity to act on instinct - but his relationship with facts and reality. For instance, how Aziz "fills in the details" of Adela's departure from the caves in his conversation with Fielding as if this was a statement of fact reminded so much of my dad that it made me smile: not because there was any intention to deceive, or any hidden agenda, but this was simply a reasoning that made sense, sounded plausible and appeared harmless. It provided a coherent way of filling the uncomfortable gaps in Adela's sudden and rude disappearance, and in the end this became reality in Aziz's mind. And in normal circumstances I am sure Aziz would have accepted an alternative if this had been provided later e.g. by Adela, not thinking for another second about having provided Fielding with a load of made up rubbish!
It was my first Forster, now I now it won't be the last.
(edited version of my own posts in the Mobiler Read Literary Book Club discussion)
In terms of the plot, for me it lost some steam (and coherence) after
Spoiler
the climax of the trial's collapse, but in a sense the plot was really secondary to the arguments on colonialism, and I really enjoied this book!As for the characters, rhe women here felt often more like a narration device than proper character - perhaps I am exagerating, but
Spoiler
Adela is almost forgotten of after the trial, and both the change of personality in Mrs Moore as well as her death are rather sudden. These women needed to fade in the background, and in the background they disappear fast.On Aziz, though, the aspect that struck me most is not his being emotional or his propensity to act on instinct - but his relationship with facts and reality. For instance, how Aziz "fills in the details" of Adela's departure from the caves in his conversation with Fielding as if this was a statement of fact reminded so much of my dad that it made me smile: not because there was any intention to deceive, or any hidden agenda, but this was simply a reasoning that made sense, sounded plausible and appeared harmless. It provided a coherent way of filling the uncomfortable gaps in Adela's sudden and rude disappearance, and in the end this became reality in Aziz's mind. And in normal circumstances I am sure Aziz would have accepted an alternative if this had been provided later e.g. by Adela, not thinking for another second about having provided Fielding with a load of made up rubbish!
It was my first Forster, now I now it won't be the last.
(edited version of my own posts in the Mobiler Read Literary Book Club discussion)