Plotting the Story (pp. 143-165)

Explain what taboo the narrator broke in the hospital.

The narrator visits Chid in the hospital nearly every day and brings him some food. Next to Chid lies a poor man, the „fruit man“ who has a broken leg and ribs what makes him unable to move. Therefore the nurses put a bedpan under him, but very often they don’t take it away which is very disgusting for him.

The narrator breaks a taboo when one day she takes the bedpan away and empties it in the bathroom. Everyone looks at her as if she had done something terrible (p. 145, ll. 20/21). This reaction shows that the Indians dislike her actions. She, a Western Englishwoman, did the job a nurse has to do. So on the one hand, with this action the narrator puts her culture and Western world above the Indian one. This lets the Indians feel subordinated to the British, which reminds me of the time India was a British colony. I guess also the Indians are reminded of that time, when the British were superior to them and took themselves for better people. Indeed, the narrator just wants to be helpful, but she does not think about the effect her actions could have on the Indians.

On the other hand, this section could be connected with the cast system in India: Hindus believe in the earlier life of a human being. A disease or some other sufferings just derive from what the people did in their earlier lives. Hence, those people don’t deserve help; but the narrator violates this part of the Hindu religion.

Although, it has to be mentioned that apparently the narrator forgets about that Indian „rules“, because she just wants to help the fruit man.

 

What role does Maji play in the narrator’s life?

Maji has always been a educational instance for the narrator. It was her who explained her much about pilgrimages and spirituality (p. 81, l. 12).

It’s also her who offers the narrator an abortion (p. 150, l. 26). She gives advice to the narrator and when the narrator wants Maji to stop the massage, she immediately obeys her.

So all in all we can say that Maji looms large: She is a good adviser and understands the narrator’s behaviour. Majican also be seen as a connection between the British and the Indians: She is large-minded and wants to help an Englishwoman.