Dorothee heat’s Weblog

Assess the development in the narrator’s relationship with Inder Lal.

After Inder Lal and the narrator went to have a picnic at Baba Firdaus’ shrine and became very close there their relationship has become more intense. Before their first physical contact the sentiment had been more of a professional nature. Inder Lal had always been very eager to find out important aspects as well as random details about life in Europe and talking to the narrator served the purpose of improving his English skills. Of course the feeling of sympathy has always been dominating the relationship between the two of them but it was never more than that. Inder Lal had felt a certain distance to the narrator because she was like nothing he knew before and being with her always made him feel observed by the other Indians.  Inder Lal has always played an important role for the narrator for he enabled her to find an access to the Indian culture. It was a shock for her to see in what condition his marriage was and I think from the beginning she felt sorry for him being lonely.

The very day at Baba Firdaus’ shrine was a major breakthrough in Inder Lal’s emotional life. It was as if a huge wall had been torn down and he finally followed his instict. He was no longer controlled by the desire to fullfill the expectations other people had put on him.  After this barrier had been removed he really enjoyed being with the narrator because for once he could “let himself go completely” (p.130, line 24) and didn’t have to be the strong, stable man he was supposed to be.

The narrator enjoys the unforced relationship with Inder Lal. She doesn’t mind that they can only become close when it’s dark because she is very sensitive and sympathetic to Inder Lal. It is obvious for her that their relationship cannot become offical as Inder Lal is married and she doesn’t want to put any pressure on him. This might also be the reason why she doesn’t tell him about her pregnancy. On page 131 in line 16 she writes : “I don’t want to spoil anything” as an explanation for holding her tongue.  As she knows that Inder Lal is an responsible man she assumes that he would do anything in his power to support her but she is aware of the fact that this would probably destroy his marriage with Ritu.

Evaluate the difference between the response of the Westerner (the narrator) and the Indians to the dying beggar woman.

The pages 103 to 109 are about the narrator’s finding of an old, dying beggar woman. While the narrator is shocked by the state the old woman is in all other people she is talking to seem to feel indifferent about it. In the following text I am going to list a number of reasons that may explain the different attitudes.

The narrator grew up in a Western, civilised country where the medical system is highly developed and almost all sick people get a chance be treated by professional and educated doctors. In the normal case it is no problem to get a bed and treatment in a hospital as they are well organised and updated.  When she is confronted with the dying beggar woman it seems impossible to her that she is not being treated and that no one takes care of her. Since she has never experienced a pollution or infection evolving from a human being and handed on to fellow humans the thought of just ignoring the sick woman doesn’t even cross her mind. On top of that she is not aware of the fact that the bad hygiene in India can assume vast proportions.

Most of the Indian people on the other hand have always been living under those circumstances. They have learned to numb themselves to the affliction predominant in India. They have got used to the sight of homeless, sick and degenerated people gadding in the city. In comparison to the people living in Westeurope the average Indian lives in a considerably bad state; Many people suffer from their medical condition. Due to that the Indians are mainly concerned about their own, their families and friends well-being. Many of them lack strength which would be required for a dedication to the improvement of strangers conditions.