Why did the ‘Bridge Party’ fail to bridge the gap between the English and the Indians in “A Passage to India?”

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Why did the Bridge Party fail to bridge the gap between the English and the Indians in A Passage to India NU E M Forster s A Passage to India shows division under the Raj The Bridge Party in Chandrapore was meant to unite East and West But it failed badly Through Ronny Turton Mrs Turton Mrs Moore Adela Aziz and others Forster shows arrogance and mistrust Physical and Social Division Mr Turton the Collector arranges the Bridge Party He says it will bring the English and Indians closer But division is clear Indians like Aziz Hamidullah and Mahmoud Ali stand on one side English like Ronny Heaslop City Magistrate Mrs Turton and Mrs Callendar stand on the other side Forster writes about the civil station that Shares nothing with the city except the overarching sky This shows separation not unity Racial Arrogance of the English The Anglo-Indians treat the

party as duty not friendship Adela mixes politely with Indian ladies at the Bridge Party Mrs Turton tells Adela You re superior to them anyway Don t forget that Mrs Callendar insults Indians openly Ronny Heaslop mocks educated Indians He says The educated Indians will be no good to us if there s a row they don t matter Such words show arrogance Indians feel humiliated Failure of Goodwill Mrs Moore and Adela Quested try sincerely They wish to meet purdah women They want to see the real India But the pride and prejudice of others ruin it Aziz and Nawab Bahadur attend politely Yet they see no respect The Bridge Party becomes a symbol of false goodwill The Bridge Party fails because separation is too strong The English act superior Indians feel insulted Characters like Ronny Turton Mrs Turton Mrs Callendar Mrs Moore Adela Aziz Hamidullah and Nawab Bahadur all show that real unity is impossible under the Raj

A Passage to India

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Why did the ‘Bridge Party’ fail to bridge the gap between the English and the Indians in “A Passage to India?”

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E. M. Forster

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