Tagore and Caste: Gora

ABSTRACT: Asking a question to someone to know the name directly constructs the whole identity of a person in terms of caste, religion and community. Such a recurring phenomenon in Tagores novel Gora demonstrates the internalized casteism. The presenters aim is to construe the text in terms of prejudice and social upheaval because of the use of English in Indian Bengali society and the use of specific tone to represent social imbalance. Tagore focuses on Sectarianism. The main point can be, the people are more inclined to strengthen their sects or religion rather than biasing others. The researcher will get help of the theories like Marxism and the ideology of Orientalism (not in terms of Eastern and Western countries but different sects and religion) in unmasking the social veiled evils. These literary theories will aid the researcher to make an argument that the regional sects of India are constructing or constructed by a preconceived archetype or false assumption by redefining it. It can be said that Gora is all about social inequality and Indian Orientalism in terms of sects and religions. The oriental study of Gora brings out ideological biases; it can be considered a reason for study of Tagore and Caste. The conclusion can be that the problem of internalized casteism can be amputated by interaction and exchanging human love and social intercourse.

Mahesh B. Dholiya, M.A. Part-2, Sem.-IV, Department of English, Bhavnagar University, Bhavnagar.

Tagore and Caste

It is quite reasonably known that in India naming ceremony of the children always represents their caste and class from where the person belongs to. As soon as the person recognizes another person, he or she starts imagining the persons wholeness. Names sound the specific caste of a person. Doing good or evil, directly will lead the people to raise one doubt in their mind from which khoarada the person comes. That is what the researcher has been implied about the novel Gora, an epic saga of Indias nationalist awakening (Sen: 2010) by Rabindranath Tagore. The names of the characters are significantly tried out to create the sense of paradox e.g. Gora, genetically white but not by hearth but at the end white by heart, Anandamoyi, never happy with which she lives. The novel brings out the challenges like Sectarianism, Casteism, Class-consciousness, Dual Social Relationships, etc. In India the existence of various sects, classes and castes were stable when they were established but there is an instability in their present place in the sense that one sect affects another. There are two traditional orthodox Hindu families and modernized liberal thinking (Jois: 2011, 2nd Para) Brahmos in between there is no equality. Gora, the staunch Hindu disciple does not hate other sects but always goes on strengthening his community or religion. He is given most possible formal and informal education. Most interestingly, his education is the evil that makes him Hindu centered. He does not envy Brahmo Samaj but even does not believe in it. On the flip side, the influence of the British Raj on India is still not destroyed. The ideologies of Brahmoism are being strengthened by Haran. He cannot see happiness of the others in the terms of love, relationship, social intercourse and mutual understanding. So he spreads the tale news that Sucharita is turning orthodox Hindu. He also spreads the news of Lolitas journey with Binoy to Calcutta. So the personal bias directly disturbs the caste.

In the changing image of caste consciousness, Inferiority and Superiority are felt by looking at others. People, knowingly or unknowingly construct pre-conceived notions about other people of the caste like Brahmo Samaj if we think in the terms of Orientalist perspective. Such false assumptions about others always generate the feelings of inferiority and superiority. It gives rise to social inequality, no matter, if it is religion, caste and the class. Oriental study, albeit East and West struggle, but it has many things to do with the East like Hindu and West like Brahmos in India. Therefore, Gora by Rabindranath Tagore gives the new reading of the text in Marxist and Saidian perspective. Casteism takes its full form when codes and conducts are intoxicated. Gora judges the problem of taking food in Anandamoyis room on the parameters of Hindutva and its holy books like Vedantas and Sastras. Gora is light brown man, a converted Hindu communist from his original identity as an Irish. Lachmi was also basically converted into Christian. So one translated man is criticizing the other translated woman. Though Hybridity has its own beauty in terms of new community has its defects, too. She has to suffer from low cast or downcast what the text sees and senses. Taking favor of Vedanta and Sastras, Gora says to her mother, Then keep her if you like; But Binoy must be accepted as final. Mother, I wonder that you the daughter of such a great Pandits have no care for our orthodox costumes. (Tagore, 12) Tendency of oppressing and being oppressed is still not outdated but it is more and more upgraded with the changing thoughts of 21th century generation. Theory of Orientalism in Gora seemingly brings the argument that one is powerful so is active, whereas another is powerless so is passive. E.g. Binoy and Gora are the chief characters of the novel. Gora thinks about Binoy. It can be construed in term of colonization that he is very much conscious about his force on Binoy when Binoy was roughly planning to marry Sucharita.

Then Gora changes the way regarding his thinking. He advises him to marry Lolita otherwise he will lose the control over him. Indian Oriental Study finds sect-centered tendency that makes the people to see others with the particular eyes. Though Goras faith is in his Hinduism and Hindu decorum but rather it is not the faith but undue pride in his self, his own Sastras and the whole identity as a Hindu. He thinks stereotypically that his only sect is at the highest summit but not others. He speaks, I must insist on it. It is impossible to take food in your room so long as you keep on that Christian maid servant Lachmi. (Tagore: 1952, 12) The matter was that Christian maid servant was in Anandamoyis room, so where there is Christianity there should not be Hinduism. It can hint that Britishers are mostly Christians and they were the colonizers so Christian servant may become master. So it creates a diversion among straightforward and mutual intimacy among the family members. It can be interpreted as Christianity is anti-thesis to Hinduism. On the other hand, Goras conservatism leads him to become aware of what community or religion he belongs to. Gora having being educated from one Pundit about Vedanta philosophy and decorum sounds like evils in the relationships with others. He ridicules other Pandits who come to his place. Knowing something and becoming possessed of Hindu ideologies, Gora is a motive to other characters to remain religion centered. How he speaks strikingly is come out from the above quote from the novel. So there is an inequality among religions. Taking Brahmos and Hinduism into Consideration, somehow Gora hates the Brahmos. It is because he loves Hinduism. So goodness brings evils, too. Binary oppositions bound to be there between one polar. This polar is the Man. There must be evil with good. Therefore, personal likes and dislikes affect in general.

Gora has just become aware of what Hinduism is, but application is yet to be practiced. Then how can he know about Brahmos Samaj. The idea of difference always takes place where there is an idea of similarity. Binoy and Gora are bosom quarreling friends having an equal empathy to each other but there is a distinction that Gora is forceful and Binoy lacks it. So he has to do anything under the influence of Gora. So individualism depends on anothers one. It emerges the new fashion of reading of the novel that Gora has a false assumption that Binoy is under the strong influence of him. Going deeply in the study of the novel, Gora brings challenging arguments like, cannot Brahmos and Hindu communities be rendered as West and East? Is Brahmos not observed, studied, seen, analyzed and objected by staunch believers of Hindu sectarian and of ideological backbones? So Goras being ideologically firm in Hinduism orientally challenges the distinction in between. Quite contrary Eastern ideology is studying and observing Western. In a sense that Hindu person like Gora follows Binoy when he goes to meet Pareshbabu. What Binoy does, meets people, makes relationship with others are all observed like he is superior to him. By these means, he does not feel reluctant to sit and go with Binoy at Pareshbabus home who are staunch Brahmo family, whom he hated strongly once upon a time. There is not any suspicion that this text comes to be a little source in the development of Post-Colonialism as the seeds had already been undergrounded by Edward Said. Gora is a study about the Western and Eastern philosophy and interaction in between. E.g. Lolita always reckons Gora as cockroach and Binoy as mosquito because cockroach often swallows a mosquito or other insects. Is not it all about Western ideologies that wants to be heavy upon the Eastern? Is not the novel encompassed with ridiculing other educated Pandits that means he is superior in the knowledge and cultural legacy? Does a novel not speak of internalized Casteism as far as Christianity, Brahmoism and Hinduism are concerned? Does it not voice

the cultural dualism and ideological biases in the form of admiring themselves, particularly about the West Bengal? In reviewing the novel Gora, it can be said,

The novel is based in the British Raj of nineteenth century colonial Bengal, and , describes as it's theme the essential dualism between the Unity of the Human Spirit and the narrow considerations of sectarian and communal religious divisions in the Indian society of that period. (Hanson, 2006) Gora as the study of Indian Oriental Study of sects and religion unmasks the veils of evils. Though, these sects make people regionally conscious but nationally narrowed. Faith in any ideology is accepted but this faith must not be biased. Gora raises the voice against it. One ideology constructs another one, as its next or it is constructed as its next by the previous one. Oriental study challenges the cultural, religious and sectarian inequality in the term of Marxism. Cultural and religious phenomena of any nation always affects personal one because opposite impacts on another opposite. Personal is always influenced by general one. Here, Hinduism and Brahmoism are two separately general forms that often modify the personal matter like matrimony, upbringing, learning, following specific sects and so on. It changes prototype premises when it undergoes the process of transformation. E.g. Gora himself being staunch Hindu drowns towards Sucharita, but once, considered commitment to nationalism based upon the Hindu values as a good, turns out into evil in the sense social phenomenon like Hinduism separates Goras emotional concern. So cannot be West as primary and East as a secondary idea? Is not a Western hierarchy thirst upon the Eastern hierarchy? But contradictory, with Post-Colonial perspective, Christian converted maidservant is identified as socially and culturally Dalit or rather the subaltern. This Dalitism, an externally coined term engenders Casteism to bring distinction between various casts. How the servant

is looked down as low brows by the high brows is quite relevant. The classy language spoken by Gora throughout the novels journey is polished and sounds like superior. So thinking that someone is superior defines the identity of a caste as Hindu or Brahmos. So the way British Raj ruled India for years who is powerfully ruling party upon the powerless Indians and that is what Tagore has depicted through the characters from Gora. Characters of the novel like Gora (turns out to be a protagonist) and Haran (turns out to be an antagonist) lead caste consciousness among the other characters so happens in society by the people who live in it. At the end of the novel, Gora atones for his past years and feels apologised before Paresh Babu. The author builds his personality as a comprehensive soul who makes Gora comprehend the reality as he dialogues,

To-day I am really an Indian! In me there is no longer any Opposition between Hindu, Mussulman, and Christian. Today every caste in India is my caste, the food of all is my food. (Tagore, 406)

This end of the novel is remarkably takes sudden change about the character of Gora. His identity once remained secret, is revealed before other characters as an Irishmans offspring. Hence, a man is recognized not by his upbringing but by his birth. Now he transcends the reality that he is neither Hindu nor Brahmos nor a Christian (as a caste) but a man of universal and that is what Tagore urges the people to come out of the huge well of Casteism and to consider ourselves as the men of humanity as Swami Vivekananda in his Paper on Hinduism speaks about. It can be concluded that the problem of internalized Casteism can be amputated by interaction, exchanging human love and social intercourse.

Work cited

Hanson. Review of Gora by Rabindranath Tagore. January 24, 2006. Web. 16 January 2012. < http://www.shvoong.com > Jois, Rama. Review of Gora by Rabindranath Tagore. March 20, 2011. Web.18 January, 2012.< http://www.gingerchai.com Sen, Nandini. Review of Gora by Rabindranath Tagore. Arpil 26, 2010. Web. 16 January 2012. Tagor, Rabindranath. Gora.1st ed. Macmillan and Co. Limited, 1995:12. Print. Wikipedia contributors. "Brahmo Samaj." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 17 Dec. 2011. Web. 15 Jan. 2012.