Publication
Avon. c1966
Collection
Series
Status
Available
Description
In August of 1942, a young Englishwoman is raped in an Indian garden, and her fate and that of an elderly English schoolteacher entwine.
User reviews
LibraryThing member PiyushC
The Jewel in the Crown is the first book in the much acclaimed The Raj Quartet. Set during the British Raj of India, the first book in the series tracks the events that unfolded in the town of Mayapore. The story revolves around young Kumar, an Indian brought up in Britain, but who returns to India
I started this book, with a very skeptic frame of mind, like I usually do whenever reading books based on India, by either Indian authors (for playing to the stereotypes) or foreign ones (for just not getting it right). The premise of the book was specially an explosive one, even if the current generation of Indians blame the politics and policies of the last 60 years of Indian governance rather than the 150 years of British dominion (including 90 years of the British Raj). The author, however, managed to avoid taking sides by presenting the story from the point of view of the amazingly well conceived characters. Through the eyes of those characters, the author also managed to represent the conditions, relationships, political tendencies, etc. of both the communities - whom time had done more to separate than integrate, into an atypical master-servant relationship.
The author also, doesn't excuse the snobbery, high handedness and divisive politics of the British, while also highlighting the anti-social elements of the native population - the kind for whom events of instability, riots, are opportunities for rapine, loot and plunder, indiscriminately, if I may add. The fact that such elements are part of the Indian society, even in today's time and age, makes their existence in those times all the more believable.
The author only makes passing references to the Indian freedom struggle and the main characters of the same, which probably wasn't a bad idea. All considered, a well written account, rich in the depth of the characters as well as the plot of the story in all its complexity.
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under after his father's death, friendless, penniless, in a country he has nothing in common with, other than the colour of his skin - the identity crisis he faces as neither the British in India, nor the Indians recognise him as one of their own - and Daphne Manners, a young British girl who finds herself caught under extraordinary circumstances, culminating in her tragic rape, even if her story doesn't end there - indeed, the strength of her character shines through after the aforementioned tragedy. The book has various other remarkable characters, be it the Rajput born princess, Lili Chatterjee, the British officers (both pro and anti Indian), a couple of remarkable ladies, who serve India and Indians in their own ways, one through education, the other by providing healthcare to those for whom no one, not even their fellow countrymen care.I started this book, with a very skeptic frame of mind, like I usually do whenever reading books based on India, by either Indian authors (for playing to the stereotypes) or foreign ones (for just not getting it right). The premise of the book was specially an explosive one, even if the current generation of Indians blame the politics and policies of the last 60 years of Indian governance rather than the 150 years of British dominion (including 90 years of the British Raj). The author, however, managed to avoid taking sides by presenting the story from the point of view of the amazingly well conceived characters. Through the eyes of those characters, the author also managed to represent the conditions, relationships, political tendencies, etc. of both the communities - whom time had done more to separate than integrate, into an atypical master-servant relationship.
The author also, doesn't excuse the snobbery, high handedness and divisive politics of the British, while also highlighting the anti-social elements of the native population - the kind for whom events of instability, riots, are opportunities for rapine, loot and plunder, indiscriminately, if I may add. The fact that such elements are part of the Indian society, even in today's time and age, makes their existence in those times all the more believable.
The author only makes passing references to the Indian freedom struggle and the main characters of the same, which probably wasn't a bad idea. All considered, a well written account, rich in the depth of the characters as well as the plot of the story in all its complexity.
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LibraryThing member DeltaQueen50
First published in 1966, The Jewel in the Crown by Paul Scott explores powerful themes of racism, class and colonialism in the complex environment of 1942 India. The British Empire is struggling with the war and in holding India under their control. The Japanese have defeated them in Burma, and
The story captures certain events about people caught in these turbulent times, as a handful of characters react to a vicious attack on an Englishwoman. Miss Daphne Manners was the victim of rape. The event remains shrouded in mystery as the victim does not seem very interested in identifying her tormentors. Of course she has her own personal reason for remaining silent. The story unfolds from various angles, from character to character, from first person to third person, with letters, diaries and interviews all being included.
I found this a fascinating look at an intricate period in time as it explores not only the described chain of events but also the political and social views of the many characters. At times overwhelming but always interesting and educational, I found I had to concentrate intently on the material in order to keep things straight in my mind. The author writes beautifully, but often the length of his sentences made the reading difficult. This is the first book in the Raj Quartet and I found it to be colourful, layered and intense.
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here in India, Gandhi seeks non-violent non-cooperation in his “Quit India” campaign. The author paints a vivid picture of suspects being interrogated, idealists silenced and dissenters tracked down. The story captures certain events about people caught in these turbulent times, as a handful of characters react to a vicious attack on an Englishwoman. Miss Daphne Manners was the victim of rape. The event remains shrouded in mystery as the victim does not seem very interested in identifying her tormentors. Of course she has her own personal reason for remaining silent. The story unfolds from various angles, from character to character, from first person to third person, with letters, diaries and interviews all being included.
I found this a fascinating look at an intricate period in time as it explores not only the described chain of events but also the political and social views of the many characters. At times overwhelming but always interesting and educational, I found I had to concentrate intently on the material in order to keep things straight in my mind. The author writes beautifully, but often the length of his sentences made the reading difficult. This is the first book in the Raj Quartet and I found it to be colourful, layered and intense.
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LibraryThing member Nandakishore_Varma
It would not be an exaggeration to say that this is the most awesome novel which I have read about British India. The story is gripping: the language poetic ("the indigo dreams of flowers fallen asleep", to recall a phrase which lingers in the memory): and the characterisation near flawless. Even
Just look at how Scott starts the novel off:
Imagine, then, a flat landscape, dark for the moment, but even so conveying to a girl running in the still deeper shadow cast by the wall of the Bibighar Gardens an idea of immensity, of distance, such as years before Miss Crane had been conscious of, standing where a lane ended and cultivation began...
Like To Kill a Mockingbird and One Hundred Years of Solitude, the first paragraph hooks you with the whole story encapsulated in it. Then when the novelist goes on to say "this is the story of a rape...", you are lost for good.
It is 1942, and Gandhi has delivered the ultimatum to the British - "Quit India!" - in his quietly arrogant way. Everywhere, the winds of change are felt, as the worm is finally turning. In this chaotic situation, a British woman is raped by Indians-and all hell breaks loose. “The Bibighar Incident”, as it comes to be known, grows into a metaphor: the beginning of the end of the British Raj.
Paul Scott’s extraordinary achievement is to encapsulate this huge canvas into the private lives of a few misfits. Daphne Manners, large boned and clumsy, with none of the charms of the English girl: Hari Kumar (or Harry Coomer, as he likes to call himself), Indian on the outside and English on the inside: and Merrick, the policeman, acutely conscious of his low social standing in British society. This triangle is unlike any other seen in literature, as love and hate in equal measure bind these people together, pulling them into the inevitable vortex at the Bibighar gardens.
The novel unfolds through the perspectives of different characters, often not central to the story. It gives a jagged, kaleidoscopic feel to the narrative which is perfectly in keeping with India. And as the mystery of what happened at Bibighar is revealed, we seem to hear the bells start to ring the death knell of the British Empire.
Read it!
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after more than twenty years (I think it's nearer twenty-five), I can recall the some scenes as if I had read the novel yesterday.Just look at how Scott starts the novel off:
Imagine, then, a flat landscape, dark for the moment, but even so conveying to a girl running in the still deeper shadow cast by the wall of the Bibighar Gardens an idea of immensity, of distance, such as years before Miss Crane had been conscious of, standing where a lane ended and cultivation began...
Like To Kill a Mockingbird and One Hundred Years of Solitude, the first paragraph hooks you with the whole story encapsulated in it. Then when the novelist goes on to say "this is the story of a rape...", you are lost for good.
It is 1942, and Gandhi has delivered the ultimatum to the British - "Quit India!" - in his quietly arrogant way. Everywhere, the winds of change are felt, as the worm is finally turning. In this chaotic situation, a British woman is raped by Indians-and all hell breaks loose. “The Bibighar Incident”, as it comes to be known, grows into a metaphor: the beginning of the end of the British Raj.
Paul Scott’s extraordinary achievement is to encapsulate this huge canvas into the private lives of a few misfits. Daphne Manners, large boned and clumsy, with none of the charms of the English girl: Hari Kumar (or Harry Coomer, as he likes to call himself), Indian on the outside and English on the inside: and Merrick, the policeman, acutely conscious of his low social standing in British society. This triangle is unlike any other seen in literature, as love and hate in equal measure bind these people together, pulling them into the inevitable vortex at the Bibighar gardens.
The novel unfolds through the perspectives of different characters, often not central to the story. It gives a jagged, kaleidoscopic feel to the narrative which is perfectly in keeping with India. And as the mystery of what happened at Bibighar is revealed, we seem to hear the bells start to ring the death knell of the British Empire.
Read it!
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LibraryThing member li33ieg
This is a particularly beautiful edition, I think, which makes it easier to appreciate the historical significance of Paul Ridley Scott's plot, set in India in 1942 - i.e. Second World War, the time of Ghandi and the period during which an increasing number of British were beginning to recognise,
Scott has a way of not only getting inside his characters, but outlining whole stories which weave their ways together to eventually form a cohesive whole. This works, for me at least, to ensure the individual characters remain believable regardless of their myriad backgrounds and vastly differing views.
Honestly, it would have been an enormously rare thing for a young British woman of that period to fall in love - really, authentically in love - with an Indian man. Daphne Manners would have to have been a very extraordinary individual, I think, and Scott writes her to be extraordinary, allowing her to not only express that quality in her own words but to express her doubts and assessment of herself besides. It seems to me unlikely Society would have approved of her even in 1966 when the story was originally published, and, for me, that's precisely what allows this story to have remained so thought-provokingly rich. It not only forces us to consider our present opinions but to also consider how differently those opinions might have been shaped had we lived in a different era.
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at last, that India must eventually be freed to rule itself.Scott has a way of not only getting inside his characters, but outlining whole stories which weave their ways together to eventually form a cohesive whole. This works, for me at least, to ensure the individual characters remain believable regardless of their myriad backgrounds and vastly differing views.
Honestly, it would have been an enormously rare thing for a young British woman of that period to fall in love - really, authentically in love - with an Indian man. Daphne Manners would have to have been a very extraordinary individual, I think, and Scott writes her to be extraordinary, allowing her to not only express that quality in her own words but to express her doubts and assessment of herself besides. It seems to me unlikely Society would have approved of her even in 1966 when the story was originally published, and, for me, that's precisely what allows this story to have remained so thought-provokingly rich. It not only forces us to consider our present opinions but to also consider how differently those opinions might have been shaped had we lived in a different era.
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LibraryThing member wagner.sarah35
I have to say, this is an excellent novel, presenting the varying aspects of life in India in the last years of British rule. Paul Scott captures many of the attitudes and struggles of both the British and Indians in those years. However, it took a long time for me to get into this novel. Not until
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nearly the very end did I feel truly interested in the story. This is partially due to the way the story is presented, switching narrators and a nonlinear timeline. All in all, I was glad I made it to the end of this novel, since it was definitely worth it, but I still wish the story had been written in a different manner. Show Less
LibraryThing member Lukerik
A rich and intense novel. It's impressive from a technical point of view. So many diverse characters' voices and hardly a line of dialogue to be seen. The opening section is a master-class in authorial voice. Almost poetry with its clusters of alliteration.
But there's a lot more to it than just
The characters feel so real I found the book emotionally affecting. How Scott manages to do that while having the characters hold symbolic meaning I'll never know. Nice to discover an author who's in total control of his tools.
But there's a lot more to it than just
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technical brilliance. I noticed that every character is in some way an outsider. It's more than just a story-telling technique and I wondered if there was some metaphorical point about India. The characters are outsiders because of the divisions of race, class etc and the novel explores these complex distinctions rather wonderfully. But ultimately the division boils down to predator and prey. He calls it The Jewel in the Crown but perhaps The Bird in the Hand or The Fish in the Maw would do as well because what you have is a set of predatory types hunting the resources and people of a foreign land. Set against this you have the rape.The characters feel so real I found the book emotionally affecting. How Scott manages to do that while having the characters hold symbolic meaning I'll never know. Nice to discover an author who's in total control of his tools.
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LibraryThing member overthemoon
More of an atmosphere (the end of the Raj) than a plot (it revolves around and around the gang-rape of an English girl, Daphne Manners, in the Bhibigar Gardens) this is told in diary entries, letters and reports written by different people in his or her personal style and is sometimes tedious,
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sometimes lively. It took me several weeks to read but I gradually felt enveloped in the feeling of unease that was simmering in India in 1942. I liked it better when I reached the part written by Daphne describing her relationship with Hari Kumar, an Indian educated at a British public school. There is a stifling and sometimes shocking sense of class; I am glad I was never part of that world as I have no idea where I would have fitted in. Show Less
LibraryThing member Meredy
Six-word review: Interwoven narratives personalize 1940s British India.
Extended review:
The first volume in the acclaimed Raj Quartet weaves a complex web of causal and peripheral connections among people and events during the final few years of British rule in India. The rape of a young
I watched the miniseries based on this four-part novel on PBS's Masterpiece Theatre when it was first shown in the 1980s, and parts of it remain vivid in my mind even after thirty years. The principal characters in the novel have the faces that the TV production gave them. From this distance, I think my memory of the series enhances my experience of the novel rather than diminishing it. Naturally the novel treats the subject to far greater depth and breadth than is possible in a television script, even a long one.
After a pause for some lighter fare, I'm looking forward to continuing with volume 2, The Day of the Scorpion.
Extended review:
The first volume in the acclaimed Raj Quartet weaves a complex web of causal and peripheral connections among people and events during the final few years of British rule in India. The rape of a young
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Englishwoman by a gang of Indian toughs is posed as a precipitating incident, but not an isolated one. Imperialism, racism, presumption of privilege, social class, military versus civilian mindsets, and cultural identity are among many themes that this weighty novel explores while illuminating a tumultuous place and period in recent world history.I watched the miniseries based on this four-part novel on PBS's Masterpiece Theatre when it was first shown in the 1980s, and parts of it remain vivid in my mind even after thirty years. The principal characters in the novel have the faces that the TV production gave them. From this distance, I think my memory of the series enhances my experience of the novel rather than diminishing it. Naturally the novel treats the subject to far greater depth and breadth than is possible in a television script, even a long one.
After a pause for some lighter fare, I'm looking forward to continuing with volume 2, The Day of the Scorpion.
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LibraryThing member Helenliz
It took me a very long time to get into this. I think it benefits long sustained periods of reading, not a 10 minutes before bed type of reading. It also puts me in mind of the question"where does a story start" as this attempts to portray the events leading up to the rape of an English girl in
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India, during WW2. And it starts, in one sense, a very long way away from the story it is trying to tell. It uses a device of later investigation to present memories, letters, journals and answers to questions asked by an invisible enquirer. That this person is not identified left me intrigued. The cast of characters was very interesting, a real rag bag of people and types. And some people surfaced to say their bit before disappearing again. Knowing this is the first part of a quartet, I do wonder if they will be fleshed out later. Show Less
LibraryThing member milti
It took a while to get through, but what an amazing and detailed portrayal of life in India in the days of the Raj!
LibraryThing member Cecrow
I read this novel for comparison with "A Passage to India," which I tackled earlier this year and thought was fantastic. The Wikipedia entry for "Jewel" described it as a rewriting of "Passage," but that's an exaggeration. True, the setting is India in the descending phase of the Raj's grandeur,
The writing often feels laboured, and in many places I was buried in descriptive passages and detail that slowed me to a crawl. I worried it might all be like this, but other reviews led me to anticipate the variety in approach that relieves the story: standard 3rd person telling, followed by a mysterious male character's viewpoint as he investigates and looks back on events from several years later; and then also the letters that are exchanged between characters which make up a significant portion. The author takes just about the longest route imaginable to tell the story of what's essentially one simple event, but at least some of the interim is spent on adding new revelations to previously visited scenes, creating small "aha" moments. The rest of the time, you are learning enormous amounts about the setting and situation.
There's a peculiar aspect of this novel that could be considered either its greatest strength or its weakness: its very direct analysis of English-Indian relations. "Passage" is the more literate work, building on delicate metaphor and what's to be read between the lines. "Jewel" by contrast offers a very matter-of-fact study. I was sometimes wondering if Scott should have tried his hand at a non-fiction piece instead. The points being made are still intriguing of course. For example there's the straight line drawn between the alien feeling a British person would encounter on arrival in India and the effect of the escape he or she turned to: the clubs, the facilities, etc that catered to the British as priority citizens and began to rub off on them. New arrivals shortly began finding themselves looking down upon Indians, however open-minded they were prepared to be. On reflection, "Passage" demonstrated this in action through its showing technique. "Jewel" simply tells you.
"Jewel" lacks the lyricism and immortality of "Passage", but it makes for fine supplementary reading and comes with the bonus of sequels. I still enjoyed it and I'll recommend it, but with the caution that it's a needlessly sticky read in one respect while being blatantly clear in another. I'll also suggest reading "A Passage to India" first for the chronology, and for being the better novel of the two.
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and much of the plot centers around the assault of an English woman. But the differences are also significant. "Passage" was written in the 1920s when eventual Indian independence was expected but had not yet arrived. "Jewel" covers the 1940s period as that independence moved at last towards realization, and with a 1960s knowledge of the outcome.The writing often feels laboured, and in many places I was buried in descriptive passages and detail that slowed me to a crawl. I worried it might all be like this, but other reviews led me to anticipate the variety in approach that relieves the story: standard 3rd person telling, followed by a mysterious male character's viewpoint as he investigates and looks back on events from several years later; and then also the letters that are exchanged between characters which make up a significant portion. The author takes just about the longest route imaginable to tell the story of what's essentially one simple event, but at least some of the interim is spent on adding new revelations to previously visited scenes, creating small "aha" moments. The rest of the time, you are learning enormous amounts about the setting and situation.
There's a peculiar aspect of this novel that could be considered either its greatest strength or its weakness: its very direct analysis of English-Indian relations. "Passage" is the more literate work, building on delicate metaphor and what's to be read between the lines. "Jewel" by contrast offers a very matter-of-fact study. I was sometimes wondering if Scott should have tried his hand at a non-fiction piece instead. The points being made are still intriguing of course. For example there's the straight line drawn between the alien feeling a British person would encounter on arrival in India and the effect of the escape he or she turned to: the clubs, the facilities, etc that catered to the British as priority citizens and began to rub off on them. New arrivals shortly began finding themselves looking down upon Indians, however open-minded they were prepared to be. On reflection, "Passage" demonstrated this in action through its showing technique. "Jewel" simply tells you.
"Jewel" lacks the lyricism and immortality of "Passage", but it makes for fine supplementary reading and comes with the bonus of sequels. I still enjoyed it and I'll recommend it, but with the caution that it's a needlessly sticky read in one respect while being blatantly clear in another. I'll also suggest reading "A Passage to India" first for the chronology, and for being the better novel of the two.
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LibraryThing member Mercury57
The opening of the book plunges you into the atmosphere of India and the start of an epic journey through the dying days of India under British rule. Tension is already mounting in the country with increasing support for Ghandi and his supporters against the establishment. When Daphne Manners, a
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young English girl, begins a well-meaning but niaive, relationship with an Indian boy Hari Kumar, the status quo is further disrupted. But no-one in the town of Mayapore could have predicted the disastrous consequences that follow. On a dark monsoon night amid an outbreak of anti-British rioting, Daphne is raped by a gang of Indian men. It's a complex story of love across the cultural divide and of jealousy that seeks its revenge through physical and mental torture. Show Less
LibraryThing member Abhishek23
well, this book is intense.with the colonial backdrop,this book harbours a love story.this book is all about daphne and hari.although the protagonist arrives late in the story,the way in which story builds is fabulous.there are lots of character in this story and every one is described in
this book is all about the incident at bibighar gardens and the whole story revolves around it.right from the beginning till to the end.
also this book has a slow pace but a interesting read for contemporary arts lovers.
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detail.this book is all about the incident at bibighar gardens and the whole story revolves around it.right from the beginning till to the end.
also this book has a slow pace but a interesting read for contemporary arts lovers.
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LibraryThing member rmaitzen
"There are the action, the people, and the place; all of which are interrelated but in their totality incommunicable in isolation from the moral continuum of human affairs."
LibraryThing member brenzi
”This is the story of a rape, of the events that led up to it and followed it and of the place in which it happened. There are the action, the people and the place; all of which are interrelated but in their totality incommunicable in isolation from the moral continuum of human affairs.”
In
The narrative is compelling and is related by several different characters who readily spell out the conditions in India at this time. It should come as no surprise that race is at the center of everything. I mean, isn’t it always?
Yes, as the author says, this is the story of a rape. But for me it was actually a story of RACE. And I will be looking forward to the second volume which I planned to read next month. If I can wait that long. Simply divine.
In
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1942, after the Japanese defeated the English in Burma, Mhatma Ghandi was encouraging sedition and the British living in the confines of “the jewel in the crown,” India, were starting to feel the pressure of the Indian people on their continued rule over them. It was the beginning of the end of the Raj, but most of the British living in India didn’t realize it yet. Paul Scott’s novel tells the story in breathtaking prose by delineating the story of an Indian man and an English woman who fall in love. This is of course, taboo, at a time when the question of race was more significant than just about anything else.The narrative is compelling and is related by several different characters who readily spell out the conditions in India at this time. It should come as no surprise that race is at the center of everything. I mean, isn’t it always?
Yes, as the author says, this is the story of a rape. But for me it was actually a story of RACE. And I will be looking forward to the second volume which I planned to read next month. If I can wait that long. Simply divine.
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LibraryThing member KLmesoftly
This was a hard one to get into! It's written as a compilation of journal entries, letters, and interview extracts interspersed with more traditional narrative, kind of a House of Leaves-esque found document novel. What's frustrating is that all of the writing concerns the relationship between 2
I'm interested to read the next installment in the series to see where exactly this is going.
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people (well, 3, really) but we don't get to hear directly from either of them until about 250 pages in, which is where the book finally started to really grab me in more than just a "this is valuable for me to read even though it is a bit of a slog" sense. I'm interested to read the next installment in the series to see where exactly this is going.
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LibraryThing member John
Inspired by The Siege of Krishanpur, and by memory of the wonderful BBC production of The Jewel in the Crown, I picked this up at a second hand bookstore and read it at the cottage. Norma had made the comment that she enjoyed the BBC show better than the book, and I can understand why. The book
Scott describes beautifully the landscape and the cities of India, and even more so the entirely confused and confusing nexus of relationships between the British colonial masters and the peoples that they were ostensibly trying to help; not to mention the incredibly petty snobberies of the English, many of whom, pathetically, have little else to define themselves and their places in society. Even the poorest of the British class could feel superior to the most highly educated and articulate Indian, and the cats-cradle of social relationships and boundaries develops from there on up. Scott is very thoughtful on the meaning of the colonial experience and its real impact on the people, both the rulers and the ruled.
An excellent, and stimulating book. I will look for the rest of the trilogy.
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ranges across a wide number of scenes and players with the central story of a rape, and what it comes to represent in terms of British/Indian relationships, told from different perspectives and different timelines; the BBC show brings it together into a tighter narrative line. But the book is very good. Scott describes beautifully the landscape and the cities of India, and even more so the entirely confused and confusing nexus of relationships between the British colonial masters and the peoples that they were ostensibly trying to help; not to mention the incredibly petty snobberies of the English, many of whom, pathetically, have little else to define themselves and their places in society. Even the poorest of the British class could feel superior to the most highly educated and articulate Indian, and the cats-cradle of social relationships and boundaries develops from there on up. Scott is very thoughtful on the meaning of the colonial experience and its real impact on the people, both the rulers and the ruled.
An excellent, and stimulating book. I will look for the rest of the trilogy.
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LibraryThing member idiotgirl
A wonderful book. Listened on audible. Now committed to the Raj Quartet. I had seen this on Masterpiece as a straightforward narrative. This book is an amazing circling. A web of indirection. Various voices. Never quite direct, but almost, on the story of the rape around which this novel circles.
I love India. Been there twice in the past few years. Trying to make sense. Reading from many angles. I had read the epilogue to the Quartet. Staying on. Now going forward. Watching again. This was a wonderful book.
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Various voices. Letters. Diaries. Someone, not quite focalized is in the 1960s trying to reconstruct this story that happens on a very specific day, at a very specific time, at a very specific place in 1942 I love India. Been there twice in the past few years. Trying to make sense. Reading from many angles. I had read the epilogue to the Quartet. Staying on. Now going forward. Watching again. This was a wonderful book.
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LibraryThing member Matke
The first and most famous of Scott’s Raj Quartet series is...mixed. Some of the writing is wonderful, and Scott beautifully portrays the middle- to upper-class India of the World War 2 years. His characters are realistic and fully developed.
But...two things. First, the plot, which goes pretty
And then we get to the incident, and still we’re looking at reactions. Unfortunately the author uses a sort of epistolary approach in the last section, and there are pages of history and speculation. While there’s some interest in that, it’s still an info dump, and it goes on and on.
Perhaps the most revealing part of the book is presented as Daphne’s diary. Daphne is a well-intentioned, young British woman living in India, trying desperately to overcome the barriers between the two cultures. That’s the tension in the story. Some readers will think she succeeds, and admirably so. I don’t think so. She tries, and tries hard, but she fails.
This is a difficult book—I mean, difficult to analyze and fully understand. I think it would reward multiple readings.
But...two things. First, the plot, which goes pretty
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much nowhere for about 300 pages. The incident on which the whole book turns, an assault on Daphne Manners, is pushed aside for a long time while the author studies the reactions of his characters, and the motivations that cause those reactions. And then we get to the incident, and still we’re looking at reactions. Unfortunately the author uses a sort of epistolary approach in the last section, and there are pages of history and speculation. While there’s some interest in that, it’s still an info dump, and it goes on and on.
Perhaps the most revealing part of the book is presented as Daphne’s diary. Daphne is a well-intentioned, young British woman living in India, trying desperately to overcome the barriers between the two cultures. That’s the tension in the story. Some readers will think she succeeds, and admirably so. I don’t think so. She tries, and tries hard, but she fails.
This is a difficult book—I mean, difficult to analyze and fully understand. I think it would reward multiple readings.
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LibraryThing member PilgrimJess
"There's a difference between trying to stop an injustice and obstructing justice."
Set in 1942, shortly after the collapse of British Burma and the Japanese forces threatening other British colonies in the east, 'The Jewel in the Crown' is the first book in Scott's Raj quartet which cover the final
The novel is told as if the incident is being investigated years later from the point of view of a number of characters and times using a variety of forms, from diaries and letters to interviews which allows the author to cover a number of topics such as the war, the independence movement and various social, political and religious concerns of the time without the reader being sidetracked by too much extraneous plot.
Using a sexual assault to explore themes of race and class is nothing new, in fact it had already been done within a colonial Indian context in 'A Passage to India' as well as more modern classics like 'To Kill a Mockingbird'. However, what I found the most interesting aspect of this book was the tale of Hari. In an age where migration seems to have become the norm I found his experiences thought provoking. How are we altered, even benignly, when we move to another country and would we or our offspring be ever able to resettle back in their home nation? Or is it simply a matter of the age we are when we do it? My own brother has lived in Germany for over thirty years (not as varied as Britain and India I realise) but was left wondering just how he would manage if he moved back and would his children be able to do so? Equally is his presence in the country having any affects on the natives that he comes into contact with?
This is not an easy read by any means. Some of the topics are difficult and uncomfortable reading, Britain doesn't come out of it very well as you would expect, but I also feel that at times it was rather over-blown (there are a lot of brackets) and could have done with some judicious editing. However, I still feel that it is worth tackling and as such am moving on to the next in the series.
Set in 1942, shortly after the collapse of British Burma and the Japanese forces threatening other British colonies in the east, 'The Jewel in the Crown' is the first book in Scott's Raj quartet which cover the final
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decline of the British Raj in India. The novel features such hefty issues as racism, class and colonialism but revolves around one particular incident, the rape of a young English woman. The novel is told as if the incident is being investigated years later from the point of view of a number of characters and times using a variety of forms, from diaries and letters to interviews which allows the author to cover a number of topics such as the war, the independence movement and various social, political and religious concerns of the time without the reader being sidetracked by too much extraneous plot.
Using a sexual assault to explore themes of race and class is nothing new, in fact it had already been done within a colonial Indian context in 'A Passage to India' as well as more modern classics like 'To Kill a Mockingbird'. However, what I found the most interesting aspect of this book was the tale of Hari. In an age where migration seems to have become the norm I found his experiences thought provoking. How are we altered, even benignly, when we move to another country and would we or our offspring be ever able to resettle back in their home nation? Or is it simply a matter of the age we are when we do it? My own brother has lived in Germany for over thirty years (not as varied as Britain and India I realise) but was left wondering just how he would manage if he moved back and would his children be able to do so? Equally is his presence in the country having any affects on the natives that he comes into contact with?
This is not an easy read by any means. Some of the topics are difficult and uncomfortable reading, Britain doesn't come out of it very well as you would expect, but I also feel that at times it was rather over-blown (there are a lot of brackets) and could have done with some judicious editing. However, I still feel that it is worth tackling and as such am moving on to the next in the series.
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LibraryThing member rainpebble
The Jewel in the Crown by Paul Scott; (4 1/2*)
Jewel in the Crown (1966) focuses on "an interracial love affair between Daphne Manners and Hari Kumar [AKA: Harry Coomer], and the repercussions of the rape of Daphne in the Bibighar Gardens in Mayapore [fictional city in India] on August 9, 1942. It
"The Jewel in the Crown" is a novel that takes place primarily in British-controlled India in the 1940s. The central story is that of a young British woman named Daphne Manners who is living in Mayapore, a fictional Indian town. Daphne falls in love with an Indian man named Hari Kumar, who was raised in England but returned upon the death of his father. Their relationship is controversial in the small town where the Europeans, Indians, and those of mixed race are all segregated into separate parts of town.
Daphne and Hari meet one night in a secluded park called the Bibighar Gardens where they make love for the first time. Afterward they are attacked by a group of drunken Indian thugs. Hari is tied up and Daphne is raped.
Fearing Hari will be blamed for the rape Daphne makes him promise to say nothing about being with her in the gardens. He is later arrested along with some other young men by Ronald Merrick, a British police superintendent, who has designs on Daphne himself. Hari says nothing in his own defense except that he was not at the gardens that night. Daphne refuses to cooperate in identifying the other young men in fear of implicating Hari.
With no strong evidence the rape charges are dropped against Hari and the others but they are found guilty of political crimes against the British occupation and sent to prison. Daphne and Hari never see each other again. She becomes pregnant after the night in the garden and later dies in childbirth.
It is a time of political unrest in India. The British have promised to leave India to govern itself for many years, but when World War II breaks out Britain fears that the Japanese will invade India if they leave. Indian leaders like Mahatma Gandhi call for the British to leave and the British administrative and military establishment actively try to suppress any unrest in the towns.
It is against the backdrop of a short period of public protest and unrest that most of the events of The Jewel in the Crown take place. The tensions between the native Indian population of the town and the British civil and military authorities are high. Political, racial and religious differences create a dangerous and uncertain environment when the long standing traditions of British rule begin to unravel.
The novel is written in several episodes and Scott frequently changes the point of view, letting the same story be told through the eyes of different characters. Events are not presented in strict chronological order, and the actual facts of what happens on the night of Daphne's rape are not revealed until the final pages.
I loved this book and was enthralled by the writing style of Scott. I liked how he grew his characters and was fascinated by even the ones I came to hate, specifically Merrick. But reader, beware: the reading of this book may just cause you to fall in love with India as it did this one. I am looking forward to reading the other 3 books in the series.
Jewel in the Crown (1966) focuses on "an interracial love affair between Daphne Manners and Hari Kumar [AKA: Harry Coomer], and the repercussions of the rape of Daphne in the Bibighar Gardens in Mayapore [fictional city in India] on August 9, 1942. It
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is a moment when the [British] Raj feels (once again) threatened by the disturbances consequent on Gandhi's 'Quit India' campaign. Hari Kumar is arrested . . . and interrogated by a personage who will haunt the [Raj] Quartet, District Superintendent of Police Ronald Merrick. The 'imperial embrace' in which Britain and India are locked has become personal" (Brann 182). "The Jewel in the Crown" is a novel that takes place primarily in British-controlled India in the 1940s. The central story is that of a young British woman named Daphne Manners who is living in Mayapore, a fictional Indian town. Daphne falls in love with an Indian man named Hari Kumar, who was raised in England but returned upon the death of his father. Their relationship is controversial in the small town where the Europeans, Indians, and those of mixed race are all segregated into separate parts of town.
Daphne and Hari meet one night in a secluded park called the Bibighar Gardens where they make love for the first time. Afterward they are attacked by a group of drunken Indian thugs. Hari is tied up and Daphne is raped.
Fearing Hari will be blamed for the rape Daphne makes him promise to say nothing about being with her in the gardens. He is later arrested along with some other young men by Ronald Merrick, a British police superintendent, who has designs on Daphne himself. Hari says nothing in his own defense except that he was not at the gardens that night. Daphne refuses to cooperate in identifying the other young men in fear of implicating Hari.
With no strong evidence the rape charges are dropped against Hari and the others but they are found guilty of political crimes against the British occupation and sent to prison. Daphne and Hari never see each other again. She becomes pregnant after the night in the garden and later dies in childbirth.
It is a time of political unrest in India. The British have promised to leave India to govern itself for many years, but when World War II breaks out Britain fears that the Japanese will invade India if they leave. Indian leaders like Mahatma Gandhi call for the British to leave and the British administrative and military establishment actively try to suppress any unrest in the towns.
It is against the backdrop of a short period of public protest and unrest that most of the events of The Jewel in the Crown take place. The tensions between the native Indian population of the town and the British civil and military authorities are high. Political, racial and religious differences create a dangerous and uncertain environment when the long standing traditions of British rule begin to unravel.
The novel is written in several episodes and Scott frequently changes the point of view, letting the same story be told through the eyes of different characters. Events are not presented in strict chronological order, and the actual facts of what happens on the night of Daphne's rape are not revealed until the final pages.
I loved this book and was enthralled by the writing style of Scott. I liked how he grew his characters and was fascinated by even the ones I came to hate, specifically Merrick. But reader, beware: the reading of this book may just cause you to fall in love with India as it did this one. I am looking forward to reading the other 3 books in the series.
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LibraryThing member waldhaus1
This takes place at around the time India became independent of the British Empire. It deals with racial issues in a relatively sensitive way. I lot of cultural color from that era. It involves the early 40s when England was still deep in WW II. It is part of a 4 book sequence called The Raj. I
I was in India several years ago and had a fascinating time there. I recognize it is a world apart from the one I live in but I have to say I found it very vibrant and energetic.
Learning more about India always seems worthwhile.
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suspect it will take me a while to work my way through the series.I was in India several years ago and had a fascinating time there. I recognize it is a world apart from the one I live in but I have to say I found it very vibrant and energetic.
Learning more about India always seems worthwhile.
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Language
Original language
English
ISBN
0380404109 / 9780380404100
Original publication date
1966