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 Tagore’s novel Gora demonstrat

demonstrates
es the internalized
internalized casteism. The presenter’s
presenter’s 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
constructed by a preconceive
preconceived
d archetype
archetype or false assumption
assumption by redefining
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

conclusion can be that the problem of internalized
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.
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Tagore and Caste

It is quite reasonably
reasonably known that in India naming ceremony
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 person’s 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 India’s 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, 2 nd 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 
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In the changing
changing image of caste conscious
consciousness
ness,, Inferiority
Inferiority and Superiority
Superiority are felt by

looking at others. People, knowingly or unknowingly construct pre-conceived notions about

othe
otherr peop
people
le of the
the caste
caste like
like Brah
Brahmo
mo Sama
Samajj if we thin
think
k in the
the term
termss of Orien
Orienta
tali
list
st

 perspective
 perspective.. Such false assumption
assumptionss about
about others
others always generate
generate the feelings of inferiority
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 Anandamoyi’s 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

criticizing the other translated
translated woman.
woman. Though Hybridity
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 21 th century generation. Theory of Orientalism

in Gora seemingly
seemingly brings the argument
argument that one is powerful
powerful so is active, whereas another is

  powerless so is passive. E.g. Binoy and Gora are the chief characters of the novel. Gora
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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 Gora’s 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 a t 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 Anandamoyi’s 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
the othe
otherr hand
hand,, Gora
Gora’s
’s cons
conser
erva
vati
tism
sm lead
leadss him
him to beco
become
me aware
aware of what
what

community or religion he belongs to. Gora having being educated from one Pundit about

Vedant
Vedantaa philos
philosoph
ophy
y and decoru
decorum
m sounds
sounds like evils
evils in the relatio
relationsh
nships
ips with
with others.
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
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Gora
Gora has
has just
just beco
become
me aware
aware of what
what Hind
Hindui
uism
sm is,
is, but
but appl
applica
icati
tion
on is yet
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 another’s 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
a nd of 

ideological backbones? So Gora’s being ideologically firm in Hinduism orientally challenges

the distin
distincti
ction
on in betwee
between.
n. Quite
Quite contra
contrary
ry Eastern
Eastern ideolo
ideology
gy is studyi
studying
ng and observ
observing
ing

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 Pareshbabu’s 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
study about
about the Western
Western and Easter
Eastern
n philos
philosoph
ophy
y and intera
interactio
ction
n in betwee
between.
n. E.g.
E.g. Lolit
Lolitaa

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
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the cultural dualism and ideologica

ideologicall biases
biases in the form of admiring
admiring themselves,
themselves, particularly
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.”
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
staunch Hindu drowns towards Sucharita, but once, considered
considered commitment
commitment to nationalism
nationalism

 based upon the Hindu values as a good, turns out into evil in the sense social phenomenon

like Hinduism separates Gora’s 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

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is looked down as low brows by the high brows is quite relevant. The classy language spoken

 by Gora throughout the novel’s 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. To-

day 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 identi
identity
ty once
once remain
remained
ed secret,
secret, is reveal
revealed
ed before
before other
other charact
characters
ers as an Irishm
Irishman’
an’ss

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
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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
Wikipedia contributo
contributors.
rs. "Brahmo
"Brahmo Samaj."
Samaj." Wikipedi
Wikipedia,
a, The Free Encyclo
Encyclopedia . Wikipedia,
pedia

The Free Encyclopedia, 17 Dec. 2011. Web. 15 Jan. 2012.