Abstract
Ruth Prawer Jhabvala’s Heat and Dust explores the complex interplay between colonialism, cultural alienation, and the oppressive Indian climate, particularly through the lens of tropical invalidism. The novel juxtaposes two parallel narratives, following Olivia, a British woman in 1920s colonial India, and her step-granddaughter, an unnamed narrator, who retraces Olivia’s journey in the 1970s. Both women’s experiences reveal the persistent struggles of Westerners attempting to navigate India’s cultural and environmental challenges. A central theme in the novel is the physical and psychological toll of the Indian climate on European settlers. The oppressive heat and dust, coupled with tropical diseases, expose the colonizers’ vulnerabilities and undermine their illusion of superiority. Jhabvala’s depiction of characters such as Olivia, Douglas, Harry, and Chid highlights the colonial experience as one of decline rather than dominance. Their frequent illnesses, reliance on hill stations like Simla, and ultimate withdrawal from India reflect the unsustainable nature of colonial rule. Furthermore, the novel critiques imperialist ideology by illustrating how colonial settlers perceived India as both alluring and hostile. The European fear of disease and environmental hardship underscores the broader anxieties of colonialism, revealing the contradictions at its core.
References
- Anderson W. 2006, Colonial Pathologies: American Tropical Medicine, Race, and Hygiene in the Philippines. Duke University Press.
- Ashcroft B., Griffiths G. and Tiffin, H. 2004, The Empire Writes Back: Theory and Practice in Post-Colonial Literature. Taylor & Francis e-Library.
- Bewell A. 1999, Romanticism and Colonial Disease. Johns Hopkins University Press.
- Campbell E. 1995, Re-Visions, Re-Flections, Re-Creations: Epistolarity in Novels by Contemporary Women. Twentieth Century Literature, 41(3), 332–348. https://doi.org/10.2307/441856
- Crane R. J. 1992, Ruth Prawer Jhabvala. Twayne Publishers.
- Crozier A. 2007, Sensationalising Africa: British Medical Impressions of Sub-Saharan Africa, 1890–1939. The Journal of Imperial and Commonwealth History, 35(3), 393–415. https://doi.org/10.1080/03086530701523401
- Edmond R. 2005, Returning Fears: Tropical Disease and the Metropolis. In F. Driver & L. Martins (Eds.), Tropical Visions in an Age of Empire (pp. 175-194). University of Chicago Press.
- Jhabvala R. P. 1987, Heat and Dust. Fireside.
- Jhabvala R. P. 1993, Out of India: Selected Stories. HarperCollins.
- Johnson J. & Martin, J. R. 1841, Observations on the Diseases and Regimen of Invalids on Their Return from Hot and Unhealthy Climates. London: S. Highley.
- Kanwar P. 1984, The Changing Profile of the Summer Capital of British India: Simla 1864–1947. Modern Asian Studies, 18(2), 215–236.
- Lind J. 1788, An Essay on Diseases Incidental to Europeans in Hot Climates. With the Method of Preventing Their Fatal Consequences (4th ed.). London: Murray.
- Mahony M., & Endfield G.H. 2018, Climate and Colonialism. Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Climate Change, 9(2), e510. https://doi.org/10.1002/wcc.510
- Martin J. R. 1856, The Influence of Tropical Climates on European Constitutions, Including Practical Observations on the Nature and Treatment of the Diseases of Europeans on Their Return from Tropical Climates. London: Churchill.
- Naraindas H. 1996, Poisons, Putrescence and the Weather: A Genealogy of the Advent of Tropical Medicine Contributions to Indian Sociology 30(1), 35. https://doi.org/10.1177/006996679603000101
- Rogers C. 2012, Jungle Fever: Exploring Madness and Medicine in Twentieth-Century Tropical Narratives. Vanderbilt University Press.
- Senior E. 2018, The Caribbean and the Medical Imagination, 1764–1834: Slavery, Disease, and Colonial Modernity. Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108241977
- Sharma A. R. 1976, Review of Heat and Dust, by R. P. Jhabvala. Indian Literature, 19(5), 153–157. http://www.jstor.org/stable/24157368
- Taylor-Pirie E. 2022, Empire Under the Microscope: Parasitology and the British Literary Imagination, 1885–1935. Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-84717-3
Abstract
Ruth Prawer Jhabvala’nın Heat and Dust adlı romanı, özellikle tropikal hastalıklar bağlamında, sömürgecilik, kültürel yabancılaşma ve Hindistan’ın baskıcı iklimi arasındaki karmaşık etkileşimi ele alır. Roman, 1920’lerin sömürge Hindistan’ında yaşayan Britanyalı Olivia ile 1970’lerde onun izinden giden, adı belirtilmeyen üvey torununun paralel anlatıları arasında bir karşılaştırma yapar. Her iki kadının deneyimleri, Batılıların Hindistan’ın kültürel ve çevresel zorluklarıyla başa çıkma konusundaki süregelen mücadelesini gözler önüne serer. Romanda merkezi bir tema, Hindistan’ın ikliminin Avrupalı yerleşimciler üzerindeki fiziksel ve psikolojik etkisidir. Bunaltıcı sıcak ve toz, tropikal hastalıklarla birleşerek sömürgecilerin kırılganlığını açığa çıkarır ve onların üstünlük yanılsamasını sarsar. Jhabvala, Olivia, Douglas, Harry ve Chid gibi karakterleri aracılığıyla sömürgecilik deneyimini hâkimiyet değil, çöküş süreci olarak tasvir eder. Bu karakterlerin sık sık hastalanması, Simla gibi tepe istasyonlarına bağımlılıkları ve nihayetinde Hindistan’dan geri çekilmeleri, sömürge yönetiminin sürdürülemez doğasını yansıtır. Ayrıca roman, sömürgeci ideolojiyi eleştirerek, Avrupalı yerleşimcilerin Hindistan’ı hem cezbedici hem de düşmanca bir yer olarak algıladıklarını gösterir. Avrupalıların hastalık ve çevresel zorluklara dair duyduğu korku, sömürgeciliğin daha geniş çaplı kaygılarını açığa çıkararak onun temel çelişkilerini gözler önüne serer.
References
- Anderson W. 2006, Colonial Pathologies: American Tropical Medicine, Race, and Hygiene in the Philippines. Duke University Press.
- Ashcroft B., Griffiths G. and Tiffin, H. 2004, The Empire Writes Back: Theory and Practice in Post-Colonial Literature. Taylor & Francis e-Library.
- Bewell A. 1999, Romanticism and Colonial Disease. Johns Hopkins University Press.
- Campbell E. 1995, Re-Visions, Re-Flections, Re-Creations: Epistolarity in Novels by Contemporary Women. Twentieth Century Literature, 41(3), 332–348. https://doi.org/10.2307/441856
- Crane R. J. 1992, Ruth Prawer Jhabvala. Twayne Publishers.
- Crozier A. 2007, Sensationalising Africa: British Medical Impressions of Sub-Saharan Africa, 1890–1939. The Journal of Imperial and Commonwealth History, 35(3), 393–415. https://doi.org/10.1080/03086530701523401
- Edmond R. 2005, Returning Fears: Tropical Disease and the Metropolis. In F. Driver & L. Martins (Eds.), Tropical Visions in an Age of Empire (pp. 175-194). University of Chicago Press.
- Jhabvala R. P. 1987, Heat and Dust. Fireside.
- Jhabvala R. P. 1993, Out of India: Selected Stories. HarperCollins.
- Johnson J. & Martin, J. R. 1841, Observations on the Diseases and Regimen of Invalids on Their Return from Hot and Unhealthy Climates. London: S. Highley.
- Kanwar P. 1984, The Changing Profile of the Summer Capital of British India: Simla 1864–1947. Modern Asian Studies, 18(2), 215–236.
- Lind J. 1788, An Essay on Diseases Incidental to Europeans in Hot Climates. With the Method of Preventing Their Fatal Consequences (4th ed.). London: Murray.
- Mahony M., & Endfield G.H. 2018, Climate and Colonialism. Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Climate Change, 9(2), e510. https://doi.org/10.1002/wcc.510
- Martin J. R. 1856, The Influence of Tropical Climates on European Constitutions, Including Practical Observations on the Nature and Treatment of the Diseases of Europeans on Their Return from Tropical Climates. London: Churchill.
- Naraindas H. 1996, Poisons, Putrescence and the Weather: A Genealogy of the Advent of Tropical Medicine Contributions to Indian Sociology 30(1), 35. https://doi.org/10.1177/006996679603000101
- Rogers C. 2012, Jungle Fever: Exploring Madness and Medicine in Twentieth-Century Tropical Narratives. Vanderbilt University Press.
- Senior E. 2018, The Caribbean and the Medical Imagination, 1764–1834: Slavery, Disease, and Colonial Modernity. Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108241977
- Sharma A. R. 1976, Review of Heat and Dust, by R. P. Jhabvala. Indian Literature, 19(5), 153–157. http://www.jstor.org/stable/24157368
- Taylor-Pirie E. 2022, Empire Under the Microscope: Parasitology and the British Literary Imagination, 1885–1935. Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-84717-3
Details
| Primary Language | English |
|---|---|
| Subjects | European Language, Literature and Culture |
| Journal Section | Araştırma Makaleleri |
| Authors | |
| Publication Date | June 27, 2025 |
| Submission Date | March 12, 2025 |
| Acceptance Date | May 21, 2025 |
| Published in Issue | Year 2025 Volume: 15 Issue: 1 |
| Adres: Akdeniz İnsani Bilimler Dergisi Akdeniz Üniversitesi, Edebiyat Fakültesi 07058 Kampüs, Antalya / TÜRKİYE | E-Posta: mjh@akdeniz.edu.tr |