A Passage to India - Forster's Comic Irony
             What aspect of A Passage to India justifies the novel's superiority over Forster's other works? Perhaps it is the novel's display of Forster's excellent mastery of several literary elements that places it among the greatest novels of the twentieth century. Among these literary elements, Forster's comic irony stands out, and throughout the entire novel, the author satirizes the English, the Indians, and the Anglo-Indian relationship. Frederick P. W. McDowell confirms this sentiment when saying "Forster, in his description (of characters), is the witty satirist..." (100).
             Most of the English officials are presented satirically. Turton, Burton, McBryde, and Major Callendar are all victims of Forster's scornful eye. Even the wives of these men cannot escape the light mockery of Forster. For example, the Turtons are introduced as unquestionably arrogant, although Mrs. Turton is far more haughty. Mrs. Turton automatically relegates all Indians to the servant class and is determined to prevent her culture from being "adulterated" by that of India. Mr. Turton and the other officials, more or less following Mrs. Turton's example, all accept to a degree the assumption of Indian inferiority. With only this in mind, it seems plausible to assume that Forster places the blame of the Anglo-Indian clash on the English.
             However, the Indians do not escape Forster's irony, either. Forster chooses Aziz to represent and symbolize the Muslim religion, and Islam is depicted in a decadent state celebrating only in the past through Aziz's flamboyant poems. Aziz himself admits that he finds it difficult to maintain his faith. The participants of his religious festivals, which are utterly pointless, debate insignificant topics. Aziz simultaneously seems to be in states of perpetual sadness and contempt for Hindus because of the decline of the Muslim religion. The pathos of this entire scenario cannot be ignored....