Nawab+and+Olivia's+meeting+-+Michael+R,+Riowena,+Shavonne,+John

//Heat and Dust// by Ruth Prawler Jhabvala is a novel set in rural India during the 1970’s era, where the protagonist Anne desires to hunt through the past to uncover the mystery of her predecessor Olivia Rivers. Through Olivia’s letters written during the 1920’s and the help of the Indians, Anne begins to have an increased insight on the beginning of Olivia’s affair with an Indian ruler known as the Nawab. In this passage, the Nawab visits Olivia for the very first time, reflecting her beginning relationships with the country she lives in as well as other characters around her and entailing how these relationships will develop throughout the storyline.
 * Establishing and Developing Relationships**

In this passage Olivia’s future discontentment with India is implied through her reluctance to accept India as well as her expressions of boredom. Every day when Olivia wakes up, “all the blinds and shutters” are let down and she dresses in “pastel muslins”. The closed blinds and shutters blockade the very heat and dust that represents India, thus Olivia’s command to close them displays her unwillingness to truly experience India. In addition, she decides to wear European muslins rather than Indian saris; this choice of European clothing over Indian attire further exhibits her reluctance to accept the Indian culture and conform to Indian society. In addition, Olivia compares her lifestyle in London to her life in India. In London, she is “a very introspective person” who “loved having hours and hours to herself” whereas in India although “the entire day was her own”, she is usually “half in tears with boredom and fatigue.” In both places Olivia has the leisure of an abundance of free time, yet in London she enjoys being free but feels burdened by it in India. The clear contrast between her positive perspectives on having time in London and her hatred of the same thing in India illustrates that Olivia cannot amuse herself in India like she did in London, therefore foreshadowing Olivia’s unsuccessfulness with India later on in the novel. Ultimately, Olivia’s feelings of boredom and her desire to avoid India imply that she will have future trouble with India. (__Michael Ren)__

The absence of time spent together between Olivia and Douglas results in an increasing distance in their relationship. Douglas is not around half the time, and because of this, he does not give Olivia the attention, time, and love that she needs from her husband. He “always [gets] up at the crack of dawn” to go to work and then does not “come home again till late in the evening”, and even then he “always has files” that he needs to work on. This proves that their relationship does not have the strength and stability to endure since they barely get to see each other. Because Douglas is never home, this leaves the “entire day [as Olivia's] own”. When he returns home in the evenings he expects to find Olivia “half in tears with boredom and fatigue”. Since he anticipates finding Olivia in this state, it shows that he is too busy to worry about her troubles and try to mitigate them. Douglas’ lack of devotion and consideration again displays the shortage of effort that is being put into their marriage.Olivia and Douglas’ time spent apart establishes their deteriorating relationship, as there is insufficient communication or intimacy to sustain a solid connection between husband and wife. (__Shavonne Ravlich)__

During the course of the scene, the Nawab is established as the dominant character in the developing relationship between him and Olivia. When the Nawab first visits Olivia, he is addressed as ‘Nawab Sahib’, signifying his higher status in the social caste as compared to Olivia. This demonstrates that the Nawab is physically more important as compared to Olivia, who ranks below the Indian ruler. As the Nawab spends time with Olivia, he is further characterized as a powerful and charismatic person as he is referred to being “the master of the scene”. The portrayal of the Nawab as the “master” highlights the Nawab’s dominating but charming presence over Olivia and the other characters, connoting that the focus in this scene is not on Olivia, but on the Nawab instead. By bringing the Nawab into the spotlight, Olivia is pictured as being insignificant as compared to the striking descriptions of the Nawab, suggesting that the Nawab presides over and is superior to Olivia in their relationship. The Nawab’s self-important, commanding nature is depicted when the Nawab “invite[s] Olivia to make make herself quite comfortable on the sofa facing his”. The Nawab’s ostentatious act of inviting his hostess to make herself comfortable in her own residence not only emphasizes his arrogant and domineering personality, but also foreshadows his future control over Olivia in their growing relationship. Through the characterization of the Nawab as a powerful and commanding person as well as his interaction with Olivia, the Nawab is portrayed as having the upper hand in his progressing relationship with Olivia. (Riowena Seah)

The lack of direct social interaction described between Harry and Olivia in this scene exhibits the one-sided relationship that will develop between the two characters throughout the novel. When the Nawab and his entourage visit Olivia at her house, “Harry declared himself charmed with her room.” This simple action of common courtesy shows the distance between the two characters as the compliment is not directed towards Olivia herself, but rather towards the numerous objects in her home. Furthermore, Harry does not declare this statement to Olivia, but instead "declared" it to himself. Though this restrained exchange of compliments may be unintentional, it signifies that the relationship that develops between Harry and Olivia will only be that of good acquaintances. The adulations of furniture from Harry along with how “Harry seemed to have done most of the talking and [Olivia] and the Nawab had laughed at the amusing things he said” exemplifies the copious amounts of attention that Harry dispenses towards Olivia. It also illustrates the neglect that Olivia has towards Harry as she “could not recall what they had talked about.” This one-sided interaction is further delineated by the way that Olivia and the Nawab are grouped together while Harry is isolated from the pair. She devotes all her attention towards the Nawab while taking Harry for granted, establishing a solid boundary in the relationship shown between Olivia and Harry. (__John Wong)__

The relationships between Olivia, the country she lives in, and each character who resides there are reflected in the different social interactions that take place in this passage. Insight into the development of Olivia’s relationship with the Nawab, Douglas, Harry and India throughout the novel is established through her thoughts and actions, foreshadowing the outcomes of these relationships as a whole. Jhabvala’s construction of this scene substantiates the significance of how each relation will progressively strengthen or deteriorate as the storyline is built, further enhancing the intrigue and mystery of the plot.