Leelavati's+Death+-+Henry,+Christopher,+Wendy,+Maryanne

 **Strengths and Weaknesses of India**

Ruth Prawer Jhabvala’s novel, //Heat and Dust//, is set in India and revolves around Olivia and Anne. Olivia is an English woman living in the 1920’s who doesn’t know what to do with her life in India, and her step grand-daughter, Anne, also an English woman living in the 1970’s who travelled to India in curiosity to discover her great grandmother’s past through a series of letter’s she left behind. During her experience in India, Anne is opened to the Indian people, including a strong female elderly named Maji. She serves as a mentor to Anne and also sparks Anne’s realization towards the ignorance of the Indian people concerning the less fortunate. One of the experiences instigating this realization is when Anne follows Maji in the search of a beggar, Leelavati, where she observes Maji’s kindness and concern as she helps the beggar. The author manipulates characterization, setting and imagery to convey Anne’s journey.

In the Maji and Anne's search for the beggar, Ruth Prawer Jhabvala characterizes Maji as a strong, independent, and astute woman as she is different from the typical Indians. Maji is unique and distinctive possessing her own individual thought for the beggar. Anne mentions, “If one lives here, it is best to be like everyone else” (3). In contrast to Anne’s previous statement, Maji has a reaction that was “not at all like everyone else’s”(8-9) towards the beggar, Leelavati. Maji is proven to be loving and caring and actually cares for the well-being of the mendicant, unlike the other Indians believing that one’s sickness and misfortunes are one’s own business; completely ignoring those in need. Maji chooses to actually be concerned for the beggar and searches for her. Maji’s sympathy and concern for others is her form of strength. Her sentiments of the beggar allowed her to be able to “dash off to the direction of the bazaar with amazing speed for one so stout and elderly” (11). Maji although seems like a weak elderly woman, she in fact possesses the potency and vitality to aid those in need. In Maji and Anne’s search for Leelavati, “[Maji] had seen her before [Anne] did” (17). The irony is demonstrated that although Maji is more developed in age, she is still stronger and healthier compared to Anne, able to spot Leelavati much quicker than she did. In the discovery of Leelavati, Maji’s strengths are further demonstrated as she is portrayed as an all-knowing sage, easily able to determine the whereabouts of Leelavati. She mentions to Anne, “You see, I knew she would come here” (32). Maji’s all-knowing tone illustrates the high level of intelligence that she possesses despite being an elderly woman. Maji then later “began to tell [Anne] about the old woman’s life” (34), thus allowing the narrator, Anne to narrate Maji’s story. Anne’s narration of Maji’s story further suggests Maji’s dominance and overall strength as she progresses to be the focus of the passage educating the main narrator. Maji’s story once again demonstrates Maji’s high level of intelligence as if she is God, narrating someone’s life. Maji has proven to be the dominant character despite the fact that Anne is the main narrator of the passage. **(Chris Hwa)**

  In comparison to the very independent Maji, Anne is shown to be easily influenced by other’s actions. At first, the way the Indian people behave influenced her feelings, thoughts, and actions, then she is quickly affected by Maji’s actions, which are not like other people’s. After spotting and ignoring the beggar woman lying on the side of the street, Anne thinks back to her actions and realizes that “[she is] changing, becoming more like everyone else” (2), and feels that it's better to follow the crowd in order to fit in to the Indian society. The Indians don’t want to help Leelavati, because they are afraid of touching a sick person, and they have to take care of themselves and their own problems before helping others. As Anne senses and becomes aware of the Indian’s attitudes towards the dying woman, she suddenly also feels the Hindu fear of pollution with someone “unclean”. Like the Indians, she too begins to think that “the old woman [is] dispensable” (1) and there is no need to help her. She notices her own change, and reflects that it is “the people and the landscape, life animate and inanimate” (4) that “seemed to compel [her] into this attitude” (4), and the Indian people have influenced her thoughts and actions. Everything and everyone around Anne seems to be changing her attitude and thoughts, showing how easily influenced she is. When Anne meets Maji, she told her about Leelavati “with the same indifference as everyone else” (8). She is affected by the Indian’s thoughts towards the beggar, so she also thinks little of the dying woman. Once she sees Maji's anxiety when hearing about Leelavati, she quickly becomes just as worried about the woman as Maji is. When they hurry back to the garbage dump where Leelavati was lying before, they ask people nearby where she had went. At this time, Anne again has a tendency to follow the majority and not bother about Leelavati, as she “felt foolish, having made so much fuss” (14) over the dying woman. Her feelings and thoughts are easily swayed by people around her, as proven when she at one point cares for the beggar woman and at another point doesn’t, depending on who she is with. After Maji and Anne find Leelavati at the reservoir, Maji takes Leelavati’s head into her lap and talks soothingly to her. When Anne sees Leelavati smile blissfully, the smile “[seems] like a miracle” (25) to her, and she is touched. Anne was disgusted by the beggar woman at first, but because of Maji’s affectionate actions towards the woman, Anne also begins to show some love and sympathy towards her. From this passage, it can be established that Anne is easily influenced by the people around her. **(Wendy Yu)**

Nature imagery reflects changes in emotion that Anne experiences, shifting from dismayed to calm. When Anne reacts frantically to the beggar woman’s poor health, a “particularly severe dust storm” occurs. The imagery of the “dust storm” illustrates the anxiety experienced by Anne as she thinks the “old woman is [was] dispensable”. Also, reflecting her thoughts of how her actions are going against her beliefs. This troubled mood is contrasted with the “cleared air” and water when Maji takes over to help the beggar woman. The author uses the imagery of the sky and water to suggest the clarity that the characters have reached. Also, the motif of dust symbolizing the past being dispensable and that it can be swept away, conveys the “new thought” that has entered Anne’s mind. However, this only lasts a while due to the fact that as many times as dust can be swept away, it will always settle down again. The clearing of the sky reflects the mindset of the narrator as well as the beggar woman as they come into terms with reality. Images of the natural environment surrounding the characters, “buffaloes were bathing, immersed so deeply that only their heads were visible above the water”, convey the literal meaning of buffaloes bathing, as well as the emotions of the characters as their heads are filled with thoughts, in attempt to make sense of things. While Anne reflects on the change she is experiencing, “becoming more like everyone else”, the beggar woman on the other hand, comes into terms with her soon to be death. Not only does the weather parallel the shift of emotion of the characters, as well as the motif of water. Clarity and pureness of water portrays the process of the characters clearing their thoughts. This is further emphasized through the detailed description, imagery and simile of water, “the water in the reservoir was pure as the sky, disturbed only by the reflections of skimming kingfishers…” The simile forms and image of an environment filled with calm and peacefulness. The environment surrounding the characters is parallel to their emotions. **(Maryanne Cheah)**

Strength and weakness parallels setting changes through the use of symbols and imagery in Leelavati's death scene. When Anne first tell Maji about Leelavati’s dying situation, they begin to search the city for clues, and one of the first people they ask is “the buffalo owner”. The diction of buffalo owner explains that the buffalo is his property, and that he owns it like an object. This parallels Leelavati’s life which she was owned by her husband just like the buffalo is. This connotation can further imply that the city is like a cage, splitting everything apart with owners and property; with owners overpowering their ‘weaker’ property. This explains why Leelavati leaves town; so she can be ‘free’ when she dies. Furthermore, after moving out of the city, Leelavati goes to the reservoir and is found “under a tree”. This setting in nature is described much more descriptively than the city; it is full of life, with both animals and plants, as there are many animals and “some buffaloes”. The motif of ‘buffalo’ is repeated here to contrast the vastly different lives of the city buffalo and the wild one. The city buffalo is boxed in and belong to an owner, while the wild buffalo is free, strong, and in peace, this again relates to Leelavati’s will to be free at death. Her under the tree symbolizes her acceptance towards her death and would like to ‘return to nature’ or, in Hinduism, to be reincarnated. This can be supported as trees represent nature and her body underneath lying there shows that she is under the salvation of its shade and is willing to die under it as she seems to be in “bliss”. This bliss tells us that although her body is now worn out, she is enjoying herself and is now mentally stronger. Therefore, through the use of symbols and imagery, the reader can see the contrast between city and nature and that after she leaves her city or her cage, she becomes mentally stronger. **(Henry Fong)**

All in all, in the scene of Leelavati’s death, by characterizing Maji as strong and independent; Anne as weak and easily influenced by others; nature paralleling experiences; and setting changes, it can be seen that strength and weakness acts as the main purpose of this scene. This scene is one of the most significant of the novel because it brings us to a deeper understanding of the two characters and the Indian society in general.