Review of Sea of Poppies by Amitav Ghosh

If world history is “the story of connections within the global human community,” then Amitav Ghosh’s Sea of Poppies qualifies as world history.  Using the Indian subcontinent as a crossroads, Ghosh brings together a wealth of cultures and castes, languages and lifestyles, to create a vivid picture of colonial life and imperial domination.  In recreating the world of India in the first half of the nineteenth century, Ghosh makes particularly effective use of the intersection of languages that was so much a part of colonial life.  Through the words and phrases he chooses, Ghosh describes the cultural of those times, defines the characters living there, and makes the reader a part of the story.



Amitav Ghosh



Ghosh vividly establishes the impact of the British Empire’s domination of the Indian subcontinent through the mixing cultures that permeates Sea of Poppies.  A fine example of this is his use of religion.  Christian, Muslim, Hindu, and numerous local religious traditions come together in the streets of Calcutta.  Characters such as Mr. Burnham, Mr. Doughty, and Mr. Kendalbushe use the language of Christianity to justify the British need to re-open Chinese markets to the opium coming from India.  The economic necessity of this trade relation is couched in terms such as “a war is necessary if China is to be opened up to God’s word” and “humanity demands it.”  Both the white man’s civilizing mission and the caste system among India’s natives are couched in the language of religion; the clash of religious motivations, whether true or corrupted, are a large part of how Ghosh describes the culture of imperial India.

The characters that people Sea of Poppies are brought to life through the language Ghosh choses for them.  Miss Lambert’s use of Latin phrases pegs her as a bluestocking, while her misuse and mispronunciation of English phrases marks her both as foreign to her British adoptive family and as naive and innocent.  Zachery becomes successful on board the voyage of the Ibis from Baltimore due to his success in mastering the language of the lascars, thanks in large part to Serang Ali’s ability to master some English phrases.  Mr. Burnham’s language is that of dominance, Deeti’s of adaptation, Mr. Crowle’s of cruelty.  Each character is defined by the way in which they speak to each other and to the reader.

The reader of Sea of Poppies becomes a part of the story through Ghosh’s use of language.  Zachery’s initial confusion on board the Ibis is mirrored by the confusion of the reader at the introduction of words and phrases that are new and foreign.  Likewise, the desperation of Neel Rattan Halder becomes the desperation of the reader as Neel’s language moves from self-indulgent and confused to submissive and finally to assertive.  The language used by the characters who are in dominant positions in society, Mr. Burnham, Mr. Crowle, Captain Chillingworth, includes words and phrases that are crude and vulgar, demeaning in terms of their sexual innuendo and racial undertones.  Readers become a part of a society that is brutal and harsh, with all its ugliness exposed by the words chosen by its members.

For all that Ghosh’s use of language does to enhance the experience of the reader, it may also be cause for some concern.  The unfamiliar language adds spice to the narrative, transporting the reader to another world and another time.  Unfortunately, that other place and time seems strangely reminiscent of Edward Said’s definition of Orientalism.  The strangeness, the sexuality, the allure of the exotic—this is how the Orientalists of Victorian England saw the empire’s colonial possessions.  While Ghosh includes characters whose innate goodness shines through their words, like Deeti and Kalua, they can still be viewed as characteristic of the fascination of the West with the mysterious East.

In the end, the best that can be said of Sea of Poppies is that it is a good read.  While engaging in its dynamic storyline and fascinating characters, this book also demonstrates conditions in imperial India, setting the culture and society of that world into harsh relief.  Not only does the reader enjoy a good story, they have the opportunity to learn of the devastation of a mono-crop agricultural system, the cruelty that comes through class and racial domination, and much more than they might have expected about manning a sailing ship.  If a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down, then a spoonful of fiction helps the world history go down as well.