The Hungry Tide

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People are people. They make mistakes, they take the wrong decisions, they are weak. But these attributes are what makes a person unique. Nirmal’s notebook also underscores the novel’s emphasis on the multiplicity of ways in which places can be read. In a metafictive comment, he writes:

This is what happens when you have not written for years: every moment takes on a startling clarity; small things become the world in microcosm." On the more brighter note, I loved reading about the landscape shown in the book, it is like I am knowing deeply a character, with its varied shades, in the novel. The fact that such a region exists– with its flora and fauna– is delightful. The immense density of these forests, the presence of white tigers (the Bengal tiger) make this place, among other things, precious.Piya undergoes a similar conversion, as her dependence on the instincts of the simple boatman, Fokir, causes her brash Seattle certainties to come crashing down. In the book's most moving and perfectly musical moment, Fokir recites the legend of Bon Bibi - mythical tiger goddess of the tide country - while Kanai attempts to translate: "Suddenly the language and the music were all around her, flowing like a river, and all of it made sense ... Although the sound of the voice was Fokir's, the meaning was Kanai's, and in the depths of her heart she knew she would always be torn between the one and the other." I learnt to love animals and nature. I became an environmentalist, a zoologist, a thinker. (philosophy still eludes me) The Hungry Tide follows Piyali Roy, an Indian-American cetologist, who comes to India on the trail of the Gangetic dolphin and, more importantly, the Irrawaddy dolphin. Her search leads her to the eastern edge of the country - a group of archipelagos that go by the name of Sunderbans.

In summary, what most impressed me in this book were first the dramatic pictures of raw and violent nature in the Sundarbans and second the nuanced discussion of issues that people face involving the priorities of love and work, as these issues continue to unfold and evolve in all parts of the world.Just like any other Ghosh's book, The Hungry Tide takes you to an unknown territory, The Sundarbans. For Indians, we associate Sundarbans with Tigers. But Amitav Ghosh through The Hungry Tide will make you read a totally different side of Sundarbans. A deep history of marshy swamplands, crocodiles, rebellion during Bangladesh war. The last book that I read by Amitav Ghosh was the Glass Palace, which took me to Burma, a place which was alien to me, but not anymore. And that is the beauty of Ghosh's books, you are enchanted and mesmerized whenever you read any one of his books. Amitav Ghosh was born in Calcutta in 1956. He studied in Dehra Dun, New Delhi, Alexandria and Oxford and his first job was at the Indian Express newspaper in New Delhi. He earned a doctorate at Oxford before he wrote his first novel, which was published in 1986. And what's with all the exposition? Ghosh here uses Bengali words, probably hoping they would add to the authenticity. Dude, tiger prawn is known as bagda chingri, not badga. No one speaks the way in Bengali in the way his characters do. Ghosh has, of course, done extensive research on cetology and the geography of Sundarbans (Anyone like me who has been there can tell you that), but sadly, not a single person speaks like that. I can not speak about the elite (the targeted audience), but at least not one person from the social strata that this novel concerns. Another reason for concern is the expanding tourism industry in India. Sahara India Parivar's mega tourism project proposes to take over large areas of the Sundarbans to construct floatels, restaurants, shops, business centres, cinemas, and theatres which would disturb the fragile ecosystem and further threaten the already endangered biodiversity of the region. Ghosh vehemently oppose this gigantic hotel project in the name of conservation. So far, Sunderban has just been a printed name in my geography text books of yore. After years I encountered it in all its glory, ruthlessness and ethereal beauty, along with the magical folklore, which seems almost real to me, and the majestic man eating tiger.

Through Nirmal’s diary, readers gain insights into the cultural complexities and the historical events that shaped the Sundarbans. Nirmal’s writings depict the socio-political tensions between the Indian and Bangladeshi inhabitants and their struggle for identity and livelihood in the region. The diary provides a historical context for the present-day tensions and dynamics between the communities and adds depth to the characters’ experiences.

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But Will’s good deeds of the past pay off as John Rayner decides to rescue the Fosters. John provides them with work and a house on the estate owned by his wealthy family. It is at this new home on the crumbling coastline of Holderness that Sarah is born – and grows into a bright and beautiful girl, and a great source of strength to those around her. Piya and Kanai negotiate with Fokir and Moyna to go out for a week to survey the dolphins at Garjontola. Fokir helps Piya engage Horen to take them in his bhotbhoti, the Megha. Piya is annoyed to discover that Moyna seems to think little of her husband. As Piya makes preparations to leave, Kanai asks to go with her as a translator; Piya accepts. When Kanai tells Nilima he's going with Piya, she's concerned and feels he doesn't understand the risks. She explains that tigers kill multiple people every week. When she realizes he's romantically interested in Piya, she insists he's a predator too and tells him to be careful. Later that night, Moyna confides in Kanai that she's worried about a romantic relationship between Piya and Fokir, and she asks Kanai to intervene. Kanai tries to convince Moyna that he'd be a better partner than Fokir, which angers her. The next day, the survey party leaves Lusibari. Kanai becomes very jealous when Piya mentions that she loves working with Fokir despite the language barrier. That afternoon, the Megha's engine dies, though Horen is able to float the bhotbhoti to a village where a relative can help fix the boat.

Although the barbaric action of the government forces at Morichjhapi was indefensible, Ghosh makes it clear that the issue involved was not a simple one. To Piya, for example, the claims of the environment should come before the needs of people. She makes her position clear when she comes upon villagers torturing a man-eating tiger they have captured. Realizing that they intend to burn it alive, Piya attempts to intervene, and Fokir has to drag her away, explaining that after all, it had killed human beings. His mother, Kusum, would have seconded his comments, for as a nurse trainee, she had been taught that human life, not nature, is of paramount importance.The Hungry Tide” serves as a mirror to Amitav Ghosh’s literary brilliance, captivating readers with its lyrical prose and masterful storytelling. The novel transcends the boundaries of geography and time, inviting readers to embark on a poignant and thought-provoking journey of self-discovery, cultural exploration, and ecological awareness within the embrace of the Sundarbans. Anand, Divya. “Words on Water: Nature and Agency in Amitav Ghosh’s The Hungry Tide.” Concentric: Literary and Cultural Studies 34.1 (March 2008): 21-44. In the Sundarbans the tides reach more than 100 miles inland, and every day thousands of hectares of forest disappear only to re-emerge hours later. Dense as the mangrove forests are, from Hamilton’s point of view, it is only a little less barren than a desert. call this a “subaltern geoaesthetic” because it is founded on some of the elements of the subaltern studies historiographic project but, influenced by the terrain, is also a critique of this project. 1 In this novel, Ghosh repeats elements of this historiographic mode in using a subaltern uprising and subaltern characters, but instead of only demonstrating failure, he also presents the world these people inhabit as transforming and ennobling, even as the easy acceptance of the mysterious and the mystical evokes respect for the other and creates an intuitive understanding of the limits and sanctity of spaces.