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The Jewel in the Crown The Raj Quartet Book 1 Paul Scott 9780226743400 Books

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The Jewel in the Crown The Raj Quartet Book 1 Paul Scott 9780226743400 Books

Wasn't too sure what to quite expect from the opening novel of The Raj Quartet, but it ended up exceeding my expectations. The novel deals with the ending of British rule in India. The story surrounds a specific event and is told from varying points of view. It did require some patience to start with, sorting out the characters and their relation to each other.

Quite rich in detail, atmosphere and the politics of the time, India's quest for Independence. Based on this opening novel have gone on and purchased the other novels in the quartet. An interesting period in history, one that I knew very little about.


Tags : The Jewel in the Crown (The Raj Quartet, Book 1) [Paul Scott] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. <DIV>No set of novels so richly recreates the last days of India under British rule— two nations locked in an imperial embrace —as Paul Scott's historical tour de force,Paul Scott,The Jewel in the Crown (The Raj Quartet, Book 1),University of Chicago Press,0226743403,Classics,British - India - Fiction,British;India;Fiction.,Historical fiction,Historical fiction.,India - History - 20th century - Fiction,India;History;20th century;Fiction.,20th century,British,FICTION Historical General,Fiction,Fiction - Historical,Fiction Classics,Fiction Historical,Historical - General,History,India,Modern & contemporary fiction (post c 1945),Modern fiction,Scott, Paul - Prose & Criticism

The Jewel in the Crown The Raj Quartet Book 1 Paul Scott 9780226743400 Books Reviews

Masterful achievement, brilliant writing, filled with the surprises that depth of character development can bring and sustained plotting only scratches the surface of superlatives about Scott's work.,
Though I'm 'only' reading the second of his four novels that comprise the Raj, I do not want the reading experience to end.

Reading the Quartet is not to be feared, despite the reader's time and committment.

The only drawback is that it will be difficult to read anything else for a long, long time.
War! Revolution! Ethnic barriers! Class envy! Love triangle! Sexually frustrated, corrupt district superintendent of police! Had Puccini and his librettist still been active, the initial novel of Paul Scott’s Raj Quartet would have inspired the grandest of operas. Instead it morphed into the early portions of Granada Television’s fourteen-episode series, The Jewel in the Crown, run 1984 in Britain by ITV and a few years later in USA by PBS.

The novel reads like a detailed source book or case study. Lili Chatterjee, Edwina Crane, Sister Ludmila Smith, Lady Ethyl Manners, Daphne Manners and other characters are represented by their journals, reports and letters which provide disparate views of events leading to the pivotal Bibighar Park encounter. Though faithful to characters, setting and plot, Granada had to create most of the dialogue because the novel actually provided very little.

Reading The Jewel in the Crown from first word to last requires one to clear the decks and focus for a week. Would this project be worth the effort? Yes, if the history buff wishes to step into the final years of the British Raj. Yes, if the PBS fan wants to appreciate Granada’s triumph. Yes if the composer and poet want to upstage Tosca!
This is a real thought piece told from the varying viewpoints of the characters. I only know the Indian history you see in movies like Gandhi. The 20th century history of India is so much more complicated. Everybody's right and wrong. It's like an Indian Rashomon (however that's spelled). You can't skim this book; you have to take your time and enjoy the language. I did find it a bit depressing; people really are stupid. But if you love language and have the time for it you'll enjoy this book.
Excellent account of the end of British colonial rule in India and the social injustices played by the British on the Indians within their mother country. Scott sometimes over-describes things causing the narrative to lag, however this may be justified because it is necessary to fully recount the interplay of societies, the landscape and individuals.
Note that the print of this edition is quite small and the pages are as thin as that of the bible--if you can't stand this kind of eyestrain, order the 4 novels separately!
I read these four novels years ago, when I was inspired to do so by the Masterpiece Theater production of "The Jewel in the Crown." These novels are elegantly written and delineate the British rule in India and the disastrous results of partition. The writing is dense and rich, requiring concentration and time. I bought this compilation because I evidently gave my original copies away! Iwant to have them on my shelf for reference.
The subject is a difficult one, dealing as it does with the conflicting needs of colonial Britain and the entire country of India, before it gained Independence and the Partition of that country into the "new" India and Pakistan. I'm not an historian nor am I professionally qualified to judge the historical accuracy of Scott's writing so I'll leave questions of authenticity to others. The canvas is enormous and the book is huge...comprised of four novels in one volume, for a total of some 1,926 pages!

Many historical figures are referenced and quoted and are interspersed among the day-to-day recorded lives of the people actually in the thick of things...the latter characters are all figments of Scott's story-telling imagination although it's not hard to imagine them being really based on actual people. Scott manages to present the sights, smells and experiences of India to readers, who may also be helped by having seen "The Jewel in the Crown" - the PBS TV adaptation of the book. The TV title refers to the description of India by British Colonial government officials when they presented the "gift" of India to Queen Victoria - thus creating Her Majesty the Empress of India; a title retained by subsequent Monarchs (as Emperors) though King George VI.

It is hard to read many of the ways in which Britain controlled India and its people. There was a strong "parental" model of rule, in which white administrators dominated their Indian "subjects" by force and even physical punishment, such as public canings and other humiliating actions, emphasizing the superiority of the "white sahib" (and even the "memsahib"...or ruling-class women) over the native population. The British were generally ignorant of the customs and religious requirements of the many tribes and religions present in that vast country and generally, could only ever see it through their own eyes and prejudices. There were, of course, ruling-class individuals whose foresight put them at odds with their superiors, but they proved to be a very small minority of the "Raj" (the name given to the ruling class) and who were unable to have much edifying effect on the overall administration of that country. To be fair, perhaps the one advantage or "jewel" left behind by the Raj was a strong Governmental and Legal process and tradition which the Indian Government eventually emulated.

The story begins with the recounting of the rape of a white woman by some indigenous Indian men. There are several versions of that rape and it can fairly be questioned how much the victim participated in the act itself and hampered the subsequent investigation and punishment of the alleged rapists. Nevertheless, the rape action itself can be seen as an attempt to vent frustrations of the indigenous population over the often cruel and vindictive actions or reactions by the Raj...and especially by the District Police Superintendent...a man with many "chips" on his shoulder and performing his duties with all the arrogance of a sadist occupying the position of a ruler.

Many historical events are described in the book...many are horrible; no doubt all are true and there are many lessons to be learned (which Britain may well have learned!) in the battles between rulers and ruled; between upper and lower "classes" and between the powerful and the powerless.

Scott gives us a significant portrayal of human nature under stress, of race relations and racism on the part of the Raj and a very engrossing and impressive telling of that contentious period and place and time in history.

I would recommend that it be required reading for all diplomats and Foreign Service personnel as a way in which to NOT conduct Foreign Relations and diplomacy.
Wasn't too sure what to quite expect from the opening novel of The Raj Quartet, but it ended up exceeding my expectations. The novel deals with the ending of British rule in India. The story surrounds a specific event and is told from varying points of view. It did require some patience to start with, sorting out the characters and their relation to each other.

Quite rich in detail, atmosphere and the politics of the time, India's quest for Independence. Based on this opening novel have gone on and purchased the other novels in the quartet. An interesting period in history, one that I knew very little about.