A Passage to India, a novel written by E.M. Forster, has a three-part structure which is significant to the whole work.

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A Passage to India, a novel written by E.M. Forster, has a three-part structure which is significant to the whole work. The novel consists of three parts: “Mosque”, “Caves” and “Temple.”  The first part, “Mosque,” takes place in the city of Chandrapore while it is in dry season. This part is dominated by a Moslem doctor, Dr. Aziz, an extremely friendly Indian.  The novel starts with a question, closely related to the theme “friendship”, that whether or not there can be friendship between an English and an Indian. The answer seems to be “yes” in the first part according to the enjoyable conversation between Mrs. Moore and Dr. Aziz as well as the noticeable relationship between Aziz and Fielding. Another main character, Godbole, represents Hinduism in the novel. At the ending of Fielding’s tea party, Godbole sings a haunting song that affects both Adela and Mrs. Moore; here structure plays an important role as in a sense the song haunts them as HInduism haunts every part of the book.  

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The second part, “Caves,” is the climax of the novel and it is the hot season while these climatic events happen. In the introductory chapter of this part Forster describes the Marabar Caves physically: their great geological age, their lack of shrines, their perfectly polished walls, their rough-hewn, manmade entrances. Moreover, it is suggested that there is “something unspeakable” in them. The echo, which is one of the most important motifs in the novel, haunts Mrs. Moore and then Adela in the weeks to come, and it also foreshadows the death of Mrs. Moore later in this part. The ...

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