In Amitav Ghosh’s The Hungry Tide, an important theme that constantly resurfaces is education vs experience. Education is represented in many forms. In the novel, Kanai values education highly. His constant mention of knowing six languages is his representation of intelligence. On the other hand experiences of culture and the local environment are also exhibited. Both of these themes are often challenged. At one point in the novel when this was prevalent was when Kanai asked Moyna, Fakir’s wife, why she was married to someone like him. Kanai looks down on Fokir who is a fisherman while Moyna on the other hand is an aspiring nurse. Moyna simply replied that he would not understand which Kanai responded by saying “I know five languages; I’ve traveled all over the world. Why wouldn’t I understand”. And she told him that it doesn’t matter how many languages he knows, “You’re not a woman and you don’t know”. We can perceive that Kanai highly regards education while looking down on Fokir who is also knowledgeable but with sea animals. You can implicatively insinuate that his experiences with wildlife do not impress Kanai. However, reading Moyna’s answer shows that language can be important but experience plays a bigger role in many ways for one, emotional connections, which Kanai also lacks. Another instance of education vs experience is with Piya and Fokir. Although Piya has studied marine biology in university, she still lacks much basic knowledge which Fokir can avail. For Piya, his deep understanding and experiences with the waters in Sundarbans are valued higher than Kanai’s education.

A historical event that is being weaved in this fictional novel is The Marichjhapi Massacre which occurred in 1979. It refers to the government evicting Bengali refugees who tried to legally reserve the forest and wildlife. In the writing, the story is told through the notebook left behind by his late uncle Nirmal. Additionally, throughout the novel, Ghosh explores topics such as humanism and environmentalism which mirrors the Marichjhapi Massacre. In the piece, we read about a man named Daniel Hamilton who tries to create a utopian society. Thus creating Project Tiger which was a wildlife preservation project. However, this led to brutal eviction because thousands of Bengali settlers breached the act that were protecting the wildlife and tigers. The theme of environmentalism is presented once again when Piya witnessed the killing of the tiger who assailed the villagers. While Piya argues that wildlife and animals can be handled without killing, Kanai on the other hand states that this affects human lives. She argues back that it’s vital to preserve not only the environment but animals as well and that killing animals will only soon lead to killing those who are poor and unnoticed. Therefore also implicating genocidal events in history.

The hungry Tide by Amitav Ghosh displays a language theme within the characters that is very prominent throughout this novel. As we are introduced to each character in this story, we immediately see the importance that Ghosh placed on the art of language, its importance, or lack there of.

Kanai a stereotypical arrogant well educated translator, fluent in 6 languages is traveling for the sole purpose of reading messages to him about his past. Kanai displays a level of entitlement and arrogance which is apparent very early on within this piece. Ghosh shows a prime example of Kanai’s personality in the scene on the train. As Kanai desires a specific window seat, he assumes a man of a lesser class who is already occupying the seat, will automatically be obliged to give it up as he arrogantly says…”But on taking in Kanai’s clothes and all the other details of his appearance, he underwent a change of mind…Why court trouble?” (Pg.15) Amitav lets his audience feel the effects of social hierarchies which remains consistent throughout several chapters.

Piya an intelligent Americanized career driven scientist, who in fact does not speak Hindi or Bengali, is less interested in Kanai’s status and language fluency, and more attracted to the aspects of nature, her study’s, and men who are capable of navigating the world around them with solely their physical awareness of the natural elements of the world. She is described as kind to others, with common decency and respect. She is dressed in androgynous clothing exhibiting a humble attitude towards the perception people may have about her, as she does not seem to find importance in being viewed attractive by men on her travels. Kanai is taken aback by the rejection of a woman who does not fit the “norm” that he is accustomed to. Ghosh shows the lack of power that Kanai has over Piya and devalues, in a sense, his superiority complex in reference to his skills and education.

 Fokir is a man who is by nature and circumstances, capable of surviving in the wild without the financial means, class standards, or vocal capabilities that Kanai embodies. The language barrier is just a mere inconvenience that Piya seems to bypass early on. Piya is attracted to Fokir’s manly physical attributes and connections to nature, where he is familiar with the river in which Piya is seeking a unique dolphin. With few words shared, the pair along with Fokir’s son manage to escape dangers on their quest such as, crocodiles, strong tides, and dangerous fisherman. Fokir is able to bring them all back to safety in one piece. This victory seems rare if it were kanai leading the way. The language barrier has no detrimental effect on their communication throughout turbulent conditions, which inevitably causes emotional feelings of love, based on unspoken words.

As kanai sees Piya as an “object” that he cannot acquire (something a man of his caliber is clearly not used to)it is ironic to see the laws of attraction come into fruition with Piya and Fokir. As kanai realizes this new found deficiency, he is envious and tries to convince Piya that she in fact would not have anything in common with Fokir. He proceeds to telll Piya that they are in two different worlds and it is simply pointless in pursuing or being attracted to him romantically.

 Moyna Fokirs wife, is introduced as another character who can clearly see the chemistry between the two (Fokir and Piya) and tries to weaponize Kanai language efficiency as the translator between the two, in hopes to deter their assumingly budding romance. Ghosh uses language in each character, as the exigence to their personal goals. Ghosh does a great job with the back and forth narrative sequences between characters, making the novel itself a display of great language arts, and as the story progresses I am intrigued to see how the story plays out.

Throughout The Hungry Tide by Amitav Ghosh, it is beyond evident that the relationships between the characters change and evolve. At the beginning of the novel we are introduced to two characters by the name of Piya and Kanai. Off the bat we are introduced to Kanai’s borderline narcissistic character in contrast to Piya’s open mind set. We are immediately shown that Kanai comes from a wealthy family and has a great deal of education as he openly admits during their first meeting. Whereas Piya humbly notes that she is a marine biologist searching the waters for a specific group of dolphins. Although the two characters are evidently quite polar opposites, Ghosh writes the novel in a romantic way leading readers to have a feeling that the two characters would meet regardless of the differences they share as well as the physical distance that is in between them at the beginning and towards the middle. A new character is then introduced by the name of Fokir; a poor fisherman and although they do not speak the same language they are able to communicate and understand each other in a way that reaches beyond languages. They are able to bond in a way that Piya and Kanai were not, creating a love triangle of three as well as tension. It creates questions and comparisons between not only Fokir and Kanai but also Piya as well. Kanai, a womanizer, is always looking towards the future, never able to fully live in their present nor the past. It raises the question of whether Kanai really wants anything more than to sleep with Piya, anything beyond just a sexual relationship. However, the same question can be raised between Forkir and Piya. The two have a relationship that no one but each other would fully be able to understand. Without knowing a lick of the others’ language they are able to get close and gain a connection and interest in one another. Arguably speaking we can see that Forkir’s connection to nature is what makes him so attractive to Piya, and Piya being a young attractive young woman as well as the similar interest in sea life is also a playing factor. Now this connection is going undeniably strong until one thing happens in the community. Within the community that Forkir and his wife live in, a tiger enters and is then trapped. It is said to be tradition that the tiger to enter the village is a tiger fated to death. Piya is quick to disagree and acknowledge the fact that Forker, a man she thought she had similar morals to, would agree with her. However, Piya finds out that she is indeed wrong and Forkir is at the forefront of trying to kill the tiger. This new found information creates multiple questions for Piya as she now starts to wonder if she really knew Forkir as much as she thought she had. As well as the realization that maybe their way of communication had not been as effective as she/they thought. 

     Language presents itself as a tool in the novel The Hungry Tide. From the very beginning of the novel, we can see how Ghosh uses his characters to illustrate this theme. Kanai is a man with six languages under his belt. He considers himself to be of a higher standing compared to others, and prides himself in his education and capabilities. Piya is an American born woman with very limited Bengali, who has made her way to the Sundarbans in search of dolphins. While knowing very little of the language, she managed to make her way out into the water but was taken advantage of by the guard that was supposed to help her. In Kanai’s hands, language is a sharp hunting knife, but in Piya’s hands it is a brittle and rusted blade that cannot even cut through the softest marshmallow. However, Piya can still manage to communicate with others with a different form of language.

    In the novel, we can see the barriers Piya is faced with because of her less than outstanding Bengali skills. From the first chapter, she is seen struggling to understand the explanation being given to her about the train. Kanai notes that Piya “had learned just enough of the language to be able to provide due warning of her incomprehension.” (p4) Later on, we can also see that the guard that was assigned to her thought of her thinking that he could take advantage of Piya and made her bring along a guide Piya didn’t seem keen on taking with them. Situations like these occur often within the novel, showing Piya’s inability to truly understand the words other people are saying to her.

     However, it is when Piya meets a fisherman named Fokir does she start conversing with someone, and not in the traditional spoken way. While Piya cannot speak Bengali and Fokir cannot speak English, they communicate through the use of hand motions, body language, and facial expressions. In one instance, when Piya cannot eat the crab, she does not have a way of explaining the complicated reasons as to why. Instead, she uses her hands to motion to her stomach, and without words explains that her stomach would not be able to handle it. Furthermore, they have this way of understanding one another, as seen again in the boat when Piya does not want to stay near the rest of the fishers, and Fokir moves away and throws the anchor in a different spot. Then, when Piya wants to know the name of the cloth, Fokir tells it to her after a series of gestures.

     Piya, unlike Kanai, cannot speak Bengali, but can still find ways to communicate with others. She finds ways to communicate and does not let her lack of skill stop her from going after her goal: dolphins. The novel illustrates the different ways language can be used, and what other forms of language can communicate with others. From words to gestures, language is many different things.

One of the most prominent themes throughout the novel is language playing the role of both power and limitation, and the different forms language takes on. Ghosh exhibits that language plays an important role in the world but also touches on the universality of emotional and visual language.

One of the earliest examples of language as a form of power is Kanai’s proficiency in six languages and how it influences his self perception, status, and attitude. Kanai makes his way through the world bragging about this skill of his and even using it to navigate his way around the world by being able to listen in on many conversations which could quite honestly serve as a survival tactic if you are in a foreign place. He has the power to communicate with many different people and the power to translate and serve as a sort of bridge between cultures and people. He is also clearly aware that his education level marks his higher status in society which makes him feel like he has some sort of power over others and influences his attitude towards people he perceives to be socially “beneath” him. We see this atittude displayed in the beginning of the novel with the man on the train whose seat he asks for, and multiple times towards Fokir in the way he speaks about him with Piya and to him. Later in the novel Fokir’s wife Moyna even tries to use Kanai’s power of language as power over her husband and Piya, as she picks up on the emotional tension between them and worries that her marriage will be ruined. She asks Kanai to be their translator but to manipulate the translations to essentially sabatoge their connection.

Language presents itself as a limitation at times for Piya since she is American born and raised. She seems to have trouble early in the novel navigating and even almost gets taken advantage of by the men who are in the boat with her. However, she is stable able to achieve her research and funding. Limitations with language presents itself to Kanai when he realizes that the true language of the Sundarbans is fear, which is a language that one must learn and internalize to naviagate the world, especially being in such a dangerous part of India. He learns that 6 languages won’t aid him in this when encountering the tiger. The language of fear serves as an example of a form of emotional language shown in the novel.

The universality of emotional and physical language is shown through Piya and Fokir. Despite the language barrier they face, Piya and Fokir navigate this obstacle through resorting the physical language using gestures, visual cues, and drawings. The emotional aspect of language plays a role when Ghosh illustrates that physical language won’t always cut it because there must be a desire to listen and communicate. Readers can see this in the differences of experiences Piya has with the forest guard and boat pilot in the beginning of the novel. Although they use gestures and visual cues to communicate, they do not have the respect or desire to communicate with Piya, thus creating another barrier of communication. However, communicating with Fokir comes almost naturally and easily despite using the same modes of physical language, because they both have the desire and respect to communicate with one another. This is another form of emotional language which is crucial to overcoming the barrier of spoken language.