Socio-Cultural Themes In Sea Of Poppies By Amitav Ghosh

‘Sea of Poppies’ is Amitav Ghosh’s first book in the Ibis Trilogy which was nominated for Man Booker Prize of 2008. Set in 1838 amidst the valuable and potent poppy fields, it brings together a truly diverse and international cast of sailors and stowaways, coolies and convicts, who, each for his or her own reason, board the Ibis, an old slaving-ship, which sails into the Indian Ocean at the end of the book. The book is a story of people brought together in spite of their differences, starting an unlikely diaspora, which will span continents, races and generations. The novel develops in the backdrop of the early years of the establishment of the East India Company, where the deep financial crisis which resulted in a loss of identity as a result of the opium trade to China through Bengal trade route, has been reflected as one of the significant themes. It is a post colonial response to the altered …show more content…
It also gives a clear picture of the social practices and evils that where prevalent in the society. Through his characters Ghosh has brought together the similarities and contradiction among the individuals of the same society. Though every character faces different problems, finally fate brings all of them together into the Ibis, in their struggle for existence. The characters change their name, their caste and their identity in order to survive.
During this period people were forced to stop the production of agricultural crops. The colonizers wanted cash crops like indigo, cotton and opium to be cultivated so that they can export it to other countries. For them India was a place from where they get cheap labor and raw materials. They adopted various methods to threaten and to convince the peasants to stop the cultivation of agricultural crops and to follow their interests. Those who refused to follow these instructions were made to obey