Enlightened Social Views In Collins' Literature - Essay Example

Enlightened Social Views In Collins' Literature Willkie Collins penned the novel The Moonstone in the late nineteenth century and this novel is considered as the first detective novel in English literature. A number of elements utilized by Collins have since stuck to the English detective novel such that they have tended to influence nearly every novel written since. Another ground breaking issue in the novel is the portrayal of servants and Indians which reflect the relatively enlightened social views of Collins. The novel’s tale spins around the Moonstone that is a diamond installed in the statue of a god placed at Somnath and later at Benares in India. The diamond is believed to be protected by hereditary guardians who are operating on the orders of the Hindu god Vishnu [Col121]. “Here, in a new shrine—in a hall inlaid with precious stones, under a roof supported by pillars of gold—the moon-god was set up and worshipped. Here, on the night when the shrine was completed, Vishnu the Preserver appeared to the three Brahmins in a dream.” The novel depicts the removal of the Moonstone from India after which it is brought to India by a protagonist Colonel John Herncastle who in turn gifts it to his niece Rachel Verinder. However, the diamond has not just monetary value but religious significance for the Hindus. Consequently, three Hindu priests come to England in hopes of recovering and restoring the diamond to its original place [Col121]. “… through all chances and changes, the successors of the three guardian priests kept their watch, waiting the day when the will of Vishnu the Preserver should restore to them their sacred gem.” As the diamond is about to be gifted to Rachel Verinder by her uncle Colonel John Herncastle on her birthday, the diamond strangely disappears from the birthday party. The birthday party features several other characters as well such as Rachel’s cousin Franklin Blake, the maidservant Rosanna Spearman and the suitor Godfrey Ablewhite. Given the situation, the disappearance of the diamond becomes a mystery with nearly all of the characters being scrutinized including the three Indian priests. However, the initial search for the diamond is abandoned and the mystery is finally solved a few years later. One of the more notable aspects of the novel is how the characters are treated in the eyes of justice. This is especially true for the three Indian priests and their mission to recover and restore the diamond [Col121]. “I saw, now, why the appearance of the three Indian jugglers at our house had presented itself to Mr. Franklin in the light of a circumstance worth noting.” The novel clearly depicts the intervention of class in the workings of the justice system. Moreover, given the long list of characters seemingly responsible for the crime, two of the more heavily suspected parties will be discussed for their innocence or guilt in detail. The novel tends to create an environment that strongly puts the Indian jugglers cum priests under suspicion. The history of the diamond and its imperatives reveal that the Indians would recover and restore the diamond one way or the other. Their long and arduous stay in England as well as their constant proximity to the diamond speaks volumes of their desperation to capture the diamond. Once the investigation begins under Sergeant Cuff his primary focus are the Indian jugglers as well as the maidservant Rosanna. In doing so Collins has exposed the mindset of contemporary England with respect to class differences. Although the maidservant has been employed in Rachel’s service for years but she is brought under scrutiny immediately. Given that Rachel previously possessed the diamond before her wearing it at the party, it would have given Rosanna more than ample opportunity to steal the diamond if she wanted to. Therefore, it could be surmised that if Rosanna wanted to steal the diamond, she would have had better opportunities than the birthday party. Given that the birthday party features a lot of people, it would have been very difficult for Rosanna to steal the diamond even if she wanted to. Another issue that warrants attention is that Rosanna would theoretically have disappeared with immediate effect if she had taken the diamond. Being a servant in Victorian England was hardly any cover from the law and any such person involved in theft would have run off immediately in order to protect himself or herself. However, as the proceeds Rosanna sticks to the house and does not leave. After becoming the focus of the investigation, Rosanna finds it hard to find any possible methods for her extrication from the crime. Although innocent, Rosanna tends to behave strangely because she does not know what to do [Col121]. “… nor I, with my age, experience, and natural mother-wit, had the ghost of an idea of what Rosanna Spearman's unaccountable behaviour really meant.” Additionally Rachel’s behavior is also strange and tends to add pressure on Rosanna. It would make perfect sense that any person who has not faced the law before would have trouble figuring out the consequences for a crime that they did not commit. Eventually Rosanna commits suicide in order to protect herself from the pressures of the crime and its investigation. Here it must also be borne in mind that although Rachel behaves strangely and although she is a woman like Rosanna but she is not pressurized enough by the law. This difference in behavior of the law for Rosanna and Rachel could be attributed to the class that each belonged to. Since Rachel was an upper class lady so there was little that she could be held responsible for in the eyes of the law. In contrast, Rosanna was from a lower class and was hence more susceptible to crime in the eyes of the law. As the story develops into the later stages, it becomes clear that Rachel was involved in throwing the investigation off track with her antics. In modern criminological terms this would be considered tantamount to impeding an investigation and thus a denial of justice. However, there is nothing in the novel to indicate as such which brings to light the contemporary attitudes and thinking on the issue of crime and class. Apparently in Victorian England crime had more to do with class than otherwise though possible. This method of thinking is also reinforced by the treatment of the Indian priests by the law. Sergeant Cuff is considered a capable detective and in the wake of the disappearance, he can be seen as scrutinizing the Indians at great length. As before, if the Indians had committed the crime they would be long gone from the area in order to protect themselves from the law. It was also possible that by the time the investigation actually begun, the Indians would already be on their way out of England. The Indians have been shown as scheming and ready to adapt to any circumstances showing their willingness to go to any cost to recover the diamond. It would only make sense if the Indians would steal the diamond and then disappear altogether with such speed that the detective would be amazed. Another possibility could be that the Indians would split up in order to confuse the detective yet the Indians purse neither path. This in itself serves to show that the Indians were not culpable of the crime. Another racial comparison must be looked into in order to bring out racial differences in the novel. Colonel Herncastle is a known corrupt British military officer and nearly everyone knows of his usurpation of the Moonstone during the siege at Serangapatam. However, throughout the investigation he is not tried for his original crime due to which the Indians are out for his family. Instead, the Indians are treated as criminals for trying to recover what was already their possession. The novel depicts the Colonel as a sly man who is able to go to any extents in order to get what he wants. A certain stubbornness is also shown in the Colonel’s character such that his own family tends to ostracize him. It is clearly listed in the novel that the Colonel tends to steal the diamond from its original place in order to gratify himself [Col121]. “I got to an open door, and saw the bodies of two Indians (by their dress, as I guessed, officers of the palace) lying across the entrance, dead. A cry inside hurried me into a room, which appeared to serve as an armoury. A third Indian, mortally wounded, was sinking at the feet of a man whose back was towards me. The man turned at the instant when I came in, and I saw John Herncastle, with a torch in one hand, and a dagger dripping with blood in the other. A stone, set like a pommel, in the end of the dagger's handle, flashed in the torchlight, as he turned on me, like a gleam of fire.” This in itself is a rather unethical act to commit since it desecrated the religious ideals of the Indians. Given also that the Indians were sworn as hereditary protectors of the diamond so it was only natural that they would follow Colonel Herncastle to England in order to recover and restore the diamond. The Colonel can be considered as being guilty of theft and desecration of sacrosanct religious ideals while the Indians can be seen as innocent. The Indians eventually recover the diamond and take it back to India to restore it. The eventual destination of the diamond reveals its sense of belonging to the Indian domain where it is eventually restored. The Indians were merely trying to recover what had been taken from them in the first place. In this sense, the Indians can be seen as being innocent and merely trying to protect their way of life and their religious ideals. Bibliography Col121: , (Collins 54), Col121: , (Collins 55), Col121: , (Collins 94), Col121: , (Collins 81), Col121: , (Collins 56), Read More