https://indianpedia.org/index.php?action=history&feed=atom&title=Ibis_trilogyIbis trilogy - Revision history2026-07-30T22:17:22ZRevision history for this page on the wikiMediaWiki 1.45.4https://indianpedia.org/index.php?title=Ibis_trilogy&diff=336998&oldid=prevUpdateBot at 19:18, 2 March 20222022-03-02T19:18:36Z<p></p>
<p><b>New page</b></p><div>{{Short description|Work of historical fiction by Amitav Ghosh}}{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2018}}<br />
{{Use Indian English|date=August 2018}}<br />
{{more citations needed|date=January 2018}}<br />
The '''''Ibis'' trilogy''' is a work of [[historical fiction]] by Indian writer [[Amitav Ghosh]].<ref name="TH">{{cite news|url=http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/columns/Ziya_Us_Salam/amitav-ghosh-talks-about-flood-of-fire/article7286098.ece|title=‘The trilogy is over’|newspaper=The Hindu|author=Ziya Us Salam|date=6 June 2015|accessdate= 17 May 2017}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=Anderson|first=Clare|date=5 December 2016|title=Empire and Exile: Reflections on the Ibis Trilogy|url=https://academic.oup.com/crawlprevention/governor?content=%2fahr%2farticle-lookup%2fdoi%2f10.1093%2fahr%2f121.5.1523|access-date=2022-02-07|website=academic.oup.com|publisher=[[The American Historical Review]]|pages=1523–1530|doi=10.1093/ahr/121.5.1523}}</ref> The story is set in the first half of the 19th century. It deals with lead-up to the [[First Opium War]],<ref>{{Cite web|date=2015-06-05|title=Flood of Fire by Amitav Ghosh review – the final instalment of an extraordinary trilogy|url=http://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/jun/05/flood-of-fire-amitav-ghosh-review-instalment-trilogy|access-date=2022-02-07|website=the Guardian|language=en}}</ref> involving the trade of [[opium]] between [[India]] and [[China]] run by the [[East India Company]] and the trafficking of [[coolies]] to [[British Mauritius|Mauritius]]. It comprises ''[[Sea of Poppies]]'' (2008), ''[[River of Smoke]]'' (2011), and ''[[Flood of Fire]]'' (2015).<br />
<br />
== Synopsis ==<br />
The trilogy gets its names from the ship ''Ibis'', on board which most of the main characters meet for the first time. The ''Ibis'' starts from [[Calcutta]] carrying [[indentured servitude|indentured servants]] and convicts destined for [[British Mauritius|Mauritius]], but runs into a storm and faces a [[mutiny]]. Two other ships are caught in the same storm—the ''Anahita'', a vessel carrying opium to [[Guangzhou|Canton]], and the ''Redruth'', which is on a botanical expedition, also to Canton. While some of the passengers of the ''Ibis'' reach their destination in Mauritius, others find themselves in [[British Hong Kong|Hong Kong]] and Canton and get caught up in events that lead to the [[First Opium War]].<br />
<br />
The novels depict a range of characters from different cultures, including [[Bihari people|Bihari]] peasants, [[Bengali people|Bengali]] [[Zamindars of Bengal|Zamindars]], [[Parsi]] businessmen, [[Cantonese people|Cantonese]] boat people, British traders and officials, a [[Cornish people|Cornish]] botanist, and a [[mulatto]] sailor. In addition to their native tongues, the novels also introduce the readers to various [[pidgin]]s, including the original [[Chinese Pidgin English]] and variants spoken by the [[lascar]]s.<br />
<br />
==Historical background==<br />
Two major historical phenomena act as a backdrop to the plot of the Ibis trilogy—the "Great Experiment", which involved transport of indentured labour from British controlled India to work on the sugar plantations of Mauritius, and the [[History of opium in China|trade of opium]] between British India and China. The British played a significant part in both of these as mercantile traders who waged war and created markets of opium in the name of 'free trade'.<br />
<br />
== Reception ==<br />
The trilogy has for the most part been well received. ''Sea of Poppies'' was shortlisted for the 2008 [[Booker Prize]], while ''River of Smoke'' made it to the long list of the [[Man Asian Literary Prize]] in 2011.<br />
<br />
==References==<br />
{{Reflist}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Fiction set in the 19th century]]<br />
[[Category:Indian English-language novels]]<br />
[[Category:Indian historical novels in English]]<br />
[[Category:Literary trilogies]]<br />
[[Category:Novels by Amitav Ghosh]]<br />
[[Category:Works about opium]]<br />
[[Category:Novels set in British India]]<br />
[[Category:Novels set in Kolkata]]<br />
[[Category:Novels set in Guangdong]]<br />
[[Category:Novels set in Hong Kong]]<br />
[[Category:Novels set in the Qing dynasty]]<br />
[[Category:Novels set in Mauritius]]<br />
[[Category:Novels set in the 19th century]]<br />
[[Category:Opium Wars]]<br />
[[Category:Ghazipur]]<br />
[[Category:2008 Indian novels]]<br />
[[Category:2011 Indian novels]]<br />
[[Category:2015 Indian novels]]<br />
[[Category:2000s novels]]<br />
[[Category:2010s novels]]<br />
<br />
{{hist-novel-stub}}{{Amitav Ghosh}}</div>UpdateBot