57 pages 1 hour read

Amitav Ghosh

Gun Island

Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2019

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.

Part 2, Chapters 16-22

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Part 2: “Venice”

Part 2, Chapter 16 Summary: “Warnings”

Cinta arrives in the morning and Deen, holding the Salgari book, asks if he has been reading it. He pales and confesses that he doesn’t feel like himself; so many strange occurrences have happened, the latest of which was the spider. He theoretically knows there is a natural, scientific explanation for the recent strange occurrences, given the rising global temperatures, but still feels uneasy. Cinta asserts that the rising temperatures are not natural, but are caused by human activity and pollution. Cinta observes that Deen’s feeling of fading away and losing his will appears concurrent with symptoms of possession that people experienced during the Spanish Inquisition. Cinta reflects on how their ancestors would worry about this, as they needed to assert their will on the natural environment to survive. The modern world, conversely, is so mechanized and automated that one doesn’t need to assert one’s presence at all; as a result, it simply fades away. Cinta suggests that “the world of today presents all the symptoms of demonic possession” (236-37) because human beings see monstrous things happening and do nothing about it. She claims that what Deen is feeling is the opposite of a loss of will; it is a reawakening, in which he is becoming more aware of the natural world around him.

Related Titles

By Amitav Ghosh

Plot Summary

logo

Flood of Fire

Amitav Ghosh

Flood of Fire

Amitav Ghosh

Study Guide

logo

In an Antique Land

Amitav Ghosh

In an Antique Land: History in the Guise of a Traveler's Tale

Amitav Ghosh

Plot Summary

logo

River of Smoke

Amitav Ghosh

River of Smoke

Amitav Ghosh

Study Guide

logo

Sea of Poppies

Amitav Ghosh

Sea of Poppies

Amitav Ghosh

Study Guide

logo

The Calcutta Chromosome

Amitav Ghosh

The Calcutta Chromosome

Amitav Ghosh

Study Guide

logo

The Glass Palace

Amitav Ghosh

The Glass Palace

Amitav Ghosh

Study Guide

logo

The Great Derangement

Amitav Ghosh

The Great Derangement: Climate Change and the Unthinkable

Amitav Ghosh

Study Guide

logo

The Hungry Tide

Amitav Ghosh

The Hungry Tide

Amitav Ghosh

Study Guide

logo

The Shadow Lines

Amitav Ghosh

The Shadow Lines

Amitav Ghosh