ABSTRACT
This research studies Rudyard Kipling’s representation about the influence of the British imperialism towards Indian society in his novel Kim. The objectives of the research are to describe how Rudyard Kipling represents the influence of the British imperialism towards Indian society in his novel and to discover Rudyard Kipling’s perception about the influence of the British imperialism towards Indian society in his novel. This research uses descriptive qualitative method.
The primary data of the research were taken from the novel. They include words, phrases, sentences, narrations, statements, and dialogues in the novel which are related to the objectives of the research. While the secondary data are words, phrases, statements and sentences taken from books, articles, essays and criticisms about social and cultural condition of society at the time the work was produced and the life of the author that are related to the objectives of the research. The research applies Postcolonialism by Edward Said as approach to answer the objectives of the research. Postcolonialism is a part of cultural studies that concern the relationship between the colonist (Western countries) and the colonized (Non - Western countries)
From the analysis, it is concluded that there are several influences of the British imperialism to many fields of Indian’s life as reflected in Rudyard Kipling’s Kim in economic, religious, educational, socio-cultural and political fields. It reveals that Kipling’s way in representing the influence of the British imperialism towards Indian society is unique and complicated because he seems ambivalent when he represents the influence of the British imperialism in several fields in India in his novel. Then, Kipling shows his perception in the novel Kim that the British imperialism gives positive influences to Indians because it gives advantages to many fields in India. It is concluded that Kipling is pro toward the British imperialism because Kipling is the member of British society so that he describes India from the colonist’s perspective. Through his novel, Kipling wants to show his perception that the British Empire is good to India because it gives better life to people of India.
Keywords: Imperialism, Indians, Influence of imperialism, Postcolonial, The British Empire.